BOOK TEN Charan Kamal
The
Lotus Feet of the Master Very
frequently, we across the tem "Charan Kamal" in the scriptures of
various religions. Listen
, O simpleton! Learn to fall at the feet of a Guru. *1 GURU
NANAK If your thoughts be centerd
on the feet of the Guru, You will get all your
desires fulfilled. *2 GURU
ARJAN In the Gospels also we find
references to anointing and kissing the feet of Christ. Among the Hindus and Muslims there is still
the custom of doing obeisance by touching the feet of divines and holy
man. Let us try to understand the
significance or import of injunctions and practices like these. A living Master is a great
necessity in the science of spirituality.
He is the central figure around which the entire system revolves. He is the human pole through which the
divine power works in this world.
Without his guidance and help, one can do nothing and achieve nothing. No wonder then that one has to surrender
onself at the holy feet of the Master.
As Kamal or the lotus flower is considered to be something sublime and
sacred, the feet of the Master are generally spoken of as Charan Kamal or the
Lotus Feet, fit to be worshiped and adored in all sincerity and humility. Without the munificence of a
Guru one gets naught, Though one may engage in
millions of meritorious deeds. *3 GURU
AMAR DAS Set aside all thy wisdom
fall at the feet of a Guru. *4 Be thou the dust of sadhus'
feet and forget thyself altogether, Leave all thy cunning and
learning and fall at the feet of the Guru.
*5 Leave aside all thy wisdom
and knowledge, And fall at the feet of the
Saints. *6 GURU
ARJAN Listen, thou ignorant self,
learn to fall at the feet of the Master, Be thoudevoted to the Word
and then thou shalt have no fear of death. The unfortunate ones have a
heavy load on theirheads and can never be happy. *7 GURU
NANAK It is with a writ in the
forehead that one communes with the precious Word, And thy works shall be
fashioned out by devotion to the holy feet of the Master. *8 Think of the King--the Lord
of Creation, Depend on Him alone who is
immanent in all; Cast aside all thy artifices
and get hold of the Master's feet. *9 GURU
ARJAN O dear self! Thou wouldst be
blessed by devotion to the all-pervading Power, Serve day and night at the
feet of the Master, for that is the true devotion to the Lord. *10 GURU
NANAK From exhortations like the
following of Guru Arjan, it is clear that he wants us to find a living Master
and surrender ourselves to him, to profit from his company and close
association by molding out life and conduct according to his pattern, for in
this lies the secret of spiritual success.
"To contact the feet a
Guru" in this context means to meet a Master and enter his fold. Bow at the feet of His
devotees. *11 Remain always in the company
of the Saints, And be devoted to the feet
of the Master. *12 Blessed is the moment when I
see the Master, Let me be a holocaust at the
feet of the Master. *13 I live simply to see you And to do obeisance at your
feet. *14 I get constantly enlivened
by seeing the Master, And quench my thirst with
the washings of his feet. *15 May I always live in the
sweet remembrance of the Word and be blessed in body and mind; Let me drink the washings of
thy feet, o merciful Master divine. Blessed indeed was the time
when I reached thy door, O Lord; O Nanak, God in His utmost
mercy let me to the door of the Perfect Master. *16 GURU
ARJAN The feet of the Master are
often spoken of as a pool of sacred nectar that grants salvation to the
world-weary pilgrims on the Path. Listen ye to the Saints:
Salvation lies the true Word, Service at the feet of the
Master and devotion to his Word is the true pilgrimage. Such a one is acceptable at
His Court and obtains a seat of honor.
*17 GURU
ARJAN Again there is abundant
sweetness, strange and peculiar, in the feet of the Master, and untold
blessings flow therefrom. Sweet are the lotus feet of
the Master, With God's writ one sees
them; Myriad are the merits that
follow such a blessed vision. *18 GURU
ARJAN The washings of their feet
are taken to be an Elixir of Life, by taking which one gets Life Eternal. To meet a living Mastger is no easy
task. Really blessed is a person who has
the good fortune to come across one and recognize him. O Nanak! it is extreme good
gortune of one To cast aside pride and fall
at the Master's feet. *19 O Nanak, it is through
fullness of karma that one gets devoted to the feet of the Master. *20 Nanak says: Blessed am I, That I serve the feet of a
Sadh. *21 GURU
ARJAN It is with the grace of God
that one gets an opportunity to meet a living Master and have loving devotion
for his feet: God linked me with a Saint, And I found a boon
companion, And acquired love for His
feet. *22 He on whom God showers His
mercy Begins washing the feet of a
Satguru. *23 GURU
RAM DAS God has grace me with His
mercy, The feet of the Master are
now implanted in me. *24 GURU
ARJAN Blessed is the day when a
person engages in the service of the Master's feet and bows in all humility
before him and touches his lotus feet with his forehead and heard. Blessed are the eyes that
see the Master's Form, Blessed is the forehead that
touches his feet. *25 Blessed is the day that I
met the Master, And did obeisance at his
feet. *26 GURU
ARJAN Blessed are the beards that
touch his feet. *27 GURU
AMAR DAS Bhai Gurdas says in this
context: Through ages one has had a
human birth, But blessed is the life
wherein one takes refuge at the Master's feet, Blessed are the eyes that
behold the Master, Blessed the ears that hear
the Master, Blessed the nose that smells
the fragrance of his feet, Blessed the tongue that
repeats the words of the Master, Blessed the hands that serve
the Master, Blessed the feet that
circumambulate the Master. *28 Refuge at the feet of the
Master includes the merit of millions of pilgrimages, Even the gods and goddesses
are eagerly engaged in the service of the Master; Refuge at the feet of the
Master brings about fruition of all desires. All supernatural powers flow
from him and so doth immortaility; Refuge at the feet of the
Master takes one to the region of desirelessness. Devotion as enjoined by him
works out salvation from bondage; Refuge at the feet of the
Master has a merit that is inconceivable, He works without any thought
and is the potential cause (material and efficient) of all that exists. *29 Since the time I took refuge
at the feet of the Master All the world seems engaged
in worshiping at his feet; His lotus feet constitute a
pool of the Water of Life (Charan-Amrit); I wish and long for the dust
of his feet--the dust that his created the Universe. His lotus feet are the true
wealth and a true haven of peace, They grant ineffable vision
andlead to the Path God-ward: His lotus feet have a
glorythat is indescribable and incomprehensible, Not his, not this, I bow to
thee again and again, O Lord. *80 BAHI
GURDAS It is really a great
blessing to have a living Master. We
have in the scriptures countless merits that accrue from the lotus feet of the
Master. He dispels all our sorrows and
afflictions. One is rid of the deadly
sins of lusts and passions, attachments and desires. The body and mind both get purified. Freed from all bondage, one takes life as it flows by, unfettered
and unaffected, fearless of what may come--including death itself, which he
knows how to meet. With the Power of
the Word, he leads a life of perfect contentment and ecstasy and rises into
Universal Consciousness and hereafter lives at all times at the level of the
soul. This is Jivan Mukti or liberation
while living. Blessed is the time I see
the Master, And make an offering of
myself at his feet. *31 A true Satguru is a great
Donor, When I see him all my ills
vanish; His lotus feet are worthy of
adoration. *32 GURU
ARJAN I adore the feet of the
Satguru, Guru is the helmsman And his Word the barque by
which we cross over. *33 GURU
NANAK A glance of grace from the
Satguru is more than millions of kingships; The moment he manifests the
Word, my body and mind feel exhilarated; But it is with the writ of
God that one gets devoted to the feet of the Satguru. *34 Whatever the condition,
sitting or standing, I sing the virtues of the Lord and my sorrows and
afflictions disappear. Nanak says: it is with the
fullness of Karma that the mind gets attached to the feet of the Master. *35 All things are added unto
him who casts a loving look at the Master; Those whose minds are fixed
in the feet of the Master are truly blessed.
*36 Nanak says: if it be so
ordained, Leave all pride and be
engaged in the feet of the Master. *37 GURU
ARJAN Blessed are those whom the
Satguru has accepted, Nanak is ever attached to
the feet of the Master. *38 GURU
NANAK As ye sow, so shall ye reap,
and reap the seeds sown in ages past, On whomsoever He showers His
mercy, he washes the feet of the Satguru.
*39 GURU
RAM DAS Inner vision of the Master's
feet A living Master is not a
physical entity alone. He is an active
live principle that transcends at will the pyhsical plane and traverses into
higher spiritual regions. The Radiant
Form of the Master, called Guru Dev, guides and helps the human soul to extricate
itself from the trammels of the flesh, by means of Simranor repetition of the
charged words give by the Master. In
subtle regions the spirit is enabled to stay by the magnetic influence of the
Radiant Divine Form of the Guru (Divya-rup).
Hence the necessity fo devotion at the sacred feet of the inner Radiant
Form as well. Keep the feet of the
Masterever engraven in thy heart; Thou shalt have all thy
wishes fulfilled. *40 Let the remembrance of the
Master's feet abide in thy mind, All thy sufferings shall
vanish and thine enemies be destroyed.
*41 Let the remembrance of the
Master's feet abide in thy mind And thou shalt be saved from
the hell fires. *42 The feet of the Master are
mainfest in my forehead, This is why all my trials
and triulations have now ended. *43 The blessed from of the
Master is manifestin my forehead; Whenever I peep within, I
find him there; His lotus feet are the
source of my very life. *44 GURU
ARJAN The entire Radiant Form of
the Master as it appears within is blessed indeed. The Divine Lighr emanating from the feet of the Master is
resplendent and is the first to dawn; with it comes the entire form. As a harbinger of the Divine Presence, it is
fit to be worshiped and loved. From
stage to stage this Holy Light grows in luster. Swami Tulsi Das, the famous author of the Hindi Ramayana, spoke
of it as follows: The nails of the Master's
feet are more lustrous than the shining crest jewel. A concentration on them open the inner vision and one becomes
all-knowing. *45 Maulana Rumi also speaks of
it: When the Pir (Master)
appears within, you become knower of the past, present and future. This
is tantamount to what is technically called "Fana-fil-Sheikh" or
merging one's identity in, or becoming one with, the Sheikh or Master. Hereafter the duality between the disciple
and the Master ceases and they become one in spirit. The disciple truly becomes a Guru-man. The Astral Form of the Master apears when one rises above body
consciousness. When the sensory currents (or consciousness) through the process
of Simran collect at the center between the two eyebrows, the light sprouts
forths and when one goes further this Radiant Form manifests itself. So long as this Divine Form of the Master
does not come to guide, one cannot marchon the spiritual path and gain the
Kingdom of Heaven; for Guru precedes god and leads us Godward. This Radiant Form remains ever with the disciple, no
matter where he may be, and helps the pilgrim spirit on the Path; leads her
beyond the Triguru-atmak regions (physical, astral, causal) and takes her to
the Fourth Grand Division called Sat Lok, which is a purely spiritual realm. The feet (Light) of the
Master shine in my forehead, No more am I a prey to
trials and tribulations. *48 The Blessed Form of the
Master is ever present in my forehead; Every moment as I look up, I
do behold the Divine Form; And now I live and breathe
by the grace of the Master's lotus feet.
*47 Blessed indeed is the human
body in which dwell the feet of the beloved.
*48 GURU
ARJAN The manifestation of the
Guru Dev, or the Astral Form of the Master, is purely a gift of God. By Divine grace alone, initiates are blessed
with this precious gift. I am enraptured with seeing
the lotus feet of the Radiant Form of the Master, It is by the grace of the
Master that one comes toserve the Lord.
*48 GURU
ARJAN |