In plain words
This very service takes you near to God. This same service brings you the vision of God. This service alone helps you to recognise yourself.
We need not go groping about, "Where is God, where is God?" If you know yourself, it is as good as knowing God. If you do not know yourself, where will you see God? So, you who try to know God, first of all know yourself. Who am I? Who am I? All the ancient Maharṣis went on enquiring into this very principle. One day the aged Socrates was walking along a beach. Enquiring into his own nature, he was going along thinking, "Who am I, who am I?" A great philosopher. Another man, a retired man, was walking along the same beach. He was coming along thinking about something. This Socrates too was coming along deep in thought. They did not see each other. Coming on, the two suddenly bumped into each other. The man coming the other way said who are you. "That is just what I want to know; tell me who I am," he said. Such are the thoughts of great souls. As for us, at "Who am I?" we answer so and so and keep adding degrees besides. These degrees are of no use to us at all. We take some titles or other and set them up as degrees. We take some diplomas and set those up as degrees too. We delude ourselves that through these we will get some position or other. But the true degree is your purity of heart. It is sacred. A short story. A man made many attempts to get a job. He had a big family, but he was poor. In that situation he had to support his children and his wife. He had to carry out his duty. He had to carry out his duty. At such a time he could find no job anywhere. Taking what little money he had, he had his name written on a small board, wrote some degrees on it and put it up in front of his house. He wrote his name on that board. Beside it, F.F.S, F.T.D. Many students go along that road. "What are these degrees? Engineering? Doctor? Some other kind of diploma?" they wondered. Each of them read the meaning in his own way. One student plucked up courage, went inside and said, "There are all these degrees; what do they mean?"