Serving for the ‘spark of the ‘divine’: Conceptualizing seva in Sikhism

Seva (voluntary selfless service) occupies a central place in Sikhi. Introduced by Baba Nanak as a Sacha Sauda (true business) to feed the needy and roaming ascetics, it has become a permanent feature of Sikh philosophy and practice. This paper examines seva in Sikhi by analyzing its various dimensions and comparing it with other similar but inherently different conceptions in other religions, while tracing its origin and growth during the historic ‘human Guruship’ period in the expanding domain of Sikhi as well as the space it occupies in current times.