This talk was
published in the Nov. 1973 issue of Sat Sandesh. Five Dacoits Are
Looting While Man Slumbers Joy abounds among the righteous, but fellowship of evil breeds misery. Kabir says go and get the company of some Saint; Keep the company of He Who has controlled His mind, Without measure will He give the wealth of Naam. O Kabir, He may have but a crust to eat, Shun the company of the worldly who may give you milk and honey; I ask not for powers miraculous, Kabir says give me the Master's darshan daily. This is a short hymn of Kabir, the first line of which is stressing the
importance of Satsang. Satsang means the company of the Truth, the place where
Truth is differentiated from untruth - where the wheat is separated from the
chaff, where discrimination reigns supreme, where that eye of discrimination is
awakened. If a certain Person's company is praised, it means that He is wise; He
is One Who knows the difference between that which is true and that which is
untrue. In such company, one can also learn such power of differentiation and
develop awareness. Such a Personality is the very image of the Truth. He is the
Satguru, Whose soul, after gaining emancipation from the mind and senses,
experiences itself and gains connection with the Ultimate Truth, becoming the
very form of that Truth. He is then only termed a Satguru. Guru Arjan Sahib said on this subject, "He Who knows the Sat Purush
(Ultimate Lord) has the Name of Satguru." He is
one with the True Lord. In such company alone, can the soul achieve salvation.
Who sees the Lord praises Him. He whose mind's eye is open to see the Lord, he
only praises the Lord. If a soul has not realized the Ultimate Lord, it means
he is still at the mind and sense level, just like others who are asleep within
and are the image of the world without. How can a sleeping soul give a
connection with the Lord to anyone else? What happens when one meets a Satguru? By meeting the Satguru, one's own inner eye sees; Within the house (body), the Truth is found. One will see the Truth for oneself. "Nanak's Emperor is apparent."
He sees, of course, but His disciples also come to see. "The Gurumukh sees with His
eye." The disciple can also see - by becoming a Gurumukh. What is
a Gurumukh? He Who has constant awareness
of the Guru. Therefore, one should start by sitting with full awareness in
the company of the Realized Soul. By meeting the Satguru, the gift of initiation is received. Through which inner knowledge is attained. Whomsoever looks intently into the Satguru's eyes gains life, for life
comes from Life, with which He is overflowing, because His soul is fully
developed - He has complete control over His whole being. Intellectual knowledge uplifts only the intellect. If you keep the
company of those people who are involved in outer enjoyments which are
experienced through the senses, then your senses will get heightened. On the
other hand, in the company of One Whose soul is strong, your soul will be
uplifted, and you will start seeing for yourself. When you have seen, then sing; Such song will bear fruit. Sing the Lord's praises after seeing something of His attributes. That
will give an intoxication and will help you progress further. Anyone can chant
from the books, or repeat something from hearsay - this is not truly praising
the Lord. To see, and to bear witness to what you have seen, is something very
different. The very tongue of such a Person will be charged with Nectar, and
the words uttered by that tongue will immerse one's heart in the depth of
tranquility. "Satguru is He, meeting Whom the mind becomes still."
Pray for the company of such a Soul. In the Saint's company, the Lord is seen within; Then how sweet is His Name. It is not a loose promise to be fulfilled after death. He says you will
see the Lord in the Saint's company - you will taste the sweetness of the inner
Nectar - the Naam of the Lord. "Drink that intoxicant of Naam."
The Satguru is also called Sadhu. "The Lord issues forth from the Sadhu's
tongue." We get many wonderful things in His company. "In
the Sadhu's company, the countenance becomes radiant; the dirt is washed
away." Many thousands of words have been written on the greatness of the
Satguru and the wondrous things that happen to us in His company, the precious
gifts we receive. From His very presence there is a magnificent charging
emitting, surrounding Him and permeating the whole area. "That overflowing Love is
colored with intoxicant; the true yearning is created in the Sadh's
company." Masters are the overflowing cups of the Lord's
intoxicating color - overflowing vessels of Love. Just by enjoying His company
the yearning for God is born within one's being. This human birth we accept so casually comes only with great good
fortune. Why? "You have got the human form - it is thy turn to meet God."
In the human form alone can God be realized - "No other action will be of
avail." The soul cannot reach God through any type of actions;
these only cause one's attention to become more dispersed. One can make the best
use of all one's facilities, but what will really help us to realize the Lord? "In
the Sadh's company, only contact the Naam." And, "Those
who repeated Naam got salvation; O Nanak, their faces radiated with
glory." Those who meditated upon Naam succeeded in that purpose
for which they were born into the human body. Their faces radiate in the Lord's
House. Through Their company many others also gain emancipation. "Gurumukh frees millions by giving a
spark of Naam." What is that which is called Naam? There are two kinds of Naam. First,
God is Nameless and Formless and Soundless; but when the Absolute God became
from One to many, He came into expression, and that God-into-Expression Power
is called Naam. It sustains the whole of creation. It has been given many
different Names by the advanced souls to help mankind understand. Some called
Him "Ram"
because He is vibrating everywhere (from the Sanskrit root "ramma" meaning
perpetual vibration.) Some called Him "Wahguru," and there are
many other Names, all of which we respect, no doubt. "I rejoice in all Thy
Names." But, what is that Naam or Name which is the Naam? -
"That
Naam, repeating which you will cross the Ocean of Life." If every
religion declares that it has such a Name, then how can one know which is the true Naam? As a guiding criterion, we should remember that, while words are all
right, it is only a contact with that true Naam that can give the sought
- for salvation. That is the Power which the words describe - the Naam which
links you to the Named. One must get the connection with that Naam. This is why meditation upon Naam is very necessary; for although one can
gain a little peace from other practices, yet after a while the mind will start
its racing again. One Muslim Saint puts it this way: that we are repeating mere
names, when we should catch hold of the Named Himself, with Whom all names are
but empty words of description. How can a person have peace by repeating some
words in a parrot-fashion? If one repeats the word "Ice, ice, ice,"
can one thereby experience its coolness? Repeating the word "water"
will not quench the thirst. How indeed can the spiritual thirst be quenched by
the repetition of words or by repeating the various Names of the Lord? Where then is the Naam which is Naam Power, which is God-in-Expression? "The
Water of Life, giver of the nine pleasures of Amrit, is the Lord's Naam; It
resides in this body." Naam is the giver of all kinds of
happiness, and It resides in this human form. And so It is not a subject of outer
manifestation - It requires inversion. Naam is intoxicatingly sweet and
beautiful, and can be experienced above the senses only. And what indication is
there that one has gained experience of Naam? "When in contact with Naam,
the Light vying with millions of suns is manifested." You will
experience the radiation of that Light. All you brothers, in whatever religion
you are, do you experience the Light within your own body? If you do, then know
you have got something. If not, you are merely repeating words and have no
connection with Naam. "The Lord's Naam is the Music of the Spheres." There is Music in the Naam - the Sound which vibrates
from above. If you hear the Sound of the Lord within and see the Lord's Light,
then know that you have got connection with Naam. It is experienced only above
the senses. "In the company of the Sadhu, you receive the Imperceptible
Gift." It is all in the hands of the Master, Who will simply
present this Gift to the true seeker. Do you see how valuable is the company of
a Satguru? What is the difference between the Master and other men? Physically He
seems the same as others, just like doctors and patients; but the doctor has
studied anatomy. And similarly, those People are specialized Who have got
self-knowledge and God-knowledge. However, They always say that They are men
just like other human beings. Guru Nanak said, "In this form of man, Nanak
is my name." But, whom will they address as Nanak? That is the
point. Sometimes Masters do give an indication of what They are - in addition
to man. "God's word, which comes from above, is given out as
knowledge." The Guru is the mouthpiece of God. As the flow comes
from God, so the Guru expresses it out. This is the principal difference. So
seek the company of the Realized Souls Who are the very form of Truth, the
mouthpiece of Truth. They are developed Souls, although They seem to be just
like us. The whole world is sleeping - rich, poor, intellectual, illiterate,
alike. Why? Because they have no awareness of themselves. Each man's soul is at
the mercy of the mind, which is itself at the mercy of the senses, which, in
turn, are dragged around by the sense-enjoyments. We have become identified
with the body and the world - we have forgotten ourselves. Those who pursue the
intellect lose themselves even more than the others; for although the
illiterate are lost in the senses, yet through intellect one can get more
deeply involved in the senses and the intellect both. We do work through the
intellect, and it can help us to understand the true state of affairs - which
is that the soul is a conscious entity, and our greatest aim as human beings is
to realize God. The soul must rejoin the Lord. God is in every form. He is the sustaining Power in all life. Due to
this, our soul stays with the body; but when He removes His sustenance, the
body is finished and returns to its various elements. Furthermore, if He
withdraws His Power from creation, then dissolution or grand dissolution
occurs, in different degrees. There is nothing nearer to us than this Power of
God, which is the very soul of our soul. "Our soul has become jiva (soul
in creation) through connection with the mind, and so the sense-enjoyments drag it
around. It has forgotten itself in this depth of indulgence." Together, the Beloved and the soul; The soul sleeps, but the Beloved is in full awareness. The influence of the senses and the outer attractions keeps the soul
asleep to the Truth, while the God-husband is constantly awake, waiting for the
soul to open her eyes. In this pitiful situation, how can we awake? How can one
sleeping person awaken another? Only in the Satsang can one sit in the company
of an Awakened Soul, and one Awakened Soul can surely awaken thousands who are
sleeping. An Awakened Soul does not mean a lecturer or reader of books - those
who have knowledge at the sense level only - for he who has developed his
intellect is also asleep. The world is sleeping at the level of the mind. Mind is most powerful at
the physical level where it takes our attention further and further into
physical expression. Mind has stages also - physical, astral, causal - it
operates in all three. It is not something simple. Many great sages have left
this world crying because of the mind. So first we must learn to control the physical
mind by withdrawing it from outer senses. You will find in some Eastern books
the story of Habil and Cabil, and it is the story of the lower mind (Habil)
killing the higher mind. Mind is a very strange phenomenon, and if it is controlled it will show
the happenings of the three worlds. Remove yourself from outer distractions,
and you will awaken unto your true self. Has it never occurred to you that you must leave this world one day?
Even in the presence of death, or accompanying the body to the cremation
ground, do you never stop to think that you will also be in this position some
day? We do agree that we have to go when reminded about it, but we then
promptly forget the matter. It is a very sad condition we are in. Guru Arjan
Sahib says, "Arise, awake, O traveler - why this delay?" Beloved
soul, why are you sleeping? The sun of human birth has risen, and this is the
time to awaken. If this
opportunity slips from your fingers, it will never come so soon again. This
invaluable birth will be wasted. Similarly the Upanishads say, "Awake, arise; and stop not until the
Goal is reached." It is like a sleeping sickness; and if you go to
the root cause, you will understand what is happening; and then you will know
how imperative it is to gain release from all this illusion and forgetfulness. Listen now to a hymn of Guru Arjan Sahib, in which He tells us more on
this subject. You may ask, "If we are sleeping, then how are we able to
talk?" But do we not talk in our sleep? You haven't got the awareness, but
you have the intellect; so try to understand. We are the soul, the indweller of
the body. And we often say, "This is my body; I am soul," etc. As I
have taken off my coat and placed it here, can you remove your body? Can you -
rise above it and analyze yourself from mind and matter, separating yourself
from the body? You would then see clearly who and what you are. Now listen to
the hymn, which tells us how we went to sleep and how we can awaken. Inner eye sleeps, while one covetously envies the possessions of others; Inner ear sleeps, yet one eagerly hears all slander and scandal. The Master's message is for embodied souls caught in the web of mind and
senses, unable to release themselves. Masters make no distinction between
religions and sects; Their message is for the whole human race. O soul, since
you took birth into the world, you have developed the habit of seeing things;
and so your outer eye is open, but the eye which is used to see within became
more securely closed. Although awake from without, you are asleep within; and
by greedily envying the goods of others, your inner eye has gone deeper and
deeper into this slumber. Our outer awakenedness is busy coveting the wealth, property, bodies of
others; and this creates impressions which are taken in and absorbed into one's
being through the eyes. Remember, 83 % of all impressions we absorb enter into
man through the eyes. Whatever you see is registered in you. This constant
intake of impressions closes the inner vision more and more as the years go by.
Furthermore, the impressions we absorb from outside are reproduced into our
thoughts and dreams; and in this way a superficial life is built up. Up to now,
you have never had the opportunity to dip inside yourself. The ears are perpetually listening to the scandalizing and slandering of
other people's characters. Their virtues are underrated and their faults
exaggerated. If something is worth repeating, it should also be one hundred
percent accurate. Otherwise, it amounts to slander. Test this fact for
yourself. Just sit quietly and listen to any conversation going on around you,
and you will find they consist of gossip, criticism, and scandal principally. Fourteen percent of all impressions comes through the ears. Eighty-three
and fourteen amount to 97 percent of all impressions through two senses alone -
awake or asleep. All this attention going out, all these impressions coming in,
and never a single glance inwardly toward one's real Self, which is in deep,
heavy slumber, unaware of all this. Inner taste sleeps, through greedy outer enjoyments; Mind slumbers on in the wonders of illusion. This is our daily life: this thing is very sweet, that thing is very
beautiful. Strong in man are these senses of sight, hearing, and taste. He is
always busy seeing, hearing, eating, and drinking - tasting something
attractive today and wanting more and more of it tomorrow. During my tour of
1955, I was invited to meet a Father Divine in the U.S.A.; and at the dinner
there, more than sixty different dishes were served, both sweet and savory.
Just think of sixty different things to be tasted! There is a limit to what the
taste can distinguish. What is seen, heard, and eaten are all reproduced and
recorded within one's being; and this is how our superficial lives are made. "Illusion
started with this body." You can see how this physical form has
encouraged this forgetfulness in which we exist. We are embodied souls, but we
have become only the body, and we can see only at the sense level. Now is this
not superficial? Mind is also asleep in this illusion. It has also become the form of the
outer attractions, when awake and asleep both. What an accurate picture Guru
Arjan Sahib is sketching! The Masters are constantly trying to draw man's attention to the true
state of affairs. One Muslim Fakir points out that one should close the eyes
and ears to shut out these impressions, and also close the lips. This renders
the tongue out of action and it is then also impossible to eat anything.
Whatever the method, we must stop these three kinds of impressions coming
inside from without; and then we should invert within. The Fakir adds that if
the Truth does not then awaken in you, you are free to ridicule the method. It
is a very definite statement and a fair offer. Only the Awakened Soul can help one to invert these rebellious senses
and withdraw from the outer attractions. At present one sees outwardly only;
but then with His blessing of inner vision, you will see within and the path
will be opened for you. At present one hears only outer sounds, but one will
hear the inner Music, the Sound of the Truth. At present you enjoy outer
actions, but by inversion you will start to enjoy the delectable inner Nectar
of Naam. "When that Nectar comes, this taste is no longer enjoyed."
And who makes all this possible? "When the Satguru is met, inversion
starts." If you die while living, you will solve the riddle. He who is awake in the house of the body Can receive that inherent Perfect Gift. If you awaken while living in this physical house, the Lord's Gift is
yours. He is already within, but one must withdraw the attention from outside. "What
is there to realizing the Lord? Just uproot it from here and plant it
there." It is a simple matter of where the attention is focused. Break away from family and acquaintances; Then our Savior will come. If you receive the Perfect Gift, you will also become perfect, as God is
perfect. Just start withdrawing from outer attractions. But if the lecturers
and scriptural authorities are sitting on the outer perimeter, at the
sense-level, then who will help us awaken? Our near and dear are intoxicated with their own enjoyments, Having no knowledge of their True Home. Our friends, relations, etc. are embodied souls like us, intoxicated by
the outer enjoyments and having no awareness of themselves, dragged by sight,
hearing, taste, and touch, suffering from one sickness or another. Remember
that enslavement to a single sense alone can bring death, imprisonment, or
slavery for life. Take the moth, for example, which burns itself to death because of the
ruling sense of sight. Through its strong sense of taste, the fish gets caught
on the fisherman's hook. A certain insect has a very strong sense of smell and
is attracted to the scents of flowers; it loses its life when it enters that
flower which closes like a clam. The sense of hearing is overpowering in the
deer and in serpents. The deer is attracted by the beating drums, and he is so
fascinated that he is helpless to move and is captured. The snake, a fearsome
creature, is enchanted by the sound of the bina, is captured, and spends its
life in a snake charmer's basket. The sense of touch is dominating in the
elephant; and through trickery they attract the male to the female and thereby
capture him, starve him for days to weaken his strength that he may be
controlled, and from then on he is a slave to man. If for the prevalence of a
single sense these creatures lose their freedom or their lives, then what hope
for man, who has five? It seems an impossible situation. "With so many enjoyments in
this body, how can Naam reside therein?" Everywhere people are in the same condition - brothers, sisters,
husbands, children, parents, friends. There is a sleeping state and a drunken
state. And whereas a sleeping person can be awakened, what about he who is in
the drunken condition? You can shout at him, but he is without consciousness
and will not respond. These are hard facts; it is a very accurate picture of
mankind. Even the few who try to find the cure in the scriptures are helpless,
for one cannot awaken the consciousness by reading a book. Five dacoits have entered these sleepy dwellings, And have looted the vacant house. Everyone is sleeping and the dacoits are looting wildly. Who are these
five dacoits? They are anger, lust, greed, attachment, and ego. They are
looting the people who are sleeping in a drugged state. Like this, man loses
his most valuable possessions, and tragically does not realize this is
happening, because he is so engrossed in the enjoyments that whatever knowledge
of right he had is pushed aside. A little awareness of the predicament he is in comes only when he has
lost everything he possessed. The house is unprotected; the thieves can get in,
for the owner is in a deep sleep. You are the owner of your physical
house, are you not? Know it or not, you are in a drunken state. And although
you have been awakened innumerable times, yet you merely say, "Yes, yes, I
am awake"; but this is only from outside and you promptly go to sleep
again. You have never awakened from within. There is no answering reply from
your true self. If the point does not go home, the whole thing is superficial. Father, Mother, cannot protect you; Nor can friends and relations. These people may suffer for or with you, but they cannot help you, for
they, too, are asleep and are helplessly being looted like you. All are
helpless sufferers at the hands of the five dacoits; and this includes the read
and unread, the rich and the famous alike. Riches and knowledge will not give self-protection. It is a not a condition that can be improved with money or with
intellectual knowledge. Do not the intellectuals fall also? The thieves cannot
be controlled by the intellect, nor can they be bribed. Swami Ji Maharaj has
also given a very lucid explanation on the subject, so we will take a little of
His hymn now and then return afterward to Guru Arjan Sahib. How can the sleeping mind be awakened, brothers? Tell me, what steps must I take ? If we have understood that we are now asleep, that the mind is sleeping
within us, then what steps have we taken to ensure that we awaken? Even one
hundred wise men will have the same wisdom, and Swami Ji is explaining the same
thing as Guru Arjan Sahib. Those Who are awakened see everything in crystal
clarity and know what safeguards to take. He explains how to awaken and also
why we have not awakened to date through the various practices we have been
doing. One went on pilgrimage, even kept fast; Became filled with bookish knowledge. What is the meaning of pilgrimage? Places of pilgrimage are kept up
because some soul at some time received his awakening there. Kabir Sahib once
asked God to remove a great doubt that He had in His heart, and that doubt was
whether the place of pilgrimage is better than the Lord's servant, the Lord's
servant being the Guru. Of course, the Lord's servant is the greater, for the
holy place is founded because of Him. If an Awakened Soul sat in ten different
places, then all ten became holy; so He is the Great One. The place where Guru
Nanak Sahib was born, the village of Talvandi, is now a holy place and has been
renamed Nankana Sahib. Guru Nanak once sat under a particular Reta tree, and
that tree is now known as Reta Sahib. If you taste its fruit even today, you
will find it very sweet and not bitter as the fruit of the Reta normally is. The whole world's holy places have been made because of some enlightened
soul. Millions of souls have been born in different places, and millions have
died; but who remembers the coming and going of all these? And yet a single
Awakened Soul can put a small place on the map. Hazrat Mohammed Sahib was born
in Mecca. Millions of others have been born there before and since, and yet
only He is remembered. Jerusalem is a holy city to the Christians because
Christ was there. What about all the others before and after Him? The original
purpose of going to a holy place was to sit at the feet of the Awakened Soul
there, and to learn His teaching. Leave your troublesome, busy home life for a little while and go to sit
at the feet of some Enlightened Soul. You cannot awaken by merely taking a dip
in some holy river. This is not the fault of the places of pilgrimage; they are
what we have made them, places of enjoyment, holiday resorts, attractions to
sightseers. Take Hardwar, for instance. This is a place where the great Rishis
and Munis stayed, Guru Nanak Sahib also, and Guru Amar Das Who for many years
visited Hardwar every year. What is the place like today? Some years ago I saw
that two cinemas had been built there, and since then many more. In the evening
especially, you can see nothing but eating, drinking, and people at large
seeking amusement. There is nothing else. This is not the true purpose of making
a holy place of pilgrimage. And what can a dip in a holy river do for you? If the mind is dirty, everything is dirty; By washing the body, mind cannot be cleansed. This world is an illusion of forgetfulness; Only a few can find the Truth. So how can the mind be purified? O my mind, repeat only the Naam. The Satguru has given me this wealth. Through the Naam one can become pure. One is highly fortunate if one
meets anyone who is a true lover of Naam, for purity starts when one is joined
to It. Kabir very bluntly says: A fish from a rivulet came, floating down the Ganges; It washed itself in every way, but its smell remained. By washing one's body, one cannot wash away the dirt from the mind. Guru
Nanak in His Jap Ji Sahib says: When the hands, feet, and body are besmeared, they are washed clean with water; When the clothes get dirty, they are cleansed with soap; When the mind gets defiled with sin, it can be purified only by communion with Naam. No one can get salvation merely by visiting some holy place until the
purpose of the visit is fulfilled. Our Master used to say that those in the
East go on pilgrimage to the West, and those in the West go East; the people of
the North go South, and vice versa. They are all like a weaver's shuttle going
back and forth. Yet they do not find what they are seeking. I once met a sadhu who told me he had walked from Amarnath to Rameshwar
fourteen times. These two places are almost the northernmost and southern most
points of India, respectively. Well, I asked him what was the condition of his
mind; and he said, "Oh, the mind is the same. Actually, the mind is more
inclined to disperse even further by such journeys, for it dwells on the
different places and scenes and happenings, etc., here, there, and everywhere
in the form of thousands of impressions which have entered the mind and go on
revolving round and round. If one stayed in one place only, there would be
fewer impressions. Swami Ji says that thousands have gone on pilgrimage and thousands have
performed practices of various kinds, but in the end they lost. The purpose of
fasting is that the body should not be overloaded with food and should rest
sometimes. Have you ever given your stomach a holiday? People go on pushing
food down every hour, every half hour - this renders the digestive system
ineffective and the result is one disease or another. The true purpose of
fasting is to gain good health. To overload the stomach before a day's fast,
and then reload it again after the fast is finished, accomplishes nothing but
more moans and groans. If there is a little space in the stomach, and it is not
completely filled up with food, then that space can be filled with the Light of
God. There are many different kinds of fasting. For instance, one can fast on
fruit and milk alone. But what happens? They start eating and drinking it by
the kilos. Food was made for man's needs - eat in moderation, and you will be
successful. Only the food that is digested will give strength. We are ambitious
for more consciousness, but overeating makes us lazy - we sleep longer. Some
people are under the impression that they were just born to eat. You will remember, in the Puranas it tells of Food going to Lord Vishnu
with the complaint that the people were eating him mercilessly, and what should
he do about it? Lord Vishnu said that if anyone eats Food more than necessary,
then Food should eat them! You can see this very result around you: the
majority of people are sick, the cause of which is principally an excess of food
in the system and irregular eating habits. One should take a little less than
is necessary at each meal; that will give a buoyancy and aid one's efforts in
becoming more awake. Furthermore, the health will improve, and one will be able
to tackle a larger share of work. However, even if one goes to the extreme
outer practice of fasting, what is the result? Swami Ji tells us: By remaining hungry, the hunger has not gone; You have failed in your purpose. People have kept fast upon fast, and have not achieved anything really
worthwhile because the consciousness does not awaken thereby. This is due to
these outer practices being performed at the sense-level. If some higher
purpose or result was achieved thereby - if one thereby gained an inner contact
with Naam, for instance, or the company of the Satguru - then fasting, or
pilgrimage, austerities, etc. would have some value. Fasting for fasting's sake
alone is spiritually worthless. This applies also to reading the scriptures,
which merely increases intellectual knowledge. Tulsi Sahib says, "Four, eighteen, nine, were read;
Reading all this, yet the point was lost; Without contact of Surat with Shabd,
one is like the chandool bird." The four Vedas, the eighteen
Puranas, the nine Shastras - these are the ancient Hindu scriptures. But what
is the use of absorbing the whole world's scriptures if they have no value in
the light of one's purpose or goal? He says that one becomes like the chandool
bird, which goes on imitating all the sounds it hears. No one ever got
salvation through reading - understand this carefully. The Upanishads tell us that the senses, the mind, and the intellect all
should be stilled; and only then will the soul perceive. Reasoning is a help -
for understanding - and reasoning is a bar also. The Vedas say, "The
ignorant will go to dark regions at death; Those drenched in knowledge will go
to darker regions." To still the intellect is most important, for
that very intellect is at sense-level, and the mind is already asleep because
of its connections with the senses. None of these outer practices can awaken
the sleeping mind. Repetition, austerities, restrictions, and many more - The ignorant even kept silence. The tongue goes on repeating God's Name, but the mind is running around
all over the place. What is achieved like this? To rise above the senses means
that the body becomes dead - including the tongue. Some people go to the
extreme of not speaking - even for years - in the belief that this will give
them some spiritual advancement. Similarly, having a silent tongue does not
still the mind's endless chattering. What is more, such an individual must fill
his daily needs; and so he resorts to making signs and writing notes. How can
spiritual awakening take place in this way? He who truly keeps silence is he
who silences his mind. "Mind has not been shaved, so why shave
the head?" All these practices come under Apra Vidya - study of
scriptures, teaching the scriptures , fasting, giving alms, etc.- they are all
under the rule of the senses. And the soul, connected to the mind as it is, is
sleeping within. Resorted to many means; Even then the mind did not awaken. A learned pundit once went to Hazur, and upon hearing Hazur's Satsang
talk was inspired with a keen yearning for initiation. Hazur gave him
initiation; and when he was leaving I was standing nearby, and he said,
"Maharaj, according to whatever instructions You have given, I will
achieve everything in three months' time; and I will then return here to
you." Hazur said, "That will be marvelous. " But it was nine
months before the pundit returned to Hazur, and again I was present as he sat
before our Master. He said, "Maharaj, before You initiated me I used to do
my worship and prayer for six or eight hours at one time and my mind would
never wander; and now it will not remain still for even two minutes." He
was very distressed and could not understand the difference. This happens
because with outer worship the mind is getting food - it is occupied, just as
it is when reading or writing - but for spiritual experience the mind must be
stilled and remain inactive. Taking a simple example, if a man owns a number of horses, and they are
securely locked up in the stables, he sleeps without a care knowing that his
horses are safe. However, if any night he has doubt as to whether the stable
door is securely fastened, he cannot rest in peace. And then, if by chance the
horses do get out and run away, he will do everything in his power to recapture
them and bring them back. So the Negative Power does not interfere with the
souls while they remain docilely in His domain, in which a web of
sense-enjoyments is spread to trap them and bind them, and from which there is
no escape. Good actions therein bring rewards, and bad actions take the soul to the
lower regions. The poor soul is bound to an ever-revolving wheel of existence
in the various expressions of creation, and, therefore, the Negative Power is
not the least worried. However, when the soul meets the Master, it is taught to
rise above the senses; and the pathway of escape is opened up - through the
grace and greatness of the Satguru Who is the pole of the Positive Power. When
He sees that a soul is threatening to leave His Kingdom, the Negative Power
becomes concerned and endeavors to keep the soul in His clutches. Salvation, then, is achieved only through Para Vidya, which means the
soul's knowledge of the Oversoul: and that is to free one's self from mind and
senses, to have knowledge of self and knowledge of God. We must become
infinite, for, "One as high as the High One will know Him." As high
as the Lord Himself - Infinite, Inconceivable, Ineffable. Indian mythology tells us that Lord Shiva is sitting in meditation; and
Parvati, his wife, keeps feeding Him intoxicants. In this way, the soul is
being intoxicated by the mind. When this intoxicant wears off the soul wants to
awaken; but before it gets the chance, the mind again feeds it more intoxicant.
The world's population is suffering from this drunkenness, and only those who
are awake can see this condition clearly. After a long search I found the Satguru Who gave this scientific method. At last the true seeker finds that Personality Who is one with the
Truth, Who gives the means of the soul's awakening. Keep the company of the Master and serve Him; Sacrifice body and mind unto Him. What does it mean to serve a Master? It means that with respect,
yearning, and devotion, one should keep His commands. Guru Amardas says, "Greatly
fortunate is he who serves the Satguru, For the Sound of God's Naam is awakened
within." He has mentioned nothing of those who touch His feet and
show great respect to His physical form alone. Those who do not place the
Master's words on the altar, accepting them as God's commands, will not
succeed. "We know how to talk, but do not know how to do." There is a cure to the condition: keep a Fehler! Textmarke nicht definiert., just as if you were in school doing your lessons. With
the aid of this diary you can search out your faults and failings and note down
your weaknesses. Slowly, gradually, these weaknesses will be weeded out. Along
with this there is meditation. How much time do you put in? And through
meditation, what progress have you made? In this way, you will yourself know
where you stand with spiritual advancement and with ethical life alike. Without
keeping a diary, interest and concern for these two important factors cannot be
upheld. Following disinterest, meditation ceases altogether. What else do I ask you to do? Only to keep your life pure and good, and
to weed out the weaknesses. Then, food of the soul is your meditation; so
meditate regularly. Do not feed the body until you have fed the soul. Furthermore - to attend Satsang is like having a protective hedge around
your meditation. It also increases the incentive to meditate. Attend the
Satsang, even if your time is limited. Cancel some other appointment in order
to do so, if necessary, for the benefits of Satsang are invaluable. All I ask
you to do again and again is to be pure and chaste and keep your diary. Do you
know of any means by which you will
obey the Master's instructions? There is a cure for our failures; but if you do not take the cure, then
what is the cure for that omission? There is no cure for not doing anything. Sometimes
you fight like dogs - when people see such behavior, will they not wonder what
kind of teaching you are receiving? This brings disrepute upon the name of the
Satsang. "A bad dog brings curses upon his Master." The pain
in my heart is speaking when I ask you of any means whereby you will follow the
commands. Having tried all means, in defeat I can only say that you should try
for yourself and see how that invaluable gift will increase. If after doing
what I ask you do not gain progress, then you may come and complain. Start from today. Where there is a will, there is a way. You can
find the time if you really want to. You have got the greatest of good fortune
to be linked with a Personality Who is the form of the Truth. King Janak was one soul who got something from Ashtavakra in those days;
but each and every one of you has had experience from the very first day. If
you don't continue it, how do you expect to progress? Attend the Satsang and
have the advantage of a protective hedge around your meditation. I once asked
Hazur Maharaj, "What are Your orders regarding Satsang?" He told me,
"If you are very sick in your bed, but you can move then attend
Satsang." Just note that He did not say that if you have the strength to
walk, then attend Satsang. From this single instance, one can see how important it is. "Master removes the veil from the eye; He gives the inner darshan;
O friends, that Satguru is most attractive to me." The cause of not following the instructions is just
laziness and concern for bodily comfort. Remember that this is the path of
inner intoxication, so why worry about the body's comfort? Do not drift away on
the waves of the mind; do the work which you have to do. When the lion wants to
quench his thirst, he goes straight to the river. Become lion-like - you are
soul, the entity of the Lord. Make the keen aspiration you had in the beginning
into a reality. Leave the consideration of bodily comforts and the demands of
the mind for the sake of that aim. Instead of obeying the mind, place the
Master's commands on the altar of the Lord. "If ye love me keep my
commandments." Would you not wish to obey the one you love? A true
lover is more afraid of disapproval than he has consideration for body and mind.
Go all out for your goal. "Listen to the Satguru's Sound - by
rising above." Put all your attention, in full consciousness, upon
that inner place, upon the Naam. The intoxications of the senses will start
wearing off, and you will awaken to a new life. Through striving and striving, the mind has now awakened, And the world has become transient. When one rises above the senses, one can see that the body is but a
piece of clay. You yourself are detached from it, and the world is an insipid
thing. In this way, the question is answered and the problem solved; for the
soul can see that her Lord is God, and all outer things are unreal. Masters do
not tell us to leave our homes and flee to the jungles, for we have got the
duties of the body and mind and their responsibilities; but the soul must be
rejoined to its Lord, and this is the greatest and most important task in this
human life. The only true helping factors in this work are the company of the
Satguru and the contact with the Naam. Attention got help from the mind And both reached their homes. Separated and freed from the pull of the senses, the mind begins to
taste the sweetness of the inner Nectar. "When that Nectar comes, this becomes
distasteful." From then on it is willing to cooperate with the
soul, and the soul is able to fly. Death of the physical mind makes the work
easier, for it is the physical mind which is deeply involved in the worldly
actions and keeps dragging the soul back. Until there is something to hold the
attention, it is most difficult to go within; and this is why the Master gives
the contact with Naam on the very first day. "Join me back to the Lord - anyone!" That contact must then be increased daily. Without the Shabd, the mind will never awaken; Though numerous different practices be performed. This hymn of Swami Ji's is very long - I have just taken a few verses,
as it covers the same subject as Guru Arjan's hymn; and it shows how all the
Masters say the same things. Now, Guru Arjan was telling us how the Awakened
Soul can give us help and protection: Riches and knowledge will not give self-protection; The enemies are controlled only in the Master's company. Seek the company of the Guru, if you wish to control anger, lust, greed,
attachment, and ego. There is no other way, no matter how much knowledge you
have or deep thinking you do - these five will remain. The bigger the person
gets, the more is he consumed in the fire; and the only saving factor is the
Master's company. You wish to enter a house, but the owner's five big dogs are
guarding it and start barking as soon as you approach. A true guard dog will
not even accept food as a bribe. All dogs are famous for their faithfulness. In
the Gurbani it states that one should become faithful like a dog. Now, how can
you control these fierce dogs? You cannot. You can only shout for their owner
who will himself call the dogs back so that you may enter and meet him. So it
is that in the company of the Master the barking dogs - these five enemies -
will one by one run away by themselves. "At the death of the five boys, only
the Lord's love remains." They recognize that such company is no
place for them. God is already within you. He is Light - and the perpetual flow from the
Beyond is going on. Connected to Him, the sins of the mind are gradually washed
away. If you want to be a doctor, keep the company of a doctor. If you want to
know the science of the soul, keep the company of one Who has mastered it -
call Him by any Name you like. "Keep the Guru overhead, and live in
His commands." Keep His word - above all else. He will never leave
you until He has taken you to your True Home. Guru is not just a physical body,
although we have respect for that body in which that God Power is manifested. He
is that Power - call It God Power, Christ Power, Guru Power - and He is there
to help you experience that manifestation within yourself. If but His single
glance falls upon a person, that person is saved. Be obedient, that is all; do
not ignore what He tells you. "Kabir says, such a server has no fear in all three regions." If one was aware of His presence
constantly, would one be likely to sin? I remember, Hazur once sent me an order. Sometimes it happens that if an
individual is heading straight for his target, others create propaganda against
him. Due to this type of propaganda, Hazur ordered that I should attend only
the Satsang at Ravi Road Lahore, and should not visit anyone. I said, "All
right, whatever are His orders." I got a lot of rest during those days -
something like a servant who normally cleans twenty rooms being told to clean
only one and leave the rest. I had more spare time, so I wrote the book "Gurmat Siddhant," a big book
of over 2,000 pages. I strictly curbed all visiting; in fact, a relative's son
died and I did not attend them at their house, but went only to the cremation. There
was another case of a Satsangi dying, and he sent a message for me to go to him
for the Guru's sake before he died. I had a strong desire to go, and the pain
of sympathy was so great that I cried; but I had to send the message that I
sincerely wished that he have full protection and all my good wishes were with
him, but that I was helpless for I could not disobey the Master's orders. He
died, and when Hazur came to Lahore, His widow complained that her husband had
died in torment because of his desire to see me, and my refusal. Hazur turned
to me and said, "Kirpal Singh, in this type of condition, you should
go." From then on, when people summoned me to sickbeds, I would attend,
and they would die. It became very difficult, but His orders were to go only
wherever the person was dying. Never ignore the Guru's commands. If you obey, you will have nothing to
fear - here or in the Beyond. Hazur told us that if a person gets initiation
and has to go into the hands of the Lord of Death, he should politely turn from
both such initiation and its guru. Just giving some words - that is not Naam. The
words given by the Satguru have a powerful charging; that is your protection. Guru
is He Who brings Light into the darkness, and He remains with you forever. Hazur
would say that if a five year old child is present, can you commit any sin
before him? When you truly realize His constant presence, you will do no wrong.
Also, be truthful before Him, not just when people are present in a
hypocritical way. Remember, He is sitting within you; so hold the awe of Him in
your heart and you will do nothing bad in His presence. A disciple of Baba Jaimal Singh once told me that when Baba Ji gave
initiation, He would tell the initiate, "Now I am residing within you, so
do nothing to put me to shame.“ Masters use many different ways to help the
children keep Their commandments. This is the time for you to understand these
things and live up to them. If you do not feel so inclined, then you will continue to lament, birth
after birth. Only if you are fortunate enough to get the human birth again will you
have another chance of doing this spiritual work. Those who have got the Naam -
not only do they have the good fortune of the human life, but the inner path
has been opened up for them. Work hard for your progress. Have mercy and give me the Water of Life; Bless me with the dust of the Master's feet. O Lord, I am like a beggar, yearning for a drop of that Nectar, wanting
only the Master's company. Bless me with a small particle of that priceless
Gift. Give me His company. How rare are such People - where can I find Him? After the great Mahabharata battle between the Kauravs and the Pandavs -
it is a very long story - they held a yug [a gathering of many holy men to
perform various rituals until the Voice of God is heard] - the Ashav Med Yug - and at the completion
stage no Sound of God had been heard. They approached Lord Krishna and told
Him, "Our yug is a failure; what shall we do?" Lord Krishna said,
"It is because no Realized Soul has been in attendance there." They
protested and said, "But we have invited all the Sadhus and Mahatmas - how
can that be?" He said, "No, you may have all the Sadhus and Mahatmas,
but no Realized Soul is there." Finally He advised them to approach a certain Sukrat Ji, and told them
where to find Him. When they explained their desire to Sukrat Ji, He said,
"Yes, I will attend your yug, but not until the fruit of 101 Ashav Med
Yugs is given to me." They were astounded and cried, "But how can we
give You that when even our single yug has been a failure?" But He was
adamant, and so they went home. When they told their wife, Draupadi, she said,
"All right, let me go." She was a queen and a very wise soul; but she
forsook her carriage and went on foot all the way to Sukrat Ji, with sincere
humility. She told Him that she had come to give Him the fruit of 101 Ashav Med
Yugs, saying, "Maharaj, in the Shastras it is written that if you go to a
Realized Soul in all humility, then each step you take gains the fruit of one
Ashav Med Yug, so great is the value of this blessing. So you can take the
fruit of 101 Ashav Med Yugs from my journey to you and give me what is left
over." He was so pleased with Draupadi that He agreed to go, and the yug
became successful. So you can see how rare and invaluable is the presence of
the Realized Soul. In the days of King Janak, there was only one Soul to give him the
connection - Ashtavakra. In the days of the Kauravs and the Pandavs, only
Sukrat Ji could make the Sound audible. To go to such a Master and to have His
darshan gives much more blessing than the fruit of 101 Ashav Med Yugs. If you can find more than one such Soul, then the more fortunate are
you. He is a man like us, but He is an expert in the Science of the Soul. God
is All-Wisdom; wherever He manifests, that pole becomes His mouthpiece. That
mouthpiece is called the Satguru. This Name is not given merely for wearing a
certain type or color of clothing. Satguru is He Who has the highest degree in
God. There is a story of a King who held a bazaar, in which many beautiful
and valuable things were displayed. He proclaimed to his people that each
subject could select one gift from the bazaar for themselves, and that the
bazaar would last from sunrise to sunset. Hundreds of people came and went away
with their selected gifts. When it was almost sunset time, a young girl entered
and wandered around the bazaar. She seemed a very simple girl, but inwardly she
was very wise. Praising everything as she went around, she thought if the
bazaar was so beautiful, then what must the creator of it be like? Meanwhile
people advised her to select some gift before the bazaar closed. She walked to
the very end of the bazaar where the King was seated on a dais. When he saw her
approaching, the King rejoiced in his heart that at least one person was
interested in him. "Gifts are loved, but the Giver is forgotten; the poor mind does
not realize its error." Outwardly the King showed anger, saying,
"Mad girl, why do you come here ? Go and choose something and take it
home." Without any hesitation she placed her hand on the King's head and
said, "Now tell me, O King, to whom do you belong?" He said,
"Now I am yours." She asked him, "And whose is this
bazaar?" The King declared it to be his; but she said, But now, to whom
also does it belong?"and he had to admit that everything in the bazaar
belonged to her, too, since she had chosen him. We see everything in life with a superficial sense of value. If you give
yourself up to Him, then God becomes yours, and so does all His creation. "If
you become mine, then the whole world will be mine." True Masters
are very rare, and the world has started ridiculing the words "Sadhu"
and "Gurudom" because so many are acting and posing; and their
teachings reach the sense- level only. They have themselves never risen above
the senses, and they cannot take anyone above. When people learn this, they
have no option but to turn to the scriptures, which feed the intellect only. Have
mercy on us! Without the Master we cannot reach the Lord - it has never been
possible, nor never will be. A Muslim Fakir tells us that God Himself said that He is so great He
cannot be absorbed - from the lowest depths to the highest peaks, in all the
skies or all the earth; and even under the earth, the whole of creation is not
capable of containing Him, so great is He - and yet He can dwell in the heart
of His true devotee. If anyone desires Him, they should seek Him there. That true devotee is
a living pole - a human being in whom God is apparent. He is also in others but
is hidden. "From the lowest, I became pure, brother." And how
did the Realized Soul become pure? "Since I got the knowledge of the Guru's
teaching." God is not far above in the skies, nor sleeping in the
holy scriptures; He is already within you. Those holy books are records of how
the Realized Souls found God, reading which a yearning or incentive to meet God
is created in the seeker. But Naam is within man - the radiance of God's Light
and the beauty of His Sound, the Music of the Spheres. Just differentiate between the outer Naam and the inner Naam, and then
get the connection. Those who live only for enjoyments cannot walk on this Holy
Path, for one must cut away from all such expressions. Ethical life is a
stepping stone to Spirituality. If you awaken, no dacoit will be able to enter
your house; for if even a single person is awake in a house, the thieves will
think twice about breaking in. Thieves like to find a house full of deeply
sleeping people - some even administer chloroform to ensure that the people
remain in deep sleep so that they can work at leisure. In the Satguru's company one gets the Perfect Gift, And awakens, O Nanak, to the color of Par Brahm. The Master's company protects you from losing that precious Gift He
gives; and through His mercy you will awaken to the extent of enjoying the
intoxication of Par Brahm. That intoxication is already within you. "The
intoxication of Naam, O Nanak, inebriates day and night." It is
perpetually vibrating everywhere - radiance, intoxication, and bliss. He awakens, whose Lord is Kirpal; (the Merciful One) With His Gift, one gets the entire wealth. Whomsoever He awakens, will awake. The Merciful Lord Himself awakens the
soul. If He
showers His mercy, the Satguru is met. And when the Satguru is met, He connects you with God's Naam. Naam is
above the senses; It is in your own house (body). This Gift you can take with
you when you leave this world, for It has the Satguru's protection. Our
attention is ever going into dispersion - sometimes on financial affairs, or on
children, or property, etc. When one dies, where does one go? One goes wherever one's attention is
centered. In this way we again and again return to the worldly life because
that is where our attention is - where our attention has been fastened. Since
the day our soul separated from the Lord, it has never returned to Him up to
now. If one were to try to describe what Spirituality is in a single word,
one could say "Naam" or "Satguru. " Get connected to
either, and your whole spiritual future is established. Maulana Rumi says, "Know
that to be near the Realized Soul is to be near God." That is
where God is manifested, and that Perfect Being will make the connection for
you. Those who are connected should take the rare opportunity to make
the best use of it. "Those with good karmas from aeons past get connected to the
Lord's Naam." The soul that has an accumulation of good karmas, which constitute the
mercy received from God for many past ages, gains the special mercy of the
Naam, which gives all-happiness, all-peace. How does one know one is connected
to Naam? "In that house (body), the Unstruck Sound is vibrating."
The indication of the presence of the Perfect Master in the student is the
music of the Sound or the radiance of the Light - whichever is manifesting at
the time. This has been Guru Arjan's hymn. Merely listening to the words will not
give you emancipation from this world - you must live up to what you have
understood. If you have not obeyed in the past, then start from today: do your
meditation; do not take any food until you have sat for a while. If you are not
getting much experience within, then look to your diary; and you will find the
reason or cause lying in your everyday life. Do not use harsh words to others -
keep a sweet tongue in your head; that will solve many problems of life. You
may remember that with a single bitter word, the great Mahabharata battle was
started. The Kauravs were visiting the Pandavs in the palace of Draupadi, the
Pandavs' wife. The floor there was so beautifully made that it reflected the
light and gave an impression of a shallow pool. When the Kauravs picked up
their long clothes to step through what they thought was a pool, Draupadi very
mischievously called out, "Blind son of a blind father!" mocking the
blindness of the Kauravs' father, King Dhritarashtra. The whole of India's
civilization was destroyed in that great war, and you find similar things
happening today on a smaller scale. So live up to the Master's teachings and
make your life peaceful, and you will have success in every way. Param
Sant Kirpal Singh |