ARE YOU EVEN HALF A
DISCIPLE?
In this vast ocean we call the world, who is a true one?
O Nanak, think of the True One as the Truth. God, Who is Ever Existent,
Unchangeable, Permanent, He Who never declines nor diminishes and is the
Sustainer of all things-He is known as the True One. And, the God which
came into expression-From one Source, millions of rivers sprouted forth-That
is called the Truth. So, who is true of all those who have received the
human birth? He Who has realized the Lord is True.
What kind of thing is the Truth? The Jap Ji says, He
was when there was nothing; He was before all ages began; He existeth now,
0 Nanak, And shall exist forevermore. Truth is eternal-something even
beyond eternity. There are many who boast of being true-"I have realized
the Truth," etc.-but true is he who is true to his real self-both
outwardly and inwardly. Outwardly his mode of living follows after the
Lord. Inwardly he is ever at one with and constantly aware of the Truth.
Human birth is a great blessing, and to realize the Truth should be that
human endeavor above all others, for in that human life alone can It be
realized; in the human life alone can the soul become a True One.
When the Master says, "I am ready to kiss the hands
and feet of He Who has realized the Truth," He is acknowledging that
noble aim. The True Ones, the Masters, have ever come to this world and
ever will. Their work was always successful and always will be. It is due
to a man's great good fortune if he ever meets a Soul Who has realized
the Truth. We call such a Personality a Satguru -True Dispeller
of the darkness. Guru Amar Das Ji searched for the Truth for more than
70 years, and when He eventually came to the feet of His Master, Guru Angad
Sahib, He saw the reflection of the Truth and said, Without good fortune,
one cannot meet such a Satguru. It is a very high destiny. With
good karmas a Satguru is met. If the Lord gives special grace, one
gets the experience from a True Master, and He says He is prepared to kiss
the hands and feet of such an Enlightened Soul, which is an expression
of gratitude.
During the life of Guru Arjan Sahib, a certain family
of devotees who were talented in singing the holy scriptures approached
the Guru for some financial help to cover the cost of their daughter's
marriage. Guru Arian said, "All right, it will be given." They
waited for some days, but nothing further was said; so once again they
faced the Guru and said, "Maharaj, we do not want very much; so if
each sikh [i.e. disciple] could give one taka [two pice-about a
third of a cent] that would be enough." Guru Arjan replied, "All
right, tomorrow we will see." The days passed by without further development,
and again they approached their Guru, saying, "Please do something
quickly, for the date of the marriage is upon us." The Guru said,
"All right, tomorrow I will give." When they came to Him the
following day, He took out four and a half takas and gave it to them. They
looked at the small amount in surprise and said, "Maharaj, what is
this? You have such a huge gathering of disciples, and yet you have given
us only four and a half takas." Guru Arjan replied, "You said
you wanted one taka per Sikh. The first Sikh was Guru Nanak, the second
was Guru Angad, the third was Guru Amar Das, the fourth was Guru Ramdas,
and, well, the half taka is for me-I am only half a Sikh-and that makes
a total of four and a half takas." It was a sharp lesson to those
who had thought to be clever and a wonderful example of the humility of
Guru Arjan.
What then is the criterion of a Sikh? Guru is a Sikh-Sikh
is a Guru; both give the same teaching. He Who becomes a True Disciple
becomes a Guru-from server to Master. The family of singers did not appreciate
their Guru's lesson and they began to demur, saying, "Who would have
known of Guru Nanak but for our singing?" A true Sikh can tolerate
anything but an attempt to defame the Guru, and showing His displeasure
Guru Arjan said, "Ail right, brothers, you can go." Others of
His followers observed the Guru's anger and begged Him to forgive the offending
persons. The Guru said, "All right, they will be forgiven when the
mouths that have insulted will sincerely sing His praises."
Everyone can learn something from this incident. He called
Himself half a Sikh, although He Himself was that same Light that all Gurus
are; in actual fact, the Guru never dies. Through the ages, the Supreme
Power is the same; That is our Guru. When Guru Nanak was asked Who
was His Guru, He replied, Shabd is the Guru; the attention is the disciple.
The unchangeable permanence which came into expression and is known
as the Truth-that is the Guru. When Kabir Sahib was asked a similar question,
He replied, Our Guru is above the gaggan [focal point of the soul],
the disciple is in the body; When the attention and Shabd meet, never
will they be separated. Do you begin to understand what a disciple
really is? And, a gurusikh is a disciple of a Guru. The Guru is
first a complete disciple. Then the disciple becomes a Guru. The same theme
continues on, for Truth is One. If a bulb fuses, another is put in its
place; and when that fuses, another is placed, and so on. The Power which
continues is called God Power, or Guru Power, or Christ Power.
During my last tour of the United States I gave a talk
on December 25, 1963, on the subject "Christ lived before Jesus,"
in which I told them that Christ Power and Guru Power are the same. Similarly,
the Shabd, the Word, the God-into-expression Power and God Himself are
all the same, and that Power working at the Human Pole we call a Guru.
That very talk has been printed under the title, God Power, Christ Power,
Master Power.
There are three stages of a disciple: Sikh, Gurusikh,
and Gurumukh. He who becomes the Gurumukh becomes the mouthpiece of the
Guru, and the Guru is the mouthpiece of God. A Muslim fakir says that the
words the Guru utters are the words of God Himself, although outwardly
they appear to be coming from a human throat. Another Master says, Whatever
words come from the Beloved are given out. Also, 0 Nanak, the servant
speaks as ordered.
The question arises: If we consider the Guru to be a Sikh,
then how can one become a Gurusikh? There should be no misunderstanding
on this point, for the followers of a Master would wish to know, "How
can we become a Gurusikh? How can we be the loved one of the Guru? How
can we become a worthy son or daughter of His?" Guru Gobind Singh,
the tenth Guru, clarified the matter by calling the true disciple a Khalsa.
There is no difference between a Gurusikh and a Guru. He says, The
Khalsa is my True Form; In the Khalsa do I reside; Khalsa is my True
Companion; Khalsa is my Perfect Master. From the beginning to the end,
and in between also, the Guru will never leave those He has taken under
His wing. When I recommended the spiritual diary, it was to help you all
to become Gurusikhs. You have not yet become Gurusikhs. You will be a Gurusikh
when you leave your body and transcend above, and have your Guru's darshan
in all crystal clearness, and can talk with Him. This is what is necessary
to be a Sikh. Then, if you advance further to become His mouthpiece, you
will be a Gurumukh when They say, "There is no difference between
us!" Just see what a noble future is awaiting you! You can become
ambassadors of Truth, but first see where you are standing now.
The Masters approach this problem as a man-problem: Recognize
all humanity as one. They do not give different teachings to Hindus
and different to Sikhs, Christians, and so on. They say simply, "Become
a Sikh - a True Disciple." But, man is the disciple of the mind and
the senses - of money, property, fame, and sensuous enjoyments. The Guru's
disciple is the Sadhu, and mind's disciple is the rest of the world. Here
the Sadhu means One in Whom the Lord has manifested - such is the Guru's
True Disciple. The rest of us are disciples of worldly things. These words
may seem rather harsh, but they are to help you realize the situation.
It is the way of Masters to encourage and praise Their
followers. If a person does even a little work, the Master will say, "Well
done." This happened during the life of Guru Gobind Singh also, and
He said in particular to one certain disciple, "Bravo, you are a very
good gurusikh." The Masters have deep purpose in praising each individual
- to uplift and sustain him - and if the disciple is aware of his shortcomings,
he should feel ashamed at such praise and begin to do better. When the
disciple had returned to his home, his wife, who had stayed near the Guru,
asked, "Maharaj, is he Your gurusikh? I think he is my sikh."
Guru Gobind Singh replied, "No, he is a very good disciple."
She said,"All right, then please test him." When her husband
came in the evening, the Guru told him, "Get a bale of first quality
muslin and bring it to me early in the morning." The disciple replied,
"Very well, Maharaj, I will bring it." He bought the muslin on
his way home, but at about midnight his wife awoke him and said, "I
want that muslin." He said, "But how can I give you that? I have
promised to take it to the Guru Sahib in the morning." This sort of
thing is happening all the time nowadays. He promised to buy another for
his wife, but she was adamant and said, "No, I want this very piece."
What could he do? The next day, when this "gurusikh" went to
his Guru, the Guru said, "Hello, disciple, have you brought the cloth?"
He said, "Maharaj, I went to buy it but could not find that particular
cloth; so I will go again today." So on the top of his disobedience,
he told a lie to his Guru. Here also some people come and tell lies; they
think, "He does not know." They come and give orders - they do
not come to learn to become a Gurumukh. So, Guru Gobind Singh said, "Well,
all right," and the wife of the disciple stood up and said, "Maharaj,
here is the cloth you wanted. Now tell me, is he your disciple or is he
mine?"
If Guru Arjan considered Himself but half a Sikh, then
what are we? Anyone who learns to give a short talk on the subject becomes
a guru overnight. The mere reading of books and learning of hymns by heart
- shouting, laughing, singing, making people cry with emotion - and finally
saying, "Go, child, you are saved," does not make a Guru. So,
listen carefully to the Guru's words on the subject, which speak for themselves:
If the Guru-sikhra is seen,
again and again will I bow to Him;
I will tell my innermost thoughts
and say,
0 Beloved Guru, join me back
to God.
The word Guru-sikhra is Punjabi and means a small
disciple, or you can say, "half a disciple." If one were to meet
a small disciple with even a little of his Guru's attributes, you may consider
him a Mahatma. Does this not indicate that there are very few even small
disciples? He says he would tell his innermost thoughts to Him: "Maharaj,
for birth upon birth we have been separated from the Lord. After going
round the cycle of life so many million times, we have at last reached
You. Even now we are wasting the precious moments - O help us - we are
in misery from the mind and senses." There are three kinds of miseries:
adhi-butik, adhi-atmik, and adhi-devik - misery through the
physical form, through the mind and senses, through trouble which comes
from above. The whole world suffers in all three ways; how can we gain
peace? It is a very pressing question. It is the Guru's work to give that
peace.
During the days when Guru Arjan was living in Amritsar,
some people from Lahore made plans to visit that city and have His darshan.
In those days most traveling was done on foot; and so after some discussion
they decided to break their journey for rest after twelve miles, and continue
to Amritsar the next day. Everyone agreed to this, except one small child,
who stood up and said, "Why can't we reach there in one day instead
of two?" Feeling somewhat abashed that the child had more enthusiasm
to be in the Guru's presence at any cost, they agreed that it was possible
to reach Amritsar in one day, by walking very quickly double the distance,
and very briefly pausing to gain their breath. So, the very next day they
set out from Lahore and finally reached the outskirts of Amritsar at about
midnight. It was a bitterly cold winter season, and when they arrived at
the Sikh temple called Pipli Sahib Gurudwara, they were cold, tired, and
hungry. Guru Arjan knew their condition, and from His Ashram, some distance
away, He wrapped Himself in a huge blanket from head to foot; and placing
a large container of hot halva parshad on His head, He set out to meet
the exhausted disciples at Pipli Sahib Gurudwara. With His identity still
veiled by the blanket, He distributed the parshad among them and then bent
to touch each person's feet. Now, each individual has his own aura, which
is a minimum of six inches deep. The stronger the person is spiritually,
the deeper is the aura, for it is charged with the thoughts of that being.
So, when Guru Arjan went nearer to the group of people, those who did a
little meditation became aware of the radiation which emanated from Him.
They said to themselves, "This must be some very Great Soul, indeed,
Who has served us this night." They asked their blanket-covered Benefactor
what He would like in return for His kindness, and He replied, "Dear
ones, I humbly beg of you, when you go before your Guru, ask Him to bless
me, make me a disciple, and also give me the great gift of humility as
long as there is breath in my body." He then quietly slipped away
and returned to His Ashram. A few minutes later, the group from Lahore
arrived in His presence and saw the same blanket-covered Person Who had
served them at the gurudwara. This is yet another example of the deep humility
of Guru Arjan Sahib, Who termed Himself but half a Sikh. What, indeed then,
would we find in a complete Sikh?
Everyone suffers from the three miseries. There are perhaps
a few who, like the small child, would sacrifice their physical or mental
comfort for the company of the Guru; but most people put the world first
and the Guru afterward. It should, of course, be vice versa; but we are
inclined to weigh these things as if on a balance machine. Those who decide
that the Guru has more weight have crossed the biggest hurdle of life,
but those who weigh the world heavily will remain in the world. He called
Himself a half-Sikh - He Who was a Gurusikh. Then what are we? We think
we are gurusikhs; but, in fact, we are mansikhs - disciples of the mind.
If we were gurusikhs, would we not obey the Guru's wishes? If
you love me, keep my commandments.
Do we ever keep His commandments properly? He tells us
that life is but a few days in length, a short span gained from the Lord's
blessing after so many rounds of births and deaths; and in this life we
can rejoin the Truth. If we do not do this? This birth slips away-it
will not come again; This precious opportunity will be lost. Who knows
when again you will live in this valuable house within which the Lord can
be realized? With the height of good fortune came the human birth; If
the Naam is not repeated, it amounts to self-immolation. The whole
of creation came into being through the Naam and is ever sustained by It.
All this world you see is the Lord's image; The Lord's image becomes
apparent. Make the Naam your companion. The Lord is All-Consciousness,
and the soul is consciousness also, which when connected, becomes more
conscious. Instead of this happening, it became connected and enmeshed
with the lower expressions of matter, thereby getting affected by all the
impure things of life in this world. When consciousness diminishes, what
happens? After death, the soul goes to whatever level of consciousness
it has at that time. So, now you have the great blessing of the human form;
go and open your heart to a True Master-show Him your condition, and do
not hide anything. We should receive the Bread of Life which is food for
the soul. Food for the body is through eating and drinking, and food for
the intellect is through reading, writing, and thinking. But, with awakenedness
one learns to discriminate Truth from all untruth.
Naam is the Bread and Water of Life, the food for the
soul-the cure for all ills, be they physical, mental, or mind ramifications.
The soul is weak because we have not fed it. We only talk about the soul,
but mere talking will not feed it. Can the stomach be filled by discussing
various kinds of bread? If you are thirsty, will repeating the word "water"
in all the world's languages quench your thirst? This Bread and Water of
Life cannot be got from those who are materially prosperous, or those who
will give you money, or from intellectuals who offer their vast halls of
learning. Food for the soul can be given only by a God-Realized Person,
and where does it come from? I am that Bread of Life ....this is the
Bread which cometh down from heaven; whosoever partaketh of it will have
everlasting life. It is a wealth of Truth, obtainable from the True
Emperor, not from worldly people.
Once Guru Har Gobind was on tour with the ruling Emperor
of the time, who set up camp very near to the Guru's camp. A certain gurusikh
who was a grass cutter, who earned his living by selling the grass he cut,
heard that his Guru had come; and cutting a huge load of grass for the
Guru's horses, he set out for the camp with the big bundle of grass on
his head. Now, the Guru's camp was a very modest size; but, of course,
the Emperor's camp was huge and grand; and when the gurusikh saw the large
enclosure of tents, he thought, "Surely this is my Guru's camp,"
for a true disciple always thinks that his Guru will have the very best
place of all. He folded his hands and cast his eyes down, that the first
sight he would have would be his Guru's face, and started walking toward
the largest tent. As he walked, he repeated quietly, "O Master, have
mercy on me; I am under the influence of the senses and have forgotten;
I am drowning in a deep black well - please take me out."
At the entrance to the tent of the Emperor, a sentry accosted
him and demanded to know his business; but the gurusikh replied with downcast
eyes, "Oh don't stop me; I am going to see my Guru Sahib - I am going
to the True Emperor." The King was inside the tent, and heard the
commotion, and called out to know what was happening. The sentry told the
King that the man wanted to go to his Guru Sahib - the True Emperor. The
King said, "All right, allow him to come inside." The gurusikh,
big bundle of grass on head, eyes closed, hands folded before him, approached
the King, saying, "O Master, have mercy on me; I am under the influence
of the senses and have forgotten; I am drowning in a deep black well -
please take me out." The King, knowing he had come to the wrong camp
by mistake, replied, "I am not your True Emperor. Your True Emperor
is in the other camp - the One Who has got the wealth of Truth and can
give It to others. He is your True Emperor; all the rest are false."
This story illustrates the yearning in the heart of a gurusikh.
When He has the cure for all ills and unhappiness, why
then are our miseries not removed? Because most people go to the Guru not
for spiritual reasons, but because their children are sick; they have this
trouble or that trouble. If only they would seek spiritual upliftment alone
and forget their woes and worries - the soul would gain such strength!
When the soul is strong, the whole being is strong. If five or six people
are going on beating each other, when one weak man is struck hard, he will
go down very easily under the onslaught. A strong man will tell you, "Yes,
I did get a beating, but I am alive and well enough to tell the tale."
When the soul daily partakes of the spiritual food and becomes spiritually
strong, unhappiness may come or happiness, his relatives may die or be
born, according to their karmas, and he will get his own karmic events
like others, yet he will not be affected by all this.
Guru Arjan is telling us that the cure for all our innermost
troubles lies in the hands of the Guru. If you have not yet found a Guru,
yet you have met a true disciple of God, even then ask only for spiritual
upliftment. But, what do people do? Even if they have found the True Emperor,
yet still they ask for money, property, health, even small supernatural
powers. Some desire happiness of the world, and some want the joy of the
other worlds. Why not ask Him for the real wealth? Have you ever heard
of going to a king and asking for sea shells? He has everything - whatever
you want - dharma, artha, kama, moksha [righteous life, wealth,
fulfillment of all desires, redemption]. But, we should ask for that thing
which He has come specially to give: He gives part of His very life
through which devotion is learned, and He joins the soul back to God. He
gives His own share of the Bread of the Lord. In this world one can find
people to give all kinds of things-but who will give his very life? And,
what is that life He gives? That is the Truth. He is the Word made flesh,
which dwells among us. He has come to give, but no one wishes to accept.
Our Hazur used to say that the Satguru hovers around during
the night, trying to distribute this Precious Treasure; but the world's
eyes are filled with sleep, completely unaware that It is available. Man
sleeps the profitable night hours away. If you placed in the four comers
of this Ashram the gifts of wealth, health, supernatural powers, and in
the fourth, Naam, you would find the whole world's population busily snatching
up the gifts of the first three-who would go to the fourth? If we do sometimes
remember the Lord, it is for our own satisfaction-to demand worldly pleasures.
If by great good fortune you meet a Realized Soul, tell Him what is in
the core of your heart-your innermost thoughts of misery in separation
from the Lord.
Give me such a message, that
my mind may cease to wander.
Our soul is enmeshed in created matter-it has become jiva-through
the connection with the mind. And, the mind, in turn, has sold itself
to the rule of the senses. Sometimes it is dragged by one sense, sometimes
another. So, he asks to be given something which will stop this vagrancy
of the mind-Someone should give a taste of that Nectar, sipping which all
worldly wines become tasteless. Leave all insipid worldly tastes, my
friend, and drink the Nectar of Naam. There is no real and lasting
effect in the worldly pleasures, but with Naam one becomes filled with
a deep satisfied contentment. Put wood or oil on a fire, and it will flare
up even brighter; but if you throw water or sand upon it, it will fizzle
out.
Getting Naam, mind is satisfied;
Without Naam, life is accursed.
But, Naam cannot be had through money, force, flattery,
homage, etc. It can be received only by serving a True Master. There
is no difference between the Sadh and the Lord. He Who is One with
the Lord is the Sadhu, and He is the mouthpiece of God. If only someone
would bring us near to that Personality. Through ages past, present,
and future will He remain with me; My mind likes that kind of Personality.
Who is He? He is my True Friend, meeting Whom all misapprehension
is erased. Search the whole world; such a Personality is rarely found.
The Satguru has an exceedingly noble task-to rejoin the souls back to the
Lord-but in between is the mind, and that is why man alone cannot do this
work. The mind must be controlled. If you look at man's condition, you
will admit that he is helplessly being dragged along, wherever the senses
are leading, wherever his passions are enticing him. If some beautiful
scenery or some beautiful form is seen, the mind is dragged towards it;
if some attractive music is heard, the mind is dragged to that; the sight
of food alone is enough to stir the taste into anticipation; the mind is
constantly dragged hither and thither. So, the poor soul, which supplies
the strength for all this, is being ridden mercilessly. It should have
been in supreme control, but the mind and senses have overpowered it and
rendered it helpless in this degraded position-is it not a very shameful
thing? So, the Master says that such a message should be given which will
control the rebel mind. Give us that intoxication which has a stronger
attraction and beauty than all others, that the mind may cease to look
elsewhere for its enjoyment. That special intoxication exists only in the
Naam. Naam is the same as the Ever-Existent Lord, and this Bread of Life
is received only by those upon whom that Lord showers His mercy. If
you have great destiny, you meet the Satguru. And, what happens? He
puts in your heart the means of serving the Shabd, through the attention.
If one should meet such a Master, one should ask Him to perform this
spiritual operation.
All Masters have proclaimed that there is God, and He
resides in the physical temple of the human form. One Muslim fakir advises
that if you have definitely decided to realize the Lord, then place one
foot upon your mind, and the next step will take you to the Lord's door.
In the Koran it is written that he who can control his mind reaches the
door of God. Our soul is attention. The Lord is the Greater Attention.
That Greater Attention has made millions of worlds-regions upon regions-can
we not even make a single small town? The whole machinery of the body is
driven by us, the soul. Whatever we turn our attention to can become successful.
If you eat your food without any attention on it, you will not taste it.
If you put all your attention on a certain task, others may shout at you,
yet you will not hear them. There is great power in the attention, yet
it is unhappily dragged around by the mind. For the solution to that, we
must offer the mind a stronger taste. For example, if you stir one teaspoonful
of sugar into a glass of water, that liquid will seem sweet. If you stir
one cupful of sugar into another glass of water, that liquid will taste
like syrup; it will be so sweet. If you then taste the first liquid once
again, it will appear to have no sweetness at all. So,
Naam has got the Nectar of the Lord which satisfies the mind and renders
the small enjoyments insipid.
Without the Naam, a meaningless life is spent. Furthermore,
Without a Perfect Master, no one can get It, even with a million good
deeds. It is a very high destiny to meet such a Master. If, for instance,
you enter a perfumery, you can enjoy the scent of the perfume without even
buying any. But, if the perfumist gives you a small phial to take away,
then? Masters have a radiation; and if one sits in full concentration in
Their company, one gains the benefit of that. If, in His intoxicated nature,
the Master speaks out, what happens?
In Bengal there was once a Master named Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
All Masters have Their own expressions in praise of God, and this One would
say, "Hari bol," which means, "Speak the
Name of God." One day He approached some washermen who were washing
clothes by the river, and they thought He was a beggar of no account. But,
He sought out one washerman and persisted that he should repeat the words,
"Hari bol." At first the washerman ignored His request;
but when He persisted and persisted, he agreed to say the words if only
to be rid of the beggar; so he said, "Hari bol. " Now,
there was a great charging in these words, and he could not cease from
repeating them in intoxication. He danced around singing, "Hari bol,
Hari bol," and soon the other washermen gathered around him in curiosity;
but they, too, became caught up in the magic intoxication of those words,
and they also began repeating, "Hari bol, Hari bol." So, you
see, it is a great, great blessing to meet a Master. Even if He gives no
gift, yet while sitting quietly and attentively in His presence, you will
enjoy sweet and serene peace. And, if He gives you the contact, and you
increase that contact by daily practice, then the whole world's noxious
attractions will fade away gradually. And, whose praises are being sung
here? A small disciple's. But, he should be a real disciple-not
a disciple of mind and senses, of this and other worlds.
I give this mind unto Thee,
0 Guru,
Show me the Path.
Our Hazur once said, "If only you people could give
your minds today, you would immediately go back Home." One man stood
up and said that he was prepared to give his mind, but Baba Sawan Singh
Ji said, "How can a person give something which does not belong to
him? First make the mind your own, and then say you will give it."
The cure lies within us-not from outside-and that is the Satguru's Naam.
Satguru is Naam-the Word made flesh.
How many people in the world truly pray to God for the
sake of God? The Sikhs have a prayer: To be with the Gurumukh, to have
company of a Sadhu, to have the intoxication of the Naam, This is the true
affinity in which Thy Name is remembered in the heart. They pray also:
Nanak's servant wants only this happiness; Give me the company of a
Sant. These are daily prayers in the life of a Sikh; but when they
do meet a Sant or Master, they insist that they do not need help from anyone.
I have walked from far off ages;
Now I see, and surrender myself
unto Thee.
We have lived through many species of life and have finally
reached the human form, supreme in all the 8,400,000 species. If one takes
a step forward from here, one can reach one's True Home; but if one steps
backwards, one reverts again to the cycle of lives, the wheel of births
and deaths. The Master says that after so many births through the ages,
he can now see that the Satguru is competent to release him from
this imprisonment in creation. We are weighed down by karmas from the past
actions, some of which get paid off, but most of which remain unaccounted
for. While these accounts are outstanding, nothing can be achieved spiritually,
and the soul cannot be released from the wheel of life.
When King Dhritarashtra, who was blind from birth, was
asked what he had done to deserve such a fate, he said, "I know of
my past for the last one hundred births and can find nothing in them to
deserve this blindness." Then Lord Krishna, Who held the status of
Yogishwar, which denotes the highest proficiency in all yogic powers, gave
a little attention to the King; and He was able to see that, in the 106th
birth back, he had committed a certain action for which he was now paying
with blindness. So, you see, our condition is like an overburdened donkey
which is stuck in a bog and cannot get out. The weight of our past lies
heavy on our heads, and the bog of mind and senses has such strength that
we are sinking further and further into the mire with each life. If someone
would only take true compassion on us! Who can have such compassion, but
a God-Realized Soul Who leaves His home of contentment to descend and bear
all the insults and brickbats of the world, and Whose aim and desire is
only to take the dear souls out of their sad predicament. And, when He
accepts each soul, He first lightens the burden of those karmas, and then
pulls him out. The Great Guru pulls the attention out.
It is obvious that those who are at the level of mind
and senses can achieve only whatever is within this same level. If a person
wants to realize the Lord, then outer efforts of prayer, austerities, fasting,
reading of scriptures, pilgrimages, donations, singing, etc., all of which
are done at the level of mind and senses, therefore cannot take the soul
above this level. In all these actions, even the very thought of doing
them remains to restrict one from rising into higher levels of consciousness-the
more beautiful realms of Light. That is why the soul cannot release itself
from its plight-it must have help. Shabd burns out ego and attachment;
The Gurumukh receives the Effulgent Light. When the Sikh becomes the
Gurumukh, the mouthpiece of the Guru, He gets the Effulgent Light which
is God's own form. His ego is wiped out, for He sees clearly
that He is not doing anything, but God is working through Him. With this
knowledge, pride of I-hood leaves.
When the compassionate Satguru gives the contact with
Naam-a connection to the Light and Sound-then where will that take us?
It will take us to its source, and that is our True Home, for when the
Lord willed to become many from one, this resulted in vibrations, out of
which were bom both Light and Sound. So, God Himself is Light and He is
Sound-the Nada. The work of the True Master, the One in Whom the
Lord has manifested, is to give the connection to Naam, which is Light
and Sound. What gift could be greater than this? No one but the Satguru
is capable of giving.
To obey and to surrender oneself are two different things.
Being obedient to the Guru's wishes does not mean you have surrendered
yourself, although he who has surrendered is naturally obedient. But, if
you have surrendered, you will not think of why and what; you will just
do what He says. I have given myself unto Your reckoning; so do what
You will. When Hazrat Ibrahim's slave was asked where he would like
to sleep, what clothes he would like to wear, the slave replied, "Sire,
you have bought me; whatever you wish I will do." This is what surrender
means. It is a very difficult step to take, for hundreds of doubts enter
the mind. When people see the Guru living like an ordinary human being,
eating, drinking, etc., they become careless in thought and respect. You
should always remember that a Master's life is two-in-one. He is the Son
of Man, accepting all as brothers, having no ill thought for anyone, living
like a true human being, sharing happiness and misery with others. He also
suffers in the sadness of others, and sometimes sheds tears of sympathy,
too. But, as His True Self, He leads the souls within and up. Those unfortunate
people who consider Him merely a man remain at the level of man and lose
the golden opportunity. So, He advises us to surrender.
And now I see, and surrender
myself unto You.
This is the only way to crowning success. If a man has
four sons and three of them are very demanding, but the fourth is content
to accept whatever the father gives, does that mean the father will ignore
him.'? Rather, would he have more love for that son, and unasked for, his
full share would be given. This shows surrender. Guru Ramdas Ji once said,
My Guru is a great Dyer and has a huge vat of color; Whosoever gives
his mind will be dyed in it. But, we can give all else but that.
I came with hope in my heart;
0 take away all my misery.
That is all he desires. Seeing the competency of his Guru,
he surrenders himself and asks that all his unhappiness may be washed away.
To walk this Path, brothers,
benefit from obedience.
The Master thinks of all humanity as brothers-He does
not say that He is God. If ye love me, keep my commandments. Those
who bow their heads to His words will most decidedly gain salvation.
Satguru's Words-Words are the Satguru. In months,
even days, success can be ours; but we have no respect for His words. Yes,
outwardly we make a great show of respect; but we do not obey His instructions.
It is a big weakness-we are most lacking in this. If you start obeying
from today, you will see the difference. Since the day I met the Master
heart to heart, my days have changed for the better. From that very
day the real meeting started. And, what is the real meeting? There are
two kinds: one is just to see someone, and the other is when one heart
becomes one with the other through inner sight. This latter is the
true meeting, and from then on? True association is with the Master.
Masters have said also that such a meeting washes away all sins-not
through just looking physically.
Life is short, but it came with a great
blessing: it is thy turn to meet God. This is the time to realize the Lord.
And, when you meet a God-Realized Soul, speak out all your innermost thoughts-and
then do what He says. Know you have met the Satguru, when you lose all
attachment by rising above body consciousness-first above the physical
when attachment to the body leaves, and then above the astral and causal,
in that order. This is the fruit of meeting a Satguru, and there is only
one condition laid down-that is obedience. Each one of
you has been told to keep a spiritual diary, but
how many keep them correctly? Five percent at the most. Those who keep
the diary correctly are succeeding in meditation. Who knows when you will
get this human birth again? Kabir Sahib says, Each human breath is valued
as the Three Regions combined. Just consider then how ruthlessly we
waste our lives.
Leave whatever the mind tells you-obey only the Guru's
words. Furthermore, leave all impressions and influence begotten of ignorance.
God is in all-each one has a soul, which is His entity. We are all brothers
and sisters in God, and the body is the very temple of God. Leave now all
ignorant attitude-put it behind you. Lord Krishna says, He who sees
all in me, and me in all, is surely my loved one. In your diary is
a column for humility. Sometimes a person thinks of his riches, his education,
his position, or power over others. Remember that God is in every form;
when He is sitting within us, why all this pride? If the master is sitting
and the servant standing, this is the result of karma-action and reaction-and
there is really no difference between the two.
When you get a glimpse of the
Lord,
this heat wave will not affect
you.
You must go through all the ups and downs of life; but
if you follow the Guru's behests, these things will have no effect upon
you. Our Hazur used to say that the thorns that are spread along life's
way cannot be swept aside, but why not wear strong boots for protection?
Join your soul to God-from within. The greatest sin in this life is hatred
for others, because of He Who lives in each and every one. If you are hating
Him, how do you expect to meet Him? If you desire to meet your Beloved,
injure nobody.
I myself do not know how to
speak
-the words which come are God's
orders.
Guru Arjan Sahib now explains that the words He utters
are not His own, but come through the Lord's direction. What more could
He say? It is like a proclamation, for Masters are Conscious Co-Workers
in the Divine Plan, and They always acknowledge that He is the Doer and
not They. God speaks through Them, that humanity may know the way back
to Him.
The treasure of devotion to
the Lord is a gift of the Almighty,
given out of compassion through
Guru Nanak.
Devotion to the Lord is a valuable treasure-and it is
a gift given out of the compassion of the Guru Who distributes it. Unfortunately,
people do not realize its value.
I ate so much, all my hunger
was satisfied.
Desire no longer torments if the hunger becomes satisfied.
This gift will satisfy the hunger and thirst, for contact with God is food
for the soul. That is the connection with Naam. To see the Light and hear
the Sound is the daily Bread and Water of Life.
Whenever I see even the small
guru-sikh,
again and again I will bow to
him.
To see the Light of the Guru in even the smallest disciple
deserves homage. Out of compassion this gift is given, but no one wants
it. Guru Arjan says that when He received this gift, all desire was satisfied.
Now I will take a short hymn on what the disciple's program should be:
He who calls himself a sikh
of the Satguru
Should arise before dawn and
meditate on Naam.
Guru Arjan has spoken of half a Sikh. Now, Guru Ramdas
tells us what a sikh should do. The disciple of the Satguru-the One Who
is the image of the Truth-should arise very early and meditate upon the
Naam. When the soul is contacted with the Naam, it sees the Light and hears
the Sound, which are within Naam. This is the true meditation, and between
3 a.m. and 6 a.m. is the best time for meditating. Be wide awake-have a
bath if necessary. But, sit down refreshed and buoyant for meditation.
Those who meditated upon Naam had all their troubles resolved; 0 Nanak,
their faces were radiant with freedom. Not only were their faces glowing
with the Lord's presence, but many others received freedom through them.
A Gurumukh frees millions with a tiny ray of Naam. A Gurumukh is
an Enlightened Soul. Macrocosm is in the microcosm; He who traverses
the physical (Pind), astral (And), and causal (Brahmand) bodies finds the
Truth.
The outer Amritsar is a city which was started by Guru
Ramdas and completed by Guru Arjan. But, the Master means here that the
soul should go up and take a bath in the inner Amritsar-the Pool of Nectar.
In another hymn, Guru Armar Das says, The true Amritsar is within this
body; When the mind drinks of it, he becomes emancipated. Whoever reaches
that Pool of Nectar with love and devotion, having risen above Pind, And,
and Brahmand, can take a bath within It. It is called also the Tenth Door
(Dasam Dwar), or Haus-i-Kauzar, or Prag Raj. That
is where the soul should take its daily bath, and this should be the sikh's
program: He should rise above the three planes and have a bath in the
Pool of Nectar.
With the Guru's word, take God's
Name;
All sins and misery will be
washed away.
If the Guru's initiation is followed by absolute obedience
to His wishes, all sins will be washed away forever, along with all the
miseries of the worldly life. And then, after transcending the physical,
astral, and causal planes, and taking the bath in the Pool of Amrit, what
should one do?
At sunrise, sing the Gurbani,
After meditating upon the Lord's
Naam.
Gurbani are the scriptures containing the holy words of
many Masters, and these should be read daily. It is something like sitting
in the mother's lap where one feels uplifted and reassured. Furthermore,
one is reminded of the Valuable Jewel which lies within one's being. The
words tell us where and how that Bread of Life can be contacted and through
Whom. It is a most helpful thing to read the words of the Masters. But,
note that He says one should read after meditating. There
is much difference between reading and meditating; the former is not a
substitute for the latter. The books do describe how the soul can rise
above all three planes and go into the fourth stage-beyond which lies Sat
Lok or Sach Khand. It is good to refresh this lesson daily. But, the trouble
is that we have forgotten to meditate and are stuck with the holy books
alone. We must become connected to that, within. The Perpetual Sound
is food for the soul; Nanak says, he whose Satguru is perfect will get
It. The Music of the Spheres continues perpetually; and if your attention
is controlled, you can hear It when working or resting. Sitting or standing,
meditate upon God's Name.
He Who with each breath remembers
God -
That Gurusikh gains the Guru's
pleasure.
The Guru loves one who meditates upon Naam day and night.
The Guru loves one who takes His teachings to heart and lives up to them.
Khalsa is my True Form; In the Khalsa do I reside; Khalsa is my True
Companion; Khalsa is my Perfect Master; In these words there's not the
smallest falsehood; I take my Par Brahm Guru Nanak as witness. The
child who obeys the Guru's words will get whatever he wishes. Is he not
the Guru's beloved child? Although, of course, such a child never asks
for anything; he has no need, for his greatest dharma is to live on the
Guru's will and pleasure. Brothers, do you want to be someone in the Guru's
favor? Then these are the two things you must do. But, we say we have no
time-so who is going to keep the diaries? What is the result? We are just
delaying what we will have to do. Remember, when we meet the Satguru .
. .Know you have met the Satguru when attachment and desire are finished.
From that day, your good days will start-but not by waving your hands,
dancing, jumping around, showing outer enthusiasm and demonstration. Only
one who respects and follows the Master's words-is utterly truthful before
Him-will gain the spiritual riches. He is sitting within, remember, and
then we want to trick Him as well as others. Furthermore, we want to hide
things from Him. There is an old Punjabi saying: "In front of the
Guru and the doctor, one should hide nothing." Some even call him
a liar. What will happen to such people? They will remain imprisoned
in creation and the births and deaths, and will continue around the cycle
of 8,400,000. But, eventually they will have to do the work.
He on whom the Lord's mercy
is showered,
Gains the message through the
Master.
The Guru gives the message to those whom the Lord Himself
has blessed. God sends the Masters, and He Himself gives the Treasure by
manifesting Himself in Them.
Nanak's follower desires the
dust of that Gurusikh's feet,
Who repeats and makes others
repeat the Naam.
The receiver should know that It is God's Gift, through
the Guru's mercy. He whose ego rises to confront his Guru does not understand
this. The intoxication of Naam, 0 Nanak, inebriates day and night. The
Masters have described that intoxication again and again. One Satsang is
really enough to understand, but we should then make it our very life-live
up to it.
It does not matter to which religion you belong. You can
succeed, for this message is for all mankind. Different religions and sects
are the results of karmic reaction; but the soul is the conscious entity,
part of the All-Consciousness which lies within every being. So, the body
is truly the temple of God, in which His Light is burning. From today,
become a worthy sikh-worthy even to be called a gurusikh, the beloved disciple
of the Guru.
You can do this if you obey the Master's words. You will
not do it? You will have to do it-if not in this birth, then
in the next. Oh brothers, what is the use of coming again and again? Why
not do it now? If this birth goes, it will not come again in your hands,
and the precious life is wasted.
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