4. LOVING
HUMILITY: Humility is an ornament of the Saints. It exalts them in the eyes
of both man and God. A genuine Master Saint sees the Light of God in every
living being, and hence no wonder He meets the child-disciple on a level of
equality and treats him or her as His very own. As a fruitful branch hangs low
with the weight of its own fruit, so does the Master, with the weight of the
divine treasures within Him, lovingly meet all and sundry, irrespective of any
social and religious considerations who come to Him to partake of His riches
and to tread the Path to the eternal Home of the Father. "Service before
Self" is a rare gift. When the same "Self" operates in every
living creature, one ought to delight in service for its own sake.
"Self" and "Service" are but two aspects of the divinity. This understanding of the shared nature of the universe, despite
its apparently multi-colored designs and patterns, brings about an attitude of
equipoise which in turn gradually leads to serenity and sublimity, and one gets
engaged in the service of all and begins to see the corresponding self- same
enlivening principle working in all creation. Just as a smallest cog is indispensable in a vast mechanism and
serves a useful purpose, similarly, all is beautiful and full of divine
manifestation, serving a purpose under His Will. Such an idea strengthens the
silken bonds of loving brotherhood, and wins the pleasure of the Lord and the Master.
"Sweet
tongue imbued with humility, O Nanak! is the essence of all virtues." St. Augustine laid great emphasis on the virtue of humility.
Humility first, Humility last, and Humility throughout, was the supreme theme
that he had to give to his audience when he rose to deliver his convocation
address to students. Beyond this, he said, he had nothing more to give them.
Similarly, Kabir once declared that He lived in low humility just as a fish
lived in water, for this exalted man to the status of the Devas or gods. This
is the only virtue that allows a person to enter the Court of Saints. For the
advent of the Beloved, one has to empty out his very own self from within and
then live in Him all the time. Once, Kabir said, he went out in search of a wicked
person, but could find no one in the wide, wide world, and at last when he
peeped within himself, he saw that he was the wickedest of the wicked. This is
the acme of humility. Kabir also said, "I am the lowest as compared with
all others, and all are better than myself -- those who see that way are my
friends." Nanak always spoke of Himself as "Lowly Nanak,"
"Poor Nanak," "Nanak the slave or bondsman." Guru Amardas always prayed to God that He should make Him
"the slave of His slaves." My Master once said that He would like to
make shoes out of His skin for the feet of His devotees. False pride of worldly possession or pelf, assumed superiority
because of spiritual knowledge or intellectual attainments, vanity of earthly
things and status may turn astray the mind of the spiritual aspirant, yet in
course of time all these vanish into thin air. On the other hand, a heart full
of reverential humility is a fit receptacle for His grace, a receptacle which
when filled to overflowing runneth over on its own to others. For a humble
person no sacrifice is too great in the large interests of spiritual
development; whereas a proud person would endlessly await and even miss the
chance when offered. Time and tide wait for no man. Human birth is a priceless
asset granted by Providence in the ascending scale of evolution and its highest
object is spiritual perfection, for which all of us are here. Fortunate are those who are spotted, singled out and Initiated
into the Mysteries of the Beyond, and are linked with the divine attributes of
Holy Light and Celestial Sound. It is now up to us to "make hay while the
sun shines." If we take but one step forward, He will come a million steps
to receive and to greet us. The very idea of attaining spiritual perfection is
a happy augury and a happy prelude to the greatest venture in one's life. It is
the Divine Mercy which when stirred, brings about such a sublime thought. This
grand Mystery of Life cannot be resolved by intellectual attainments or by
sophisticated reasoning which may bring in knowledge but not wisdom, and which
also may induce that pride of learning and leadership making it all the more
difficult to enter the Kingdom of God. The crown of all understanding is to
realize our present state of self-complacency and the abject misery in which we
are unwillingly caught and feel helpless to escape. A closer view of things
will reveal that the soul is enshrouded with thick veils of ignorance and is
being driven hopelessly in endless gyres up and down on the Giant Wheel of Creation.
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