Group Work – An Essential Component of Service

In the Pranic Healing and Arhatic Yoga system, great emphasis is laid on being of service to humanity and mother Earth. Not only is service necessary to establish peace, order and harmony in the world, but it’s also one of the fastest and most important ways for spiritual growth. Although one person can create a huge difference in the world, even the greatest of leaders require like-minded people working together towards a common purpose.

Here we look at some of the reasons why group work is essential for doing fruitful and long-lasting service; even more so for Pranic Healing and Arhatic Yoga practitioners.

1.  More the merrier

Great things cannot be done alone. Any big project requires teamwork to be able to expand the magnitude of service and to share various responsibilities. If one aims to create a greater impact, one needs to work as a part of a group, else the work done is limited and restricted.

2. Complementing each other

“In a group, one person balances the deficiencies of another.” – Master Choa Kok Sui

Every person has certain strengths and weaknesses. When we work alone, there is a tendency to get stuck at things we’re not proficient in. Working as a team ensures that others who’re good at those things can fill in and get the job done. This ensures that the work moves forward constantly.

3. Generating better ideas

“Just as your eyes have ‘blind spots’, your mind also has ‘blind spots’. This is why you need group discussions.” – Master Choa Kok Sui

Each idea has certain pros and cons. While a certain idea may seem flawless to one’s mind, there might be several drawbacks about it that one may tend to overlook. While working as a group, it is easier to spot the holes in a plan, which can easily be missed by one single person. Having group discussions help in filling the holes in the plan, and coming up with solutions and better ideas to take the mission forward.

4. Greater downpour of divine blessings

“When you gather together in a group, the Higher Beings are forced to appear.” – Master Choa Kok Sui

For any work to succeed, one requires divine blessings. When several people gather together for a common cause, the focused energy of the group attracts many Angels and Highly Evolved Energy Beings who send forth tremendous quantities of spiritual energy to the people involved. The intense dose of spiritual energy tends to remove several obstacles effortlessly, and helps in accomplishing the most Herculean tasks. What may seem impossible suddenly becomes possible with the help of the Higher Beings.

One also receives Divine guidance and help, which provides ideas, insights and solutions to get the job done in the most efficient and effective manner. This is what was meant in the Bible, where the Lord Jesus says, “For where two or three gather together in My name, there am I with them.” It simply means that when people gather in a group for a noble mission, God’s blessings are present with them.

5. Faster working out of Karma

According to many spiritual teachings, certain souls choose to be born around the same time to be able to meet each other in their current life and work out their past karma (whether good or bad) with each other. These souls often tend to be part of the same group to serve a greater purpose. Working in close proximity with each other enables them to work out their karma faster, which is essential for a person to progress spiritually.

6. Understanding ourselves better

Being part of a group for a large project provides us the opportunity to perform tasks which might be unnatural to us. It also puts us in different roles at the same time. For example, for a certain task which we excel at, our role may be to nurture and guide the other team members, whereas another task might require us to learn from others who’re good at it. This helps in developing one’s leadership qualities, and remaining humble at the same time. In this way, working as part of a group, helps us discover new facets within us which we may have been previously unaware of!

7. Strengthening our spiritual muscles

When several strong-willed people with an intense desire to serve come together, there is bound to be difference of opinions and certain amount of friction at times. Disagreements and misunderstandings are a part of any teamwork. Instead of getting disheartened and disappointed, we need to see this as a chance for accelerating our spiritual growth. These are tests to assess our mastery over various virtues like loving-kindness, patience, humility, forgiveness and selflessness.

We do not grow spiritually by living in a sterile environment. We grow by facing the difficulties that life throws at us and using it as stepping stones to accelerate our spiritual growth. This is what the Holy Master DK (through Alice Bailey) has to say about it – “One thing all disciples have to do is find that particular group of servers to which they belong on the inner plane, to recognize them on the physical plane and to unite with them in service for the benefit of the race.” He further states that “Soul vibration and relationship may exist, yet outer personalities may not harmonize. It is the work then of the aspirant to strengthen the grip of his soul upon his personality, so that esoteric group relations may become possible upon the physical plane. He will do this by disciplining himself and not by correcting his brothers.”

The lesson to ponder upon here is that very often, we tend to point fingers at our group members when things don’t go as per our wishes. Instead, we need to rise above external differences and realize the oneness with each other. We need to practice ‘Inner Reflection and Firm Resolution’ as taught by Master Choa Kok Sui, i.e. look within and not blame others.

8. Establishing cohesiveness

“Having a big project establishes cohesiveness among those who are serious. It develops their skills. This is an opportunity to assess the quality and caliber of your co-workers.” – Master Choa Kok Sui

Working in a team helps in understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each team member. One can identify the people who are committed to the goal, and assess the best roles for each member. Having a good team is essential, but having the right person for the right job is equally important. Working on projects as a team can help in finding the right people and the right roles for each person.

9. Balancing the Seven Rays

As per esoteric teachings, seven different types of energies are utilized in the process of creation. These seven energies are called the 7 Rays. Each person also contains these 7 Rays in different proportions. Certain Rays are more prominent than others in a person. To be able to view a certain situation from all it’s facets, one needs to balance the 7 rays. It is difficult for an average person to have all 7 rays perfectly balanced within them. Hence, having people with different Ray qualities in the group helps in balancing all the rays within the group.

A group with a good balance of the 7 Rays tends to be more successful and last longer than a group with lop-sided presence of different rays. One can learn more about the 7 Rays in Master Choa Kok Sui’s Spiritual Business Management workshop.

By the above discussion, it is clear that group work is extremely important for doing service. If you wish to be a part of greater service for humanity, it is best to find and join a group to serve with.