From jamesjs@unixg.ubc.ca Fri Apr 02 13:18:17 1999
Newsgroups: alt.meditation.shabda
Subject: Gurbhakti - A Lesson in Love (1/2)
From: jamesjs@unixg.ubc.ca (James Shannon)
Date: 2 Apr 1999 20:18:17 GMT




                      GURBHAKTI - A LESSON IN LOVE

                                   by

                          Sant Kirpal Singh Ji

                             [Part 1 of 2]


                    This Satsang talk was given at 
	            Sawan Ashram in Delhi, India, and 
		    was published in the July 1968 
		    issue of Sat Sandesh Magazine.
                    ---------------------------------
   
   
   This day we have gathered together in the loving memory of the
Godman (Hazur Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj) Who revived the age-old
perennial science which we had forgotten. The object of celebrating the
birth anniversary of a Master Soul is to make a fresh appraisal of His
teachings; and by following His footsteps, we keep His memory alive.
Ordinarily, we are expected to live daily, nay hourly, in the loving
presence of the Master and be ever thankful to Him for the indelible
footprints left by Him on the sands of time. That, of course, is an
individual affair. But we must, once a year at least, hold a memorial
service on the occasion of His advent into the world for the spiritual
uplifting of man. Whatever time we spend together in this congregational
service to the memory of the Godman will be amply rewarded and
should, therefore, be considered a great blessing.

   What then are the lessons we can take from such a dedicated life
of selfless service as of Hazur? It is by knowing them that we can strive
to follow them as best as we can and advance on the path of self-
realization and God-realization. It is to His great credit that He revived
the most ancient science of Paravidya (the knowledge of the Beyond, the
great unknown cause of all causes that lies beyond the senses and the
intellect).

In the modern age, the teachings originated with Kabir and Nanak, and
the torch of light was carried on by the successive nine Gurus, then
Tulsi Sahib, Swami Ji Maharaj, and afterwards by Baba Jaimal Singh Ji,
and then by Hazur Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj, by Whose grace the sacred
teachings are being imparted even now to the spiritually hungry souls.
Fortunate, indeed, are those blessed souls who had the privilege to be
initiated by Him. We must, therefore, make the best use of the short
lifespan allotted to us. The greatest purpose of the human birth is that
it offers us an opportunity, rare as it is, to experience our own "self"
and God. None can help us to unite with God but One Who is already united
with Him. Gurbani says: "Some Godman may link us with the Power-of-God."

   That Divine Power is, of course, within each one of us, for we live,
move, and have our very being in Him.

                My Lord consort pervades in all beings,
                But blessed is One in Whom He is manifest.
                                                -Gurbani

  It is this God manifested being or the Godman Who can guide us Godward.
The question here is as to why we cannot unite with God by our own unaided
efforts? It is because the soul is under the powerful sway of mind, which
in its turn is being controlled by the senses; and these senses are
running riot with the sense-objects. We are thus totally identified with
mind and matter and have no independent existence of our own. So it is
the God-in-man Who can link us with God. In other words, One Who has
established a contact with God can show us the way to effect this contact
for ourselves. Thus, God in the garb of man is the Guru of all. When Guru
Nanak was questioned on this subject, He replied: "Verily, it is the Holy
Word, Shabd, or the Sound that is the Master; and the soul in man
permeating through and through in the physical body is the disciple."
Now what is meant by Shabd? The absolute God is Ashabd (Wordless); but
when He comes into expression, He is known as Shabd (Word):


                With one Word, the whole creation
                  came into being.
                                                -Gurbani

   Again Gurbani says: "It is from Shabd that the whole creation comes
into being and ultimately gets absorbed into it, and it is through it
that regeneration takes place."

   This manifested Power-of-God which is the substratum of the entire
creation is called Shabd. This Shabd then is the Jagat Guru or the Master
Power. This very question was put to Kabir: "O Kabir, Who is the Master
and where does the disciple reside? How did the two get together into an
indissoluble union?" He replied: "My Master is in the Beyond, while the
disciple is in this body. Both of them got together by means of Shabd,
and now there is no fear of separation between the two." So the Master
of all the world is the Shabd Power or the Holy Word. Guru Gobind Singh
has put it succinctly: "He Who is one and the same in the beginning and
the end is the manifested Power-of-God, the Shabd; and that is the real
Master."

   Thus the physical body in which the Shabd Power is manifestly
working is worthy of all our adoration, for that Power alone can draw
the soul to Himself. The Master is not the physical body but the Divine
Power which is enlivening His body.

                God speaks through a human frame
                  as without it, how can He speak to us?
                                                -Gurbani

   The physical body is not the Master, but blessed is that body in
which that Power is manifest for spiritual guidance. This Power-of-God
as manifested on the human plane helps in liberating all human souls
entombed in the meshes of mind and matter. Swami Ji says: "The great
Power-of-God in the Guru helps in disengaging the souls from the
shackles of the body and in raising it upwards."

   The living Master is competent enough to unite with God such souls
that seek His guidance. The prime job of a Master Soul is to unite all
the children of God under His saving protection. Gurbani says: "Free
from birth and death under the compulsive force of karmas comes the
redeemer of souls; with a touch of His life-breath, He alchemises the
human soul and connects it with the Holy Word."

   Such Great Souls come into the world for the spiritual welfare of
humanity. They are commissioned from above for this job. Now, perhaps
you may understand what is meant by a living Master. He is, in fact,
God-manifest on earth or the "Word-made-flesh" to dwell amongst us, as
Christ puts it.

                Dwelling in the Guru, He doles
                  out the Holy Word.
                                                -Gurbani

   Man alone can be the teacher of man. It is with the help of some
human instrument that God works for mankind. God does, from time to
time, descend in a human garb for the uplifting of the people stuck fast
in the mire of the world and all that is worldly. A Saint has a two-fold
mission: to awaken people from a long-drawn dream of the material world,
and to reveal to them the saving life-lines within. Like a radiant
polestar, He guides the erring humanity. When it rains, every place, high
or low, equally gets the blessing of the life-giving showers. Hazur's name
was Sawan; and significantly enough like Sawan rains, He blessed the
people with spiritual showers; and every one - Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, or
Christian - benefited from His teachings.

   Now, we revert to our original question as to whom should one love in
the world? If we look critically, we find that love is an innate quality
in man; and every one is devoted to one thing or another: may be the
service to one's family, community, nation or the country, or it may be
to the development of some art or craft or any other such thing. And yet
there are some who love themselves above all else, and self indulgence
is with them the be-all and end-all of life. Once there was in our
country a ruler Mohammad Shah Rangila. He was given over to bouts of
drinking. When Delhi was in the throes of a wholesale massacre, the
people petitioned the king to intervene. The, king was so busy in
drinking that he had neither the time nor the heart to attend to this
appeal for mercy and exclaimed: "Let these papers of no importance be
drowned in the wine." Similarly, it is said of Nero, a Roman emperor,
that he fiddled while Rome was burning. There is no dearth of such people
in the world. He who worships his family is far better than the one who
worships himself and lives for self-gratification only. So also he who
loves and serves his society, religion, or country is still better
progressively. But all these varying types of love and devotion are more
or less characterized by a sense of ego and smack of pride; and as such,
more often than not, the result is a clash between family and family,
class and class, or country and country. We have had what are
euphemistically called crusades or holy wars fought in the blessed name
of religion but born out of misguided religious zeal, and to speak
plainly, out of sheer religious ignorance, bigotry, and intolerance.
But on the contrary, the love of God far transcends all these petty
adorations as it consists in total self-abnegation and selfless
sacrifice because of the knowledge that God resides in all hearts; and
He is the substratum of the entire creation. God is an Unchangeable
Permanence and Everlasting. But we have not yet seen Him; and without
seeing Him, how can we love Him and inculcate devotion for Him? So we
have, of necessity, to bestow our loving devotion on the human plane
where the Power-of-God is manifest. Guru Amar Das Ji says: "If you
want to worship God, worship the Satguru Who is God personified of the
Word-made-flesh."

   He then grants contact with the Holy Naam and helps us in crossing
over into the Beyond. The worship of Satguru is really the worship of
God. The easiest way of developing the worship of God is to develop
Gurbhakti (love of the Master). In Gurbani we have: "The loving
devotion to the Master is above everything else, and I love His holy
feet with all my strength."

   Now what is Bhakti (loving devotion)? It is the love of God. God is
Love and Love is God. The way back to God is also through love. Love
knows naught but service and sacrifice. What is it that distinguishes
love? He who loves desires to sacrifice his all for the sake of the
Beloved; and after having sacrificed all, does not look for any reward
in return. God Himself bespeaks thus:

                If you desire to join me in the game of love,
                Come unto Me with your head on your palm
                  as an offering.
                If you want to tread the path of love,
                Never for a moment hesitate to offer your life.
                                                -Gurbani

   This is the type of sacrifice that love demands; and in doing so,
never think that you have done any favor. You should rather feel
grateful that you have won love so easily.

   Amir Khusro was a great devotee of his Master. One day he exclaimed
with delight that he had received happy tidings from his Beloved: "What
is it?" the people asked. My Beloved has ordered that I be decapitated
tomorrow in the open market," he said. "Has your Beloved given you any
assurance to see you and cast His loving glance on you?" inquired the
people. "None, whatsoever," was the reply.

   This is what love demands from the lover and complete submission to
the will of the Beloved without any rhyme or reason. Love is just a
one-way traffic so far as the lover is concerned. It knows no bargaining.
All it connotes is implicit obedience. "Not my will, but thine," cries
the true lover. A Persian poet has defined love thus:

                What is love? It is to be a
                  bondsman of the beloved.
                And to go wondering and offering one's heart.

   Love then means to dedicate yourself - body and soul - to someone and
to wander the earth over in his search.

   A real devotee dedicates his very life to the service of his Master
and dissolves his will in that of His. It is a life of complete surrender
with no mental reservations. Sarmad a great Gurbhakt said:

                I have given away my heart, my life,
                  and my very soul;
                Having passed on all my burdens,
                I know no greater gain than this.

   All the ills of the world originate with the mental activity. We are
stuck fast in the heart-focus from where the rays of the mind start, and
passing from the sense organs, envelop the sense objects, and we get
attached to the world around us. How little do we realize the great motor
power of the soul behind, enlivening the mind and the intellect. If we
could divest ourselves of these adjuncts and dedicate our very life to
the service of a Godman, we would at once become a freed soul ready to
go Godward. Can there be any greater gain than to escape from all the
trials and turmoils of the earthly life? This is what we gain by
practicing the presence of the personified God in our midst. He is a
living embodiment of the God-into-expression Power and helps us to reveal
and develop the same as He has done.

                Contemplate thou on the form of the Master;
                Besides it, there is no other way
                  of escape from bondage.
                                                -Swami Ji

   The term "dhyan" (contemplation) is derived from the root "dhi"
which means to fix the attention with the living Master. I may illustrate
my point by taking the analogy of a newly wedded girl coming back to
her parents home. However busy she may appear to be in household chores,
but all the time she thinks of her husband. In exactly the same way, the
attention of the disciple should always be grounded in the Master - the
Word-made-flesh. Guru is Godman, i.e. man plus God. Those who get
attached to man only remain entangled in the body; while those who see
the God manifested in the man, the links of Him are revealed to the
disciple. He learns quickly how to rise above the body. As you think so
you become. It is as natural as anything. If you will develop loving
remembrance of the Master in your heart, the same ideas will come to you
manifold by His Divine Radiation. It is He Who loves us first, and our
love is simply reciprocal. Mother loves the newly born child first, and
the child loves the mother in return. Our love is but a kind of reaction
of the love of the Master Who has drawn us to Him. Gurbani says: "The
Master loves the disciple with all His life."

   This is known as Gurbhakti. When you think of the Master with all
your heart and soul, you cannot but obey Him implicitly. Christ said:
"If you love me, keep my commandments."

   Love calls for direct and immediate obedience and not merely lip
service. In this respect there is a general weakness in all of us, and
we fail miserably. We must learn to understand Him and be able to do what
He bids us to do, even though at moments what He says may not appear
sound to us. He speaks from a higher level and sees things from afar to
which we have yet no access. So, if all the time we think of Him, no
matter while we are engaged in worldly pursuits, we will gradually
imbibe His spirit. Our outer entanglements shall not then bind us. In
this way the more we will get off from outer attachments, the more His
Divine Power will enter into us and transform us into His likeness.
Christ has said: "I am the vines; thou art the branches; so long as thou
will remain embedded in me, you will bear ample fruit. So you cannot do
without me." All this may be likened to a grafting process. When we
engraft the twig of one tree in the body of another tree, then the fruit
of the second tree will be of the quality and taste of the tree from
which it got the graft. Similarly, if the disciple reasonably develops
his receptivity by constant devotion, loving faith, and implicit
obedience, he will, when asked, give you the same reply to a question as
you would have got from the Master Himself. When two hearts work in
unison, they operate with the same vibrations as in telepathy. Such a
disciple naturally gets from the Master his own impulses. So Gurbhakti
is the sine qua non on the Path of the Masters. Swami Ji has rightly
said: "Those who engage in the practice of listening to the Sound
Current without Gurbhakti or devotion to the Master are but fools."

   The essence of Gurbhakti is that our thoughts and feelings be detached
from all else and be centered at one focal point, the eye focus. Our Hazur
used to illustrate this sublime Truth thus: "Suppose there is a pipe with
many holes or small openings in it from which the water is trickling drop
by drop. If we were to close down all these holes save one, then the water
will gush forth from the one hole left open in a strong current and to a
great height. Exactly in the same way, if we cut off all our worldly
connections, then the sensory currents will get collected at one point
and then shoot forth from the tenth opening at the eye focus." Hazur used
to say that the Guru does not need our devotion; but if we adore Him and
offer our unstinted love to Him, it is helpful for our inner spiritual
progress. The principle of "as you think so you become" works all this.
Swami Ji says: "The Holy Word or the Shabd is revealed just by the grace
of the Guru, and then the long and strong arm of the Master pulls the
spirit currents out from the body below."

   Now you will understand the basic need of Gurbhakti. It does not mean
dancing around the Guru or shouting this way or that. If you do not care
to listen to what the Guru says or to understand and follow His behests,
it is not Gurbhakti at all. Such persons cannot get any spiritual benefit
even if they lived with the Master for ages upon ages. On the contrary,
those who turn their backs upon the world and are wholly engrossed in the
love of the Master, and make loving devotion as their ruling passion, they
easily and quickly get transformed into the likeness of the Master. Just
take a worldly example of a person full of lust and see how he lovingly
dotes upon the form of his beloved and in her presence feels inebriated.
Guru Ramdas says: "I feel highly elated with joy by looking at the
physical form of my Beloved Satguru."

   If one could, from afar, just get a glimpse of the glorious turban
of Hazur while standing in the midst of thousands of persons, a thrill of
joy would run through from head to toe. Maulana Rumi says: "Even if I were
to behold the face of my Beloved, hundreds of times with hundreds of eyes,
I would still like to see Him again and again, for each time one gets a
novel experience from such a blessed sight." He goes on to say: "Just as
a drunkard feels restlessly agitated by looking at a vintage splashing in
a goblet of wine, similarly by looking into the cups of the deeply set
eyes of the Master, the souls of the devotees soar high in ecstasy divine."

  Those who have attained the climax of love like this for the Master,
they feel divinity surging in the very fibers of their being. It was a
matter of common experience to see people standing statue-like for hours
on end with their eyes intently fixed on the radiant face of Hazur. The
sweet and loving remembrance of the Master, the contemplation of His form,
and carefully attending to His discourses are some of the tried methods
for the purification of the mind. If the Master is full of piety, you will
automatically become pious. After all, what is there in Him which attracts
us so much? He is charged with the spiritual glow and the Divine Glory
which attract one and all alike. An Urdu poet says:

                Where there is no beauty, love cannot evolve;
                And a nightingale finds no delight in flowers
                  painted on the walls.

   It is the glory of the living God in Him that attracts others. The
radioactive rays emanating from His person sink deeply into the hearts of
the devotees. So long as there is no inner charm, no one can charm the
people around Him:

                A soul entombed in the body cannot possibly
                  do Gurbhakti,
                When even the gods themselves are ignorant
                  of His greatness.
                How can the incomprehensible Satguru
                  be comprehended;
                He may be known as much as he may in
                  His grace reveal Himself
                                                -Swami Ji

   Guru Nanak was considered by the worldly people as One Who perverted
the intellect of others. He was not allowed to enter into the town of
Qasur (now in Pakistan) lest He should misguide the people. But there were
others who recognized in Him a living God in the garb of man. So it all
depends on how much He may choose to reveal Himself to each individual.
Similarly, Hazur was looked upon by many as a very pious old man; whereas
those who had had the good fortune to go near Him, they would see
something higher in Him. And still fewer who had developed some inner
receptivity and devotion found Him a veritable Godman. Hazur used to
explain the matter: "A highly qualified teacher attending to boys in a
primary class would reveal as much of his knowledge as it may be possible
for the novices to grasp. But the same teacher when teaching middle classes
would impart higher knowledge to his students befitting their capacity to
learn; and when he will go to the higher secondary, he will show more of
his learning; till in a college, he will be at his best." In other words,
as a student advances from class to class and his understanding ripens
with the passage of time and experience, he imbibes more and more of his
teacher's learning; and the teacher, too, tries to impart greater
knowledge which may be commensurate with the capacity to understand and
assimilate. The time factor, thus, is important in any type of development.
The more a person attends upon his Guru and diligently follows His
instructions, the more he develops his receptivity; and in the same
proportion, the Guru reveals to him more and more of spiritual experience.
It all depends on "upasana" which means proximity to the spiritual
preceptor. If you sit near the Master with heart and soul attuned, you are
sure to be benefited a lot by His Divine Radiation and that, in turn, will
develop your inner receptivity or power of assimilation. The easiest, the
shortest, and the simplest way to get greater benefit is to lose yourself
completely in the holy presence of a Sant Satguru. This, in fact, is the
significance of Satsang. Swami Ji says: "O Soul, be fully absorbed in
Satsang at least this day."

   What then is "full or complete absorption" is the question? It means
that while in the company of a Saint, listening to Him or otherwise, one
should forget not only the place where he is sitting but become wholly
oblivious of the very surrounding in which he is, and dissolve his very
being, losing all consciousness except of the holy presence of the Master.
This blanking of one's self is called "absorption." The more one empties
himself of his worldliness and pettiness, the more he will be filled by
the Divine Grace emanating from the Divine presence before him. This is
the secret of a successful Satsang. Excuse me when I say that it is
seldom that we get a Satsang or company of a truly perfect Master, for
such highly advanced souls - souls one with the Lord - are very rare
indeed. They are not easily available and recognizable; and if by some
mighty good luck we do come across a Godman, we do not know how to derive
the fullest benefit from His company or Satsang. The way to make the most
of such a rare opportunity and derive the maximum benefit is that one
should try to come to the place of Satsang as early as possible and sit
silently in a prayerful mood, blanking the mind of all the worldly
thoughts in the august presence of the Master, inwardly absorbing His
words of wisdom. If by sitting close to fire we feet warmth and the
proximity of a glacier gives a cold shiver, there is no reason why one
should not be affected by the Divine aura of a Master-saint whose
radiation has an unimaginably long range.

   The devotion to and the love of the Master are synonymous terms. Love
is all-comprehensive and it knows only service and sacrifice. Guru Gobind
Singh, while speaking of His own descent on the earth plane, says: "Having
merged in the Lord, I did not like to come down again into this mundane
world, but was prevailed upon by God to do so - for the spiritual welfare
of humanity."

   When loving devotion is at its highest, nothing remains of the
individual self, for it becomes universalized and all-pervading.

                My heart is so filled in with the love of the Lord,
                That I cannot think of myself apart from Him.
                                                -Hafiz

   We have, therefore, to rid ourselves of the personal ego, for it
stands between us and God. Gurbani says: "The true Lord is attained by
Gurbhakti. This is the way that He comes to dwell in us, absorbing the
mind in Him. The main object of all spiritual practices and disciplines
is that we should develop Gurbhakti or devotion to the Guru which, of
course, grows out of love. This is why all Saints and sages laid great
stress on cultivating love. Guru Gobind Singh says:

                What does it profit to close the eyes and sit
                  stork-like with folded wings;
                And to take dips in the seas of the world,
                  gaining nothing here and hereafter;
                And, while reveling in sense pleasures,
                  waste time in useless disputations.
                Verily I tell thee, listen all if ye may, they alone
                  get to the Lord who know how to love.

   Similarly, St. John in His first Epistle says: "He that loveth not
knoweth not God, for God is Love." Again, in the holy Quran, we have:
"A loving man cannot do without a beloved."

   It is, in fact, the Beloved that teaches the lover the art of love
and enables him to progress steadily on the path of love, as God is Love
so is the human soul a particle of Divine Love. The essence of love is
at the core of all creation and more so in man. Man is he who has in him
feeling of loving sympathy. What is it that characterizes a sage or a
Saint?

                He is a cup bubbling over with the love of God;
                His proximity quickens in us the life of love.

   As light comes from light and life from life, so does love from
love. Love does not grow in fields nor can it be had from a shop, but we
may catch its infection from the love-laden eyes of a lover of God. There
are some people who are fondly in love with the pleasures of the world
and care not for the next. Then there are others who are carried away
by hopes of a paradisiacal bliss. But those who love the Lord share the
things that really matter far better than either of them. Love ignites in
us the flame of Living Light or the Light of Life. What type of love is
that:

                Meeting the God-intoxicated soul I inquired
                  about the nature of divine love.
                The only reply was that in its fullness,
                  it could not be described.
                The flaming love of the Lord cannot be
                  kept under a bushel.
                One may not open ones mouth, but
                  tearful eyes belie and shed
                  tears involuntarily.
                A heart devoid of love is a charnel house,
                An iron monger's bellows which breathes
                  without the breath of life.

   Kabir says:

                Humility, simplicity, devotion, and courtesy
                  are great virtues;
                But he alone is great who observes decorum
                  with all.

    Decorum or propriety is the core of true living that ranks almost
as high as Truth itself. We must love all, respect all, and be courteous
to all, which we seldom do. We generally play double-faced like Janus and
apply double standards in all our dealings. Our head and heart do not
work in unison, nor do our acts and words exhibit the same pattern. Guru
Nanak says: "Humility tinged with sweetness, O Nanak, is the essence of
all virtues."

    It is from the abundance of heart that the tongue speaketh; and
unless there is sweetness in the folds of our mind, we cannot speak
sweetly. All the, sages, therefore, speak of love as the only way of
salvation:

                Beauty, lineage, prowess, teaming, and riches
                  are of no avail;
                Endowed with all these but devoid of love of
                  the Lord, one is as good as dead.
                                                -Nanak

   How can we get the wealth of love? It comes to the elect of the Lord,
and He showers it in abundance on whomsoever He pleases. The worldly-wise
entombed in mind and matter can hardly aspire to it and do not get it.
Once princess Zaibul-Nisa went to Sarmad and requested him for the rare
boon of God's love. Sarmad said:

                O Sarmad, the burning passion of the Lord is
                  not granted to the avaricious,
                Nor the moth's love for the flame, to
                  flies that hover round filth
                It takes ages to get revelation of the Lord
                   in one's mind.
                O Sarmad, this wealth is not doled out to
                   all and sundry.

                           [End of Part 1 of 2]

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