What is Naam? We talk and hear a lot about
Naam, but never for a moment pause to ponder over what it is, and how to gain
salvation or Nirvana through it. What is that Name, the
remembrance whereof leads to Nirvana? *3 What is that name, the
repetition whereof enables a person to cross over the world of sorrow? *4 GURU
TEG BAHADUR In fact the Lord god is
nameless, but we have given Him myriads of names. What name can indeed describe the formeless, the Limitless, the
Incomprehensible, one beyond the grasp of senses and the intellect? Still man
has, through the ages, endeavored to put Him in the trammels of words and
clothe Him with epithets just for the sake of expression, though all combined
together fail hopelessly to do any justice to Him. After all words do come from a limited source and cannot possibly
limit the Limitless: If all the mountains were
pounded into ink-powder and mixed with the waters of the oceans, pens were made
out of all the forest tress, and the entire earth were a sheet of paper, the
glory of God or Naam or God-into-expression Power could not even then be
described. SAHJO
BAI All names are Thine and so
are all forms Thine, but all fail to enumerate Thy countless attributes. *5 GURU
NANAK Thou embracest in Thee all
powers and potentialities, all riches and treasures, for Thou art the Primeval
Cause, the Causeless Cause both material and efficient. The Lord of all, Thy names are numberless. *6 GURU
ARJAN God has names beyond our
comprehension. He cannot be known and
no name can describe Him. The learned and the
unlettered have done their very best but have not been able to evaluate even a
particle of His greatness. *7 O God! So many art Thy
names, that the poor tongue faileth to enumerate them. *8 GURU
RAM DAS Guru Gobind Singh Ji, the
tenth Guru of the Sikhs, says, Who can sing of the glory of
all Thy names? Still the wise tell us of
Thine attributes. All names fall into two
categories: (i)
Karan Naam or names indicative of gunas
(qualities) or swabhave, that is, qualitative or attributive names; like Ram,
Rahim and Karim (i.e., all-pervading, merciful and compassionate). (ii)
Pura
Purbala Naam or personal names which are all-comprehensive, ancient and
eternal. We generally sing the glory
of God with man-made names, But His Great Name--Sat
Naam--is eternally the same. *9 GURU
ARJAN The question that now arises
is one of choice: which of these countless names is the most efficacious and
speedily fruitful? The Hindus in general glorify "Om" and speak
highly of "Ram-Naam." The Muslims prefer "Allah" and the
Sikhs "Wah-I-Guru." Every
religious order has thus adopted one or the other name as a central tenet and
makes use of it in their daily worship and devotion. To confine one's self to any of these exclusively would mean
making God partial. Our quest leads us
to a number of issues such as: (a)
Selection
of the most fruitful name. (b)
Mode
of repetition: Should the name selected be repeated mentally or through
meditation on the meaning of the word selected. If we refer to the Sikh
sacred literature, we come across varied reference, some deling with Japa or
repetition, others with Sunan or hearing, Manan or acceptance, Dhyan or
meditation and last but not least, Self-illumination and Sound Principle as
well. Remember Naam, or my
brethren-in-faith, This grants peace, O keep
the mind ever fixed in Naam. *10 By hearing Naam, the mind
gets stilled, The greatness of Naam is known through the Master. *11 Commune with Naam till the
last breath of life, This brings proximity to God
and He saves in the end. *12 Those who contact not the
Naam, why do they come into the world? Arid is the field of life
for them and they die a miser-able death.
*13 The devotees of the Lord are
His representatives and unto them we pray, We, the filthy worms, are at
their feet, let the Divine light fill us through. *14 A contact with the Sound
Current gives self realization which is the summum bonum of life. By it one is washed of all impurities of the
mind and easily merges into Life Divine.
O Nanak! This contact is established by a rare gurmukh. *15 GURU
RAM DAS A contact with Naam makes
one self-luminous, with luminosity vying with myriads of suns. *16 GURU
ARJAN By Thy grace manifest the
Divine light of Naam. *17 GURU
RAM DAS In Naam there is perfect
food, both for the eyes and the ears.
Next we hear of the sinking in and dwelling of Naam in the tablet of the
mind. It is clearly stated in the sacred
Sikh scriptures that this contact can only be had beyond the domain of senses
and sensory organs: Naam is not the subject of
the eyes. It is something wonderful and
indescribable. *18 GURU
NANAK References like these lead
to but one irresistible conclusion: that the true Naam is something beyond this
or that word. It is a great magnetic
Power, and a force that can grip the mind.
It is characterized by sweet strains and melodious tunes, which can be
heads, and powerful light which can be seen and witnessed. It is this Naam or Power and force of
godhead which cannot be comprehended by the senses and can only be realized and
experienced in Super-ensural planes. It
is a Life Current that pervades the entire creation and is hence called Ram
Naam or All Embracing Impulse. Kabir
Sahib says: There are myriads of names
in the world, but none of them can grant salvation. The Primeval Name is a
hidden one and a rare soul can know and realize it. Oral repetition of names has
its own place and utility, and is needed for some purposes, but it cannot lead
to self-realization and God-realization, both of which can be achieved only
through contact with God-in-action, call it what we may--Shabd, Ram-Naam,
Kalma, Word, Sruti, Sraosha, etc.; and this contact can come about only through
the Grace of some competent living Master. Everyone is repeating the
monosyllable Ram but gets no touch with the Power Ram behind the mono-syllable: It is the Grace of the
Master alone that can give a living touch with the All-Embracing Life Impulse
and the wish-yielding Elixir. A thirsty traveler can not
quench his thirst by simply crying for "Water," unless he actually
gets the substance, water. Yari Sahib,
therefore, says: The tongue tires itself out
by repeating the word Ram, The repetition of the word
"Water" never quenches the thirst, One may slake the thirst by
taking a draught of water. Kabir Sahib, in this
context, speaks thus: Mere repetition of this or
that name, without an actual touch with the named, is of no avail. If one were to become rich by calling for
riches, then there would hardly be one who is not rich. Nameless is He and yet all
names are His. If one can but get in
touch with His Power, all names become inconsequential, for actual contact is
what matters and not the words. If a
thirsty person gets the substance, water, to quench his thirst, it does not
matter if he calls for it as ab (Persian), water (English), aqua(Latin), eau
(French), ma(Arabic) or hudor (Greek), for his purpose is served by of these
words. Similarly, the word
"bread" is quite a different thing from the real bread. While one is just an expression used to
distinguish it from other things, the other is the real bread that dispels
hunger. So one must strive to contact
the Reality rather than run after the shad-owy words that stand for the
Reality. From a mere name one has to
get to the named before one can have the real benefit, a satisfaction to the
ever-inner urge for filling the inner vacuum of the soul. Maulana Rumi saith: O thou repeater of the Name,
go and search out the Named. Without the Named, how can a
mere name give thee comfort? Sant Tulsi Das, the famous
author of the Hindi Ramyana of the4 biography of Lord Rama, has given
precedence to Naam over both Rama and Brahma, since Naam is at once the Creator
and the controlling power of Brahma, Parbrahma, Sat Naam, Alakh and Agam. (1)
In
magnimity and large-heartedness, Naam far excels both Brahm and Rama. (2)
Personal
and Impersonal God are the two aspects of Brahm for He is at once
Indescribable, Beginningless, Incomprehensible and Formless. I feel that Naam
far transcends these two; for both of them are within its controlling Power,
from age to age. Though both Brahm and
Ram are beyond comprehension, yet they can be known and realized through Naam. I therefore say that Naam is greater than
both Ram and Brahm. (3)
I
cannot possibly sing the greatness of Naam.
Even the blessed Lord Rama himself can hardly do any justice to the
glory of Naam. The last dictum of Sant
Tulsi Das is significant indeed. Rama
is said to be the incarnation of Brahm, and the latter with the entire
hierarchy upward is the by-product or creation of Naam. In Jap Ji Sahib, Guru Nanak also refers to
it pertinently: There is one Spirit that has
created the Universe; and given over its control to the three guardian angels: Brahma,
Vishnu and siva: one of whom is entrusted with the task of creation, the other
with that of sustenance or maintenance and the third with that of administering
justice according to the Divine Law.
That Spirit always keeps a watchful eye on the works of all the three,
but the latter have no knowledge of it. *19 The majority of the
multitudinous would has forgotten the Reality--the Ever-enduring Spirit of
Naam--and are mightily busy in parrot-like repetition of the so many names of
that Spirit, with the result that they keep engrossed all the time in gathering
husk and chaff instead of the grain.
Hence all their hard labor goes unfruitful and they live in a famished
state without getting any satisfaction: Those who ignore Naam or the
Power of God and are busy with various other names are just like muck-worms
wallowing in filth. *20 The scriptural studies, the
religious debates are all Mayaic or illusory and shadowy nothings, O Nanak! Except Naam,
nothing is stable, and all acts not centered on Naam are fruitless. *21 Verily, verily, O Nanak! The
true study is the study of Naam. *22 Bookish knowledge is all
worldly wisdom. *28 GUGU
AMAR DAS Hari Naam is the essence of
all religions. *24 GURU
TAG BAHADUR Everyone wants happiness but
gets what God may ordain, All acts of devotion and
charity count for nothing when compared with Naam. *25 GURU
ARJAN Naam far excels Japa, Tapa,
deeds for charity and the like, A contact with Naam gets all
desires fulfilled. *26 One cannot by the study of
the scripturescross the ocean of life, Naam far transcends all acts
of piety and charity. *27
GURU
ARJAN Naam is a Power and Motor
Force behind everything and hence outer actions like pilgrimages to holy
places, acts of charity, fasts, penances, yajnas or sacrificial oblations to
fire and the like are of no avail to a seeker after Truth. Naam alone is the link between God and
man. It is with the help of Naam that
one can traverse to higher regions. It
serves as an electric lift that can safely carry a spirit yearning for
God-realization. Except Naam, there is
no other Path Godward. The body may be consigned to
the flames or cut to pieces. The mind
and the body may be made an offering and allowed to be consumed from day to
day. All such penances and assterities
are of no consequence when compared with Hari Naam. The body may be cut it twain
and the head be cut off for an offering or else it may be allowed to rot in the
Himalayan snows, yet none of these acts can cure the mind. Alsa, these have no efficacy , for we have
tried them all with no avail. One may give millions in
charity including horses and elephants, lands and kine, yet these will make him
a bloated coxcomb. It is only Ram Naam
(the all-pervading Sound Current) that can still the mind, and It comes as a
pure gift from a Master-soul. All
intellectual wranglings, Hath--yogic practices, scriptural studies, are but the
varied types of karmic bond-ages. The
only way to freedom and salvation is a Master-saint. *28 Truth is greater than
everything but higher still is true living.
*29 GURU
NANAK In Sukhmani, we have a
wonderful account of Naam: The rosary, the penances,
knowledge and thinking, The study of shastras,
smritis and scriptures, The yogic practices and the
performances of rites and rituals, A life of solitude in the
deep recesses of the forests, All endeavors of various
types, including deeds of charity for name and fame, cutting of limbs in
self.-conceit, All these and more still, do
not come up to the merit of Naam. O Nanak! A beloved of the
Master is ever engaged in communion with the Word. Circumambulation of the
globe and a life of longevity, Observance of austerities
coupled with renunciation, Life spend in the midst of
five fires, or one devoted to charitable deeds like giving away of worldly
possessions, The observance of Niyoli
Karm and many other yogic postures as enjoined by Jain scriptures, And even a holocaust of
one's body inch by inch, All these and still more
fail to purify the dirt of egoism; Nothing comes up to the
merit of Naam, O Nanak! a beloved of the
Master saves himself through communion with the Naam. Even the desire to die at a
sacred place does not rid one of his egoism. All efforts to purify the
body cannot sanctify the mind, All physical practices
cannot drive away the mental impurities, All the methodical washings
of the body cannot wash clean the clay-house. The Power of Naam far
transcends all these, O Nanak! it has saving grace
even for the worst of sinners.*30 GURU
ARJAN The Vedas, the Samritis and
all other sacred scriptures unanimously proclaim that besides Naam there is no
other Sadhan for spiritual advancement; all else is mere idle talk. *31 GURU
ARJAN Nanak has the riches of Naam
to dole out. *32 GURU
ARJAN Nanak and Kabir both taught
the science of the Naam. And I too have manifested
Naam within me, Dhru and Prahlad were
intoxicated with the elixir of Naam, And Lord Siva too is ever
engaged in meditating on Naam. DULAN DAS The world reveres those who
have sought the path of the Naam for Naam can transform sinners into saints,
for it ennobles and purifies: By practicing the science of
inversion, one becomes world famous, Even Valmik, a well known
highwayman, acquired the status of a Brahm. TULSI
DAS The lovers of Godare ever
engaged in the practice of the Word: Whether awake or asleep and
in whatever condition, O Nanak! while doing
eveything they remain contacted within.
*33 GURU
ARJAN In the scriptures of all the
religions, there are references to the Power of the Word: All the religions are deeply
rooted in the Naam, There is no religions higher
than that of the Naam. *34 The practice of the Naam is
the noblest of all virtues. *35 GURU ARJAN Devotion to Naam is the only
true worship The significance of Naam
(the true devotion of God) cannot be put in words: Rare indeed is the devotion
to Naam (or Hari), We cannot do full justice to
the greatness of Naam. *36 GURU
AMAR DAS Naam alone is immaculate and
everything else is of no consequence.
What then can we give in offering? But we are all as an unclean
thing, And all our righteousnesses
are as filthy rags. *37 ISALAH Whatever we say and utter in
praise of Naam is inadequate. The
entire mankind is indeed engaged in singing praises of Naam and in the
performance of devotional exercises.
But as all this being done on the intellectual level and on the plane of
the senses, it does not bear any appreciable fruit. A rare soul here and there, who is born anew through Naam or the
Power of God, is truly immaculate. Only
such a devotion is acceptable at His Court.
There is no other devotion like that.
Such a soul always cries out: Thy Word is a lamp unto my
feet, and a light unto my path. *38 THE
PASALMS The Bible tells us, The Word of God is quick
(living) and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to
the dividing asunder of soul and spirit and of the joints and marrow and is a
discerner of the thoughts and interests of the heart. *39 As we do not know what Naam
is and its true significance, we live as if in a dome of many-colored glass
which by its bewildering effect deludes the senses. All our prayers are but a confused jargon, and our words, though
loud and strong, vanish into thin air and yield no results. Everyone does worship but on
the sensual plane only, and so gets no results. But absorption in the Naam
purifies the mind and bears fruit in abundance, Those who aredevotees of the
Naam are truy pure and beloved of the Lord, But for Naam all other
worship goes in vain, and the people at large are deluded. The beloved of the Master
(Guru-mukh) knows himself by coming in contact with the all-pervading
Word(Naam). The Immaculate Lord Himself becoming
the guide contacts the soul with the Sound Current, Those who worship with no
proper guidance, remain wandering in the realm of duality, A devotee of the Master
alone knows the Path and bows before His Will.
*40 GURU
AMAR DAS Naam is the great
Controlling Power By the Word of the Lord were
the heavens made; and all the host of them…He spake and it was done; He
commanded, and it stood fast. *41 THE
PSALMS Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every Word that proceedeth out of the Mouth of God. *42 CHRIST Naam or Word is the chief
Controlling Power. It is the only
support that one can have either in this world or in the Next: I need no obsequies after my
death, I depend wholly on Sat Naam,
the maker of all, and pervading all, here and hereafter. *43 GURU
NANAK Naam is beginningless and
endless. It is invarible and unchanging
Permanence, ancient and eternal. Leaving aside all thy
learning and cunning, worship The Great Gormless beyond
Brahm. Except the Naam all others
fall away. *44 GURU ARJAN Excepting the True Naam, the
rest is all trash. Four things alone
are eternal and lasting: Naam or sound Current; Sadhu or a disciplined soul
well established in Word; Curu or Word-personified, with a divine commission to
contact others with the Naam; and lastly, Gobind or the Lord God--the Eternally
Formless One. *45 GURU AMAR DAS Everything is within the
Controlling Power of Naam: Naam is just a pure gift
from God; He lone may get the gift
through the Guru, to whomsoever He may grant it, O Nanak! all is within the
mighty grip of the Naam, He alone is blessed with Word, who may be so
ordained. *46 GURU
AMAR DAS Naam is the Great Master
Force Word or Naam is the Sound
Current or Sound Principle. This current
of principle lay merged in the Great Silence and was hence nameless. There was then nothing but Deep Silence with
no name or pattern, no design or form and no color or shade. The life vibration (principle) hidden
therein, stirred the Great Deep and there came a Great Sound called Word and
the whole creation came into being, and is being sustained by this. With the with-drawal of the Naam or Sound
there sets in disintegration and decay in all that lives, with consequent
putrefaction, and the result is dissolution which in common parlance is known
as death. Thus this Sound is at once
the beginning and the end of al that exists: He--the Nameless--expressed
Himself and made the Naam or Word. *47 GURU
NANAK It is called variously as
Sound, Sruti (that which is heard), Shabd or Skash Bani (voice from the
heaven), udgit, Sraosha (music of the beyond), Word or Harmony, Logos or the
Holy Spirit, Kalma or Band-I-ilahi (call from God) or Nida-I-Asmani (heavenly
sound). Thou manifested Thyself as
Naam and set up the creation. Out of the Formless
proceeded forms in verying degrees. *48 GURU
NANAK This entire extensionalism
is just of the Naam and there is nothing which is not of Him: Thou art immanent in all; And nothing is where Thy
Word is not. *49 GURU
NANAK Again, All that is of life and all
that is of matter is from the Naam (Whether visible or invisible); Withoug a Master-Soul one
cannot have contact with the Naam. *50 GURU
AMAR DAS It may here be necessary to
describe in brief the four Grand Divisions of the Universe. These Grand Divisions are: (i)
Sach
Dhand or the region of Sat Naam: this
regionis of pure spirit unalloyed by matter. (ii)
Par
Brahm: Here spirit and subtle form of matter combine in varying degrees, yet
spirit is the ruling force. (iii)
Brahmand:
Where spirit and matter in its gross form combine. Here the spirit, for its manifestation, has to depend on
matter. It consists of Trikuti and
Sahasrar (Und). (iv)
Pind
or the physical plane: Where the spirit lies dormant under a heap of matter in
its grossest form. Naam or Word is both the
Creatot and the Substainer of the Universe: The Naam or Word is the
Power of God that has created the Universe, The same Power is sustaining
all by its immanence in every form. *51 GURU AMAR DAS Everything comes into being
and lives by the Naam or Power of God, Forgetting the Naam, we
breathe hollow. *52 GURU
AMAR DAS Upholding all things by the
Word of His Power. *53 And He is before all things,
and by Him all things consist. *54 ST.
PAUL By the Word of the Lord were
the heavens made, And all the host of them…for
He speake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood
fast. *55 THE
PSALMS Through faith we understand
that the worlds were framedby the Word of God… *56 ST.
PAUL By the Word of God the
heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water… But the heavens
and the earth which are now, by the same Word are kept in store… *57 ST.
PETER Word is at once the Creator
and the Sustainer of the Universe. Word transcends all forms
and all names, They who worship the Word,
alone live. *58 Word transcends all forms
and all names, They who worship the Word,
alone live. *59 GURU
ARJAN Joyhn Dryden, min his song
for St. Cecilia's Day (1687), refers to it as Harmony: Form Harmony, form heavenly
Harmony, This Universal frame began; When Nature underneath a
heap Of jarring atoms lay, And could not heave her head The tuneful voice was heard
from high Arise, Ye more than dead! From Harmony, from heavenly
Harmony This Universal frame began: From Harmony to Harmony Through all the compass of
the notes it ran, The diapason closing full in
Man. Word or Naam is the great
Progenitor or the Primeval Cause of the entire creation with the various
divisions high and low. We have the
testimaony of Guru Arjan in this behalf: Naam is the life-principle
in all that lives, Naam is the foundation-stone
of the Cosmos with its divisions. Naam is the Creator of
Heavens and nether lands, Naam is the Manifester of
all forms. Naam is the Sub-strata of
all regions, Naam is the liberator from
all bondage. *60 The various Khandas or
planes exist because of Naam and different Yugas or classifications of time owe
their origin to Naam: There is but one source of
the different divisions of time and Universe.
This has been revealed to me by the Master-soul. Name is a great storehouse of all that one
may wish for. Why then should I move
out for this or that? *61 GURU
ARJAN Naam: what it is All scriptures speak of Naam
but have not been able to say adequately what it is. It is impossible to define and delineated It in Words. It may be described as "life-impulse"
or "conscious-principle." When it begins to vibrate, it produces
melodious sound, which is termed Naam or Shabd. This Sound Current proceeding from the Deep Silence of the
Formless Kutasth is responsible for all forms and colors, visible and invisible
to the naked eye. All life hangs on
this life-principle is all-pervading; it may or may not be felt, yet it is
reverberating from top to toe. It is
the Kernel and the Essence and at once both the material and efficient Cause of
the endless universes in which this physical earth is but a speck. O Pipa! This universal
vibration is the Primal Cause-less Cause, But can be apprehended only
through a Master-soul. RAJA
PIPA In all religions God is
spoken of as the Sound-manifest or Life Principle. It is a current, live and conscious, and has in it the germs of
creation. It is because of this link
between the Creator and the creation that the spirit or soul of a person can
cross over the physical body and traverse the spiritual regions to reach the
True Home of our Father--Sach Khand.
From scriptures we learn that Sound Principle or Naam is of two kinds:
(i) outer, and (ii) inner. The former
consists of words that may be spoken or written down and recorded. This constitutes all learning and knowledge at
the intellectual level and is termed Apra Vidya or knowledge of the world and
the worldly surroundings. All worldly
wishdom is included therein. It is also
called Varn-Atmak, for with it Atma or Soul can express itself and functions in
the world. All book knowledge is
because of Varn-Atmak Shabd.
Comprehension of world and worldly relations depends on this type of
Shabd which helps outwardly in the physical plane. It serves as the means of conveying ideas and emotions from man
to man, just as any other animal would do.
Outer sound then, serves as the first step in the study of the Science
of the Spirit. Theory precedes practice
and the Master-saint has to make use of it for explaining this most abstruse
subject. Again Japa or oral repetition
of certain words or names of God is to be done by Varn-Atmak Shabd. The preliminary training of the mind is the
first essential on this Path and hence the need for outer sound or Shabd. Japa is of four kinds: (i)
Baikhri
or oral, performed by tongue. (ii)
Madhma,
done mentally at the seat of the Shakti in the Kanth or throat. (iii)
Pashianti,
done at the seat of heart. (iv)
Para,
also a mental process performed with attention reveted at the seat of the
navel. All these types of Japas
give solace of varying degrees and one gets peace of mind of a temporary nature
only, because the various bodily ganglions involved in them are of a lower
order, situated below Shiv-Netra or the Third Eye. Besides these, there is
Simranof Japa of the indescribable and hidden Sound Current that proceeds of
Itself from the depths of the Great Silence.
It is technically termed "Para-Vidya" (knowledge of the
Beyond) or "Dhun-Atmak Shabd."
In this type of Japa one has just to listen to the all-pervading Naam or
Shabd. As this Sound cannot be expresed
in any symbolic form, it is expressionless.
It may be contacted above the sensory plane, behind the center of the
two eyebrows. The true significance of
Naam, the Creator of various planes and divisions of the endless universes, may
be knownby one who is an adept in the Surat Shabd Yoga or has united his soul
with the Sound-principle. He who performs Japa with
the tongue of thought, knows the true nature of the Sound Current (Word or
Naam). *63 GURU NANAK No doubt Dhun-Atmak Shabd is
the very essence of one's soul, but one cannot apprehend It without the help
and guidance of a Master-soul or adept in the line, and without Surat Shabd
Yoga, i.e., establishing a contact of the spirit or soul with the essential
live-principle (through a regular process of inversion of self-analysis). One does not get life's richest gift; for
the spirit is engaged all the tim in outer pursuits by constant association
with the mine and the senses, reveling in the enjoyment of the world and
worldly objects. Emerson, the great
American philosopher, speaks of inversion as "tapping inside", Lord Jesus metaphorically
speaks of it: Knock and it shall be opened
unto you. *63 Naam or Name is Varn-Atmak,
while Naami or Named is the Great Power behind the descriptive words and is
Dhun-Atmak. Form epithetic words, one
has to recede to the Power which the words denote and stand for. The Japa or Varn-Atmak is performed orally
by the tongue and is just a pereparatory course in the spiritual discipline of
the soul. Sant Ravi Das says in this
context: Without actual sight (of an
object) longing does not arise. Whatever is visible to the
naked eyes is perishable indeed, He who establishes an inner
contact of Surat and Shabd (Spirit and Sound) through the help of Varn-Atmak
words, is a true Yogi, desireless and free.
*64 Varn-Atmak or epithetic
names look just like dolls apparently dancing by themselves: but they in fact
are being made to dance by invisible hands controlling the lines behind
them. In exactly the same way there
exist infallible links between Naam and the Naami (or the Name and the Named:
Varn-Atmak and Dhun-Atmak Shabd).
Varn-Atmak words pave the way to Dhun-Atmak Shabd and are thus essential
aids in stilling the mind of oscillations, purging it of all impurities and
rendering it capable of apprehending the Dhun-Atmak current within, for without
this vital chord, the spirit cannot transcend the physical plane and enter the
higher spiritualplanes leading to the Home of our Father. The Varn-Atmak words may and do differ
because of lingual differences, but the Dhun-atmak Shabd being the
Life-Principle of the spirit or soul is the same throughout. It has indeed been an Unspoken Language and
an Unwritten Law throughout the ages and it shall remain so till eternity; for
all life is one and one only for the entire creation, through it is in
multitudinous forms. The teachings of
the Saints which center round the One Reality are, therefore, a common heritage
for the entire humanity and not for this or that class or social order or
religious sect. The Saints are secular
in their outlook and not sectarian.
Children of Light, they give light to one and all, irrespective of caste
and creed. God made man (an embodied
spirit) and man made religions and is caught in his own handiwork just like a
silkworm in his cocoon. The Saints come
to liberate man from his own self-made bondage, to take him out of the narrow
grooves which he has molded himself through centuries of habitual way of
living. The Saints do not meddle with
social orders nor do they create any.
Their call is addressed to the spirit alone. They come with a divine mandate: To lead man from Darkness to
Light, from Untruth to Truth, for Death to Immortality. The Vedas Think not that I am come to
destroy the Law, or the Prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to
fulfill. *65 CHRIST Again, For them (saints)there is no
difference between the so-called twice-born: the Brahmins, Kshatriyas and the
Vaishyas and the low-born Sudras, for they address them all alike. The beloved the Master
(Gurmukh) worships the Naam and attains Moksha (liberation)--the Naam which, O
Nanak! pervades equally in all. *66 GURU
ARJAN In
the life story of Guru Nanak we find the anecdote of Mian Mitha, a fakir of
Mithankot, a town in the Punjab (now in West Pakistan). In his wanderings, Guru Nanak came across
this fakir and told him that without Naam or Word one from no peace here and
hereafter and could not escape from the Karmic bondage. As to what this Naam or Word was, he said
that it was not a subject of comprehension by the senses, but it could be apprehended
on a super-sensual plane. The Guru
asked Mian Mitha to listen within himself, but the Mian could hear
nothing. Thereupon the Guru took him
aside and looking intently at him asked him once again to attune himself
within, whereupon the Mian exclaimed that he could distinctly feel the
vibrations of Naam in every pore of his body.
This shows that the Word of God is characterized not by words but by
vital vibrations. A beloved of the Master
feels and experiences the quickening of life-impulse in all the pores of his
body. *67 GURU
NANAK The Saints, therefore, in
common, say the God is one and there is only one way that leads Godward. The spiritual discipline does not interfere
with nationality or social religion.
Every person, whatever his nationality or religion, can practice this
discipline and successfully follow the Path of the Saints. The Divine Link or Word is already present
in each individual, no matter who he is and what-ever his vocation in
life. It is attained by a process of self-analysis
and inversion and one who learns and practices this process can come into
contact with It. But the trouble is
that everyone clings to the age old convictions and is not prepared to break
away from them and accept ideas which appear new and novel. But by constant association with a Godman or
a man of realization, the Light or Truth gradually dawns upon him, and in
course of time he begins to realize the Truth. |