One and the Same – The Ends and the Means

After so many incarnations, we still are unconscious and lost, without a compass and deceived by the mirages of the world. At last the true Master enters our lives. He gives us a purpose, a direction. Our rescue has begun.

Such a mystic is both the goal and the means of achieving it. The goal, because the real form of the true Master is the Shabd, Nam, or Word, which we seek. It is the Lord's outstretched hand into the creation, one could say, for which we reach and ultimately grasp. Henceforth, it will carry us back to the Source, effortlessly.

But to consciously experience that magnetic Shabd, we need to progress to full concentration in our meditation. Yet, easier said than done: for most, our minds are too scattered, spellbound by the world. So the Lord has sent his emissary, the Satguru or true living Master, now and throughout the ages. His captivating beauty entices us to experience the Shabd where He directs us to look – within – through meditation. And so it is He who draws us to the practice, inspires us to persevere, as we gradually feel his presence. The consequent love that evolves brings forth the spiritual power with which He has imbued the five Names that we repeat. Thus, only through him can the mind be tamed, the “world-spell” be broken.

Soami Ji in Sar Bachan says, “One who seeks only Nam ... but has no love for the Satguru will get nothing. Love for the Satguru is of first importance. It detaches us from all bonds.”¹

Thus everything begins with the indispensable physical form of the Master, as the medium or vehicle – the charm of his being ignites the spark of love in our hearts. He inspires us to follow his instructions more resolutely. We will seek more and more of his sweetness within, through meditation. The spark will turn into a flame and our attention will be fixed on him, the source of nectar.

And so, indeed, the Master is both the end we seek and the means to reach it.

As Jesus said, “I am the way... No one comes to the Father except through me.”² We can extrapolate that the Shabd, the real form of the Master, is an extension of, one and the same as, the Father, our goal.

Again in Sar Bachan, Soami Ji says, “the seed sown in unprepared soil yields nothing. The soil of the heart is prepared by devotion to Guru. Without love for Guru, Nam will be of no avail.”³

His physical form will lead us to the real one. He is our everything.

So let us look inside, with unwavering dedication, for that manifestation of Love which is the Master. Let nothing deter us or discourage us. It behooves us to keep digging for the treasure. To paraphrase what Baba Ji once said, “The reward will more than exceed our expectation.”