Social service will not always yeild +ve result

[sridatta]

Please explain in what context Swami Vivekananda said the following.

[Smt. Chhanda Chandra asked: Swami Vivekananda told those who live for others and love others, they serve God. Swami will You please take this pain to explain in what context he might have told this?]

Swami replied:- Unless you recognize the context of a statement, there is a danger of extending the statement to all contexts. In such over-extension, things get spoiled. This statement applies to a specific type of people, who are always selfish and greedy. This statement does not apply to ordinary normal people. In this statement also, there is an error in understanding real angle of the context. The word ‘others’ shall be taken as good and deserving people and shall not be taken to mean everybody good or bad.

Sage Vyaasa told this statement, which says that helping others is merit and harming others is sin (Paropakāraḥ puṇyāya…). This statement is corrected by Krishna in Gita, who said that helping good people is merit and harming good people is sin. It means harming bad people is merit and helping bad people is sin (Paritrāṇāya sādhūnām…).

All this comes under Pravrutti or worldly life only for which the temporary heaven and the temporary hell are the fruits. The soul shall enter Nivrutti, which gives the permanent abode of God (Brahma Loka). Pravrutti also must be followed in a more careful way because in deciding merit, there are several cunning technologies spread by fraud souls so that you may do sin thinking that it is merit. You must be overcautious in Pravrutti especially in this Kali age. Helping sinners appearing as deserving good people will yield the results of sins only and not the fruits of merit. Tigers and wolves are moving covered by the leather of goats!