Part II
Excerpts from Discourses
1. Saints point out that all human beings come into this world for the purpose of realizing the priceless wealth of Nam, but only a few gurmukhs (devoted souls) succeed in doing so. The rest have to be born again and go through rigorous penance in the mother’s womb where they hang head down for nine months under utterly appalling conditions. What sustains the soul during this period is the unborn baby’s constant attention in the eye centre and endless entreaties to its Maker to deliver it from this inferno. It constantly prays that in the new life it will ever remember its Creator. However, as soon as the child is born, the entire family is jubilant and fondles him. All around him are strange scenes and novel objects. Beholding them, he completely forgets all promises that his soul assiduously made while in the mother’s womb and becomes completely oblivious of his Creator. Ultimately, nothing will remain with him and yet he heeds not the reality. When he attains youth, he is entirely under the sway of wealth, possessions and sensual enjoyment. God’s name, which was to release him from bondage and suffering, he has completely ignored. He constantly runs after illusion; remains restless and gets weary. Thus he wastes his precious life in baseless pursuits. Neither does he contact the Sound Current nor does he bring his mind under control and consequently remains oblivious of the high purpose for which he was given the human form.
When he reaches old age, reapers in the shape of angels of death come to harvest the field. No one knows where they come from and where they take him. Only a moment before he claimed everything as his own and lo! Nothing now belongs to him. He is a total stranger in an unknown land. His wife, children and other relatives and friends doubtless bewail and bemoan their loss but they cannot retain him and hasten to consign his remains to earth or fire. He goes to a place to which he is entitled in accordance with his deeds and desires. Thus did he pass his old age too without attaining or even starting on the path of God-realization.
2. The saints and sages laboured hard, attained spiritual heights, discovered certain truths and recorded them in books for our guidance. These are:
First, there is a maker of this universe. It did not just come about by itself.
Second, the Maker Himself is unchangeable but the world which He has created is constantly undergoing change. Living beings come into this world and then die. The vegetable and the mineral kingdoms are also subject to change. The Creator alone is eternal and everlasting. “In the beginning was the truth (Shabd), at the commencement of the aeons was the truth, now is the truth and, O Nanak, ever shall remain the truth.”1 The word truth, in this case, implies that which always exists in the same condition without change. It does not connote merely speaking the truth. Whatever exists constantly in the same form, that is the truth. Only He exists eternally without change.
Third, man alone has the capacity and the privilege to realize God. That is why the Muslims have called man the ‘noblest of all creation’. The Hindus have called the human body ‘the form divine’. Christ has referred to it as “the temple of the living God”2. The holy Granth Sahib states that out of the eighty-four lakh species of living beings man is at the top. Man’s uniqueness lies in his ability to realize God within himself. Neither gods nor angels can do so and have necessarily to be born in a human form to reach Him. It therefore behoves us to utilize this opportunity for God-realization.
Often it is asked, who are angels? Sages say that souls in human form performed good deeds and, in reward thereof, were given heavens and paradises to live in. However, as soon as the merit of the good deeds is over, such souls are again given birth in this world and they take forms in accordance with their karmas.
Fourth, whenever man realizes God, he realizes Him within himself. He cannot be realized in mountains, forests, idols and places of pilgrimage, nor in scriptures and holy books. Whoever has perceived Him and will perceive Him has done so or will do so only within himself. It is only after realizing Him within that one begins to see Him everywhere.
Guru Amar Das says:
Within this house is everything and nothing is without. In the body resideth He Himself, the transcendent Being, but the ignorant creature given to egoism seeketh Him without.3
Lastly, even within himself, man will realize God only when he has reached the third eye. This is accomplished by first withdrawing all the consciousness from the body, up to the eye centre, and then taking it up by means of Shabd or Nam. Nam itself can be obtained only from an adept, and one will come across such an adept only through the grace of God.
To sum up: There is no salvation without Nam, no Nam without a Master, and neither is possible without the grace of God. So, first comes the grace of God, second, that of the Satguru, third, the initiation into Nam and last but not the least, the effort of the disciple.
3. In this world of doubt and delusion, of darkness, pain and grief, nobody ever knows the result of his actions; nor does he know his beginning or end. Wearily does he go down the scale of creation and finds peace nowhere. Soami Ji says that Masters alone reveal the secret of the inaccessible Lord and it is through realizing Him that the soul gets rid of mind and matter and the untold misery caused by them. Intense yearning for the Lord is the primary prerequisite, for it is this that purifies and strengthens the mind so that it begins to appreciate the futility of religious observances and rituals. Through His immense grace does one escape the cycle of birth and death. By completely withdrawing one’s attention to the eye centre and stopping all the nine outlets does one gain complete control over one’s mind and senses. No longer does one depend on merely reading scriptures and holy books, but attains perfect bliss by traversing the path within.
He throws to the winds the worldly name and fame and likewise all rites and rituals. At the altar of devotion to Nam does he obtain real knowledge. Priceless is Nam, but only real saints know its true worth. The limitless, the everlasting or the unfathomable is realized beyond the three worlds, only when the soul contacts Shabd or Nam. This technique, which converts vile sinners into saints, is known as Surat Shabd Yoga. Overflowing love for the Master and complete surrender to him are the essentials for success.
4. Only in the human form can one realize God, and it is only within that He can be realized. This, in turn, is only possible with the help of a perfect adept. The main obstruction to God-realization is our own mind. It is fond of pleasures and, in running after them during countless ages, it has become extremely fickle.
No one pleasure of this world can keep it satisfied or tied down for long. As a child one’s pleasures find expressions in love for parents, later in that of friends and playmates, and when he reaches adolescence, in love for wife and children. As he grows older, he strives for wealth, property, power and prestige. He continues to seek one pleasure after another, thus truly chasing a mirage.
The soul is dominated by the mind and the latter in its turn is ruled by the senses. Thus, wherever the mind goes, the soul perforce has to go with it. If the mind were to cease running after the things of this world and become motionless, the soul would immediately fly to its true home – Sat Lok. It is the mind that has tied human beings to this world and, through its good and bad actions, keeps them treading the eternal wheel to reap their consequences. Thus the satsangs and discourses on Nam and Satguru are specifically directed to the mind. On listening to them it may turn away from sensual pleasures and find refuge at the eye centre, from where its upward journey begins. Then the Nam which is constantly reverberating above this centre pulls up both mind and soul. Hearing this celestial melody, the mind spontaneously exclaims: “Here is the bliss that I have been hankering after all this time!” It now needs nothing else, and all the worldly pleasures turn insipid and tasteless. Thus the only way to control the mind and end its misery is to attach it to Nam. Nam alone can restrain and satisfy the mind. All other practices are utterly futile, for even when apparently successful they not infrequently let a person down badly. These practices are like confining a snake in a basket. So long as it remains closed under a tight lid, the snake may be harmless, but the fear of its making an escape is ever there. Whenever the snake gets an opportunity, it will not fail to bite. Nam is beyond the sphere of mind. Only when the Master is realized within will his omniscience become clear forever.
5. God can be realized by human beings alone. It is their exclusive privilege. No other creature has this gift. Even by man, this can be done only by concentrating one’s attention at the third eye focus and listening to the sound that reverberates there day and night. This sound is called Nam, Word or Shabd. Everybody lives within the confines of the nine apertures, viz., two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, the mouth and the two lower outlets. These ‘doors’ of the body establish connection of the mind and soul with the outer world while the tenth ‘gate’ that lies hidden at the eye centre connects the soul with God. So long as the mind dwells in the nine apertures, it remains in the domain of illusion, which is made up of three gunas. The latter are robbers that steal all our treasure and make us completely forget our true selves. The three gunas are sattva, rajas and tamas. Tamas leads completely to negative action and destruction. Rajas binds one to the world through various snares and allurements, and keeps him ever restless. Sattva, on the other hand, produces virtues like compassion, righteousness and devotion. The human form is like the top rung of the ladder. Next to it is the roof. None can realize God, unless he transcends the three gunas. Beyond them lies the sahaj state which begins in Parbrahm and ends in Sat Lok. This is a state of utmost tranquillity and everlasting bliss. Sahaj cannot be attained in the three gunas, for the three gunas are in delusion. It is only met within the fourth realm and is found by the devotees of a Guru. Guru Sahib explains thus:
He who attains sahaj attains God.
Neither doth he die, nor tread the eternal wheel.4
When a person reaches this realm, he ends the cycle of birth and death and becomes the chosen of God. He who sent you calls you back; come home with the bliss of sahaj.5
The way to attain this stage is by constant devotion to Nam, as revealed by a true Master, and complete surrender to his will. “Theirs not to reason why, theirs but to do and die.” Our own horizon of vision is limited, while that of the Master is boundless. The so-called intellect and reasoning are powerless. The Master’s commands are for the disciples’ lasting good.
6. In their spiritual research, all the sages and saints have come to the same conclusions, namely:
- There is one God.
- He can be realized by human beings alone, and the essential prerequisites are a life of piety, contentment, chastity and forgiveness.
- Human beings can find Him only within and not outside.
- The way to find Him is to contact Shabd by completely concentrating the attention at the eye centre and making the mind motionless.
- This, however, happens only when God wills the soul to return to its true home. Shabd realization in the company of mystics is the highest of all actions, but “Only he attains it, O Nanak, who hath it already imprinted in his destiny.”6
- Then, a person seeks a perfect adept, learns from him the technique of retiring within, and by his grace and guidance attains the Nam that merges him with the Lord. “How discerning is our Lord; Himself as saint is He known.”7 “Without Satguru one cannot have devotion, nor attachment to Nam.” Guru Nanak repeatedly exhorts us to restrain our mind from wandering out, to keep it still, to prevent it from yearning for anything but the Lord, and then to listen to the immanent Nam. If we do not adopt this course, we inevitably fall into the hands of the angels of death and nothing but utter misery and pain engulf us. Nothing avails one save devotion to Nam, which is the only reality. It therefore behoves us all to cease running outside and to remain merged in the Sound Current all the time. For in this way alone shall we obtain permanent release from continuous bondage.
The true adept is in essence God Himself. Outwardly he has human form, but inwardly he is Lord divine. The Granth Sahib says:
God and His mystics are one.
Just as the wave riseth from the ocean
And mergeth into it again,
So doth he descend from God
And unto Him he returneth.
In this have thou no doubt.8
He lives in the world, but is not of the world. He is completely absorbed in the Shabd. His soul is united with God. He is an ocean of mercy. He is the greatest benefactor of all. The gift of Nam he bestows on people and takes them out of the realm of duality and relativity. The Granth Sahib says:
He has turned man into a divine being
And no time has He taken to do so.9
He comes into this world to unite us with God. He is above desire and want, and likewise transmutes us. Whoever comes in contact with such a true Master and devotedly follows his directions, beholds the ultimate reality and becomes one with it.
In the company of the mystics
Is found the true philosopher’s stone
That turneth base metals (sinners)
Into pure gold (saints).
Maulana Rum10
7. Saints throughout the ages have proclaimed that God is ever bountiful and there is no limit to His grace. While man may get weary of asking, He is never tired of giving.11 His treasures are unlimited and there is nothing a man desires that he cannot get. Yet in the whole world there is none who has all his desires fulfilled. This apparent contradiction is due to the fact that we cannot see the whole show at one glance. We see only isolated acts and unrelated episodes, which can be easily reconciled by realizing that the soul is indestructible and, in the phenomenon of death, it merely changes its garment and transfers its field of action. But its accounts go with it wherever it is reborn and it is in its new life that the soul consummates its unrealized desires and gets entangled in new ones. It is, however, not necessary that this may only happen in the human form.
It is the desires that create karmas, and the karmas lead to rounds of birth and death. Saints therefore exhort us to cut at their very root and to ask for nothing save the Lord Himself, for when one owns the very source of the bounty, there is no dearth of His gifts.
Vain are the pleasures and pursuits of this world, for they lead to endless misery and suffering. The only escape from their clutches and from utter ignorance that so thickly pervades the scene is contact with Nam, which alone can afford lasting relief and liberation. “Nam is true nectar, but how can we describe it? He alone that drinketh it knoweth it.”
8. The necessary preparation for aarti* is:
- Work hard on the path shown by the Master. When the mind finds little apparent progress despite its labour, it grows restless and begins to feel pangs of separation from the Master. This develops into an intense longing and ardent love for him, which actually burns up all worldly desires, frees the soul from its shackles and makes it fit for mystic transport. This fervent love is the essence of all spiritual discipline and it is attained by faithfully carrying out the devout practices as explained by the Master at the time of initiation.
- The impediments in the way of spiritual progress are the worldly attachments and allurements. The soul is bound tight with the fetters of lust and greed, and the mind continually runs after one illusion or another. Soami Ji has enumerated the different kinds of chains that tie the soul to this world, prevent it from concentration at the Master’s Feet within and from rising above its earthly abode. The first chain is that of body itself, the second of spouse, the third of children, the fourth of grandchildren, the fifth of great grandchildren, the sixth of wealth and possessions, the seventh of vanity and self-righteousness and the eighth of social customs, rites, rituals and the like. They all lead the soul astray, debase it and make it completely forgetful of the Creator. These strong chains can be cut asunder only by devotedly following the course outlined by a perfect adept. There is and can be no other way of escape.12
- Soami Ji further says: “The Master bestowed upon me the secret of Shabd. By concentrating my attention at the eye centre I came into contact with the Sound Current. There I beheld the Radiant Form of my Master. Only then did I become a true disciple and a deserving one, and went beyond matter and mind.” The reason for this is not far to seek. The astral form of the Master is so brilliant and magnetic that the soul cannot but shed its gross matter and ultimately merge in the ocean of which it is a drop.
9. After creating human beings and others in the universe, Brahm attached to each soul his agent in the shape of mind, to confine the soul to his domain. The specific commands to the mind are: “Never let the soul go near Shabd nor reveal to it the secret thereof.”
When the hour of destiny strikes, everyone must leave this theatre of action and his earthly remains are buried or cremated. Every soul must essentially close its eyes upon the scene of action and take a new birth called for by its karmas. The law of karma is universal. It is the fixed and the immutable law of nature. Each soul must reap what it has sown. Every soul shall have to bear the exact consequences of its actions.
Matter and mind so wholly engross the individual attention that one remains ignorant of the ‘royal road’ leading to Sat Lok, the pure spiritual region. “Without Shabd the soul is blind; so where can it go? The way to Shabd it findeth not but falleth into delusion again and again.”13
Victory over the Negative Power and the complete surrender of the mind can be achieved only by contacting Nam with the help of a true Master. “Hearing the celestial melody, he breaketh the fetters of illusion and attaineth eternal bliss.”
10. The soul cannot ascend until the nirat or the power of seeing is developed within. The two faculties – one of hearing and the other of seeing – are utilized by the soul for its mystic transport. Some disciples devote their attention to hearing the Sound, but do not try to fix their nirat inside. This is a mistake, for unless the attention is fixed at the eye centre, the mind does not become motionless, and there is little pleasure in the practice.
When the nirat or the inner vision is fully developed, the sound that emanates from within becomes increasingly distinct. The soul, however, must catch the finest note, by means of which it will ascend to higher regions. When it reaches Daswan Dwar, an important stage in its spiritual path, it will go beyond the meshes of illusion and the Negative Power.
11. All saints stress the need of loving devotion to the Master for spiritual advancement. It is this devotion that enables us to contact Nam and listen to the sweet melody resounding within at the eye centre. This alone is Guru Mat (teachings of the saints). All else is deception and illusion, for within the confines of mind and matter we utterly follow man mat (dictates of mind and senses). Bhakti marg (path of love and devotion) is the royal road leading to our eternal home, and once we commence our journey on it, no matter where we go or the stage we reach, the protecting and guiding hand of the Satguru is ever there to escort us onwards. There can be no matter of doubt in our finally reaching the true destination, if we have complete faith in him. Hollow are all other methods. They are like empty shells. Hold fast therefore to the bhakti marg. Give up so-called knowledge, scholarship and wisdom, surrender completely to his will and remain within the commandments of the Master. Thus one becomes a true gurmukh (a devotee of the Guru). “So long as instructions from a mystic adept thou dost not get, Him thou canst not find, for too subtle is He for the grip of reason.”
Intense longing, ardent love and unfailing devotion denote the same thing. They are the three inseparables in Guru Mat – the path of the Masters – the essential ingredients of true bhakti. All the rest are innovations of the mind. The trinity of God, soul and Satguru is indeed one long chain of infinite love. The devotee of the Lord also manifests the same love. The individual soul is the drop, the Satguru the stream, and God the vast ocean. Just as a drop of rain gets polluted with coarse matter during its fall to the earth, so does the soul, in its descent to the physical world, obtain coverings of mind and matter and lose its lustre. Nothing save pure love pervades in Sach Khand, the abode of the ultimate reality. Illusion has no place there. It is truly the fountainhead of pure, unalloyed love, eternal and limitless. None but the saints have access to it and only the perfect adept abides there. Therefore develop utmost devotion and abiding love for the Satguru.
Once we realize that our Creator is one; that we are children of the same Father; that we are drops from the same ocean of love, there can be no discord. Peace and bliss can be the only fruit. The drop of water, on coming in contact with the earth becomes muddy, but on evaporation it regains its purity and joins the clouds. The soul is like this drop. It is corrupted with desires of the mind. When it ascends to higher realms, it is completely shorn of its gross matter and is thus rendered absolutely pure.
Man is verily a mine of the nectar of immortality. “In thine own self is the nectar full to the brim; but without Guru thou getteth not its taste; just as the deer knoweth not its musk but keepeth wandering hither and thither in search of it. Without Shabd every man is mad, and wasteth away his life in vain. Shabd is the real nectar; and Guru’s devotee alone findeth it O Nanak.”14 It is through loving devotion to the Master that we get the secret of Nam. Even though in the beginning the intensity of love is not pronounced, with constant devotion and scrupulous adherence to the directions given by the Master, this deficiency is soon made up. In due course love wells up as an overflowing stream and liberates the soul forever from the ties of the world.
We are all the recipients of immense grace. We are born as human beings, who alone have the capacity of God-realization. We have got a true Master who has granted us the boon of Nam and has come to reside permanently within the eye centre of each disciple. It is now clear that our duty is to live up to his injunctions, develop constant love and devotion, and thereby reap the reward of eternal bliss.
“In the union of the soul with Shabd is happiness; in the realization of God is bliss.”15
12. Whoever wishes to tread the path of devotion has essentially to fulfil certain conditions. He has to rise above position, prestige and social status, has to turn deaf ears to slander, criticism and ridicule, and has to completely ignore calumny, taunt and censure of society. “Censure and rebuke of the world act as guards in the market of love and devotion. They remove a person’s dirt and cleanse him.” He has to face resolutely the opposition of his near and dear ones; has to shun rites and rituals that take his attention outside, has to give up cunning and deceit as well as lust and greed. “Devotion is impossible for the lustful, the ill-tempered and the covetous.” “Truly brave is the person who for this purpose is ready to give up caste and family.”16
He has to reach a stage of equanimity where neither honour should elate him nor dishonour or disgrace depress him. ‘Some praise thee, others revile thee. Treat both alike with indifference and detachment.’ He has to be completely fearless and bold, for without His will nothing can or will happen. Worry can only deflect and debar spiritual progress. Not until he has cast off all dread and apprehension can he be firm in devotion and sustain it. Those who insult him are totally ignorant of the rare greatness of devotion and the bliss it bestows, and are themselves the losers. He has to turn his back on the world and its pursuits, and tread instead the path of his Master. Once he fortifies himself with Guru’s grace and lovingly follows his directions, nothing can upset him.
Practice maketh a man perfect. Even though he starts with misgivings, in due course perseverance and sincere effort enable him to develop a strong fervour and piety. Mere show can lead him nowhere. An antidote for lack of devotion is more and more steadfast devotion. With unwavering faith in the Master, devotion unfailingly leads to realization of Nam – the elixir against all suffering in the world. Soami Ji lays stress on bhakti. There is no other way to realize Him and to free the soul forever.
13. Guru Arjun Sahib presents a vivid picture of the world as he sees it. Both spiritually and physically, almost the whole of mankind is sick at heart and in dire distress. The five passions eat into their vitals incessantly and drive them virtually mad. Not a man escapes from their venom. In addition to a deplorable mental and spiritual plight, physical ills take a heavy toll and make men utterly weary and worn. The young grow to old age in the vain quest for peace. Everywhere there is a constant fever of unrest and never-ending search for what they never find. It is indeed a mirage that eludes them all. Wealth, health, power and so-called pleasures are so short-lived that they pass in a flash and leave people completely confounded. The sensual pursuits leave them on the verge of bankruptcy. The greater the indulgence, the more diseased the bodies and the keener the misery and suffering. An instant of pleasant sensation, a brief delirium of power, a mad moment of passion – all end in intense pain and sorrow, and yet man constantly chases them. He turns his back on Nam which alone can release him from untold privations and lead him to eternal bliss.
People have come to believe that this world is permanent and that all its objects are imperishable. This is untrue and is of course the play of illusion. We daily see people departing from our midst. We actually take part in cremating or burying them. Change is writ large on everything everywhere. Pleasures that appear sweet and enchanting are short-lived and end in pain. Our ambitions have no end and are limitless, one giving rise to another and that to yet another. Thus is woven a long chain of desires that bring us to this earthly existence over and over again. Instead of loosening our bonds, we tighten their grip by our own actions, and remain here forever.
The soul, an essence of the Supreme Being, is here dominated by the mind and the latter in turn is led by the senses, with the result that the whole creation is running wild and out of control under the impulse of one or more of the five passions. Thus the mind goes astray and in its never-ending pursuits finds little repose or respite. Continually does it come to grief, but it does not seem to heed the lessons of its bitter experiences. Mind is an excellent servant but a very bad master. Rightly used, it may be made to work wonders, but if allowed to assert itself in a lawless manner, it may bring unspeakable disaster. The right course should have been for the soul to control the mind and the mind to guide the senses and thus reverse the grim situation where men have forgotten their high origin, the purpose of their sojourn on this planet and their real destination. The more they attach themselves to the things of the world, the farther they move away from their home. The only remedy lies in seeking a true adept and following the path of Nam – an absolute must for ending the rounds of birth and death.
All form, beauty and fascination of the world are nothing but illusion. It is a well-designed net that ensnares us all. The five passions – lust, anger, avarice, attachment and pride – are commissioned by the Negative Power to mislead both mind and soul and make trouble for them. Impelled by desires, the soul gets caught like a bird that tries to pick inviting grains from a hidden snare. It is verily in hostile land and is surrounded by passions, which are never satisfied. One temptation follows another in quick succession, leaving behind a trail of insipidness. In such circumstances, the soul is helpless. It can only sit back and watch the wreck, and suffer in silence. It can come into its own only when it contacts Nam through the grace of a Master. The world worships the gift and not the Giver. But it is devotion to the latter alone that can liberate us.
There is none in this world who is beyond temptation. It is the Lord’s grace that can save an individual from its operation. The Lord is omnipotent and omniscient, and no one can question His doings. He may, if He so likes, involve us deeply in the charms of this transitory world or make us rise above them and take to the path of the Masters. Who dare advise the Lord what to do and what not to do? The harijans (devotees of the Lord) cross this vast ocean with His help. They concentrate at the eye centre, go within and contact Nam, while the pleasure seekers dissipate their energy in the external attractions. The function of maya is to draw our attention outwards and downwards, and that of Nam inwards and upwards.
14. When there is drought and grass is scarce, cowherds move from place to place with their cattle in search of suitable pastures. When they find such places, they merely make temporary arrangements to pass their time in the full knowledge that soon they will return to their own homes. Our sojourn in this world is an equally short and temporary one, and we also need to build only temporary connections. We are not to stay here forever. One day we have to leave family, friends and possessions. Even our own body will remain behind. Little do we know on what day the angels of death will summon us. We must therefore not regard the worldly possessions as our own, but as loaned to us for the time being that we may both preserve them and use them profitably. Our life on this planet is like a night and when this is over, we must start afresh on our journey. We must not become so bound up with worldly interests that we have to continually return to it. Its attractions will doubtless bring us back. By desire we are bound to the object of desire. “There have been countless mighty rulers in this world. They used to speak of ‘I’ and ‘mine’, but when they died, they took away with them not a single straw.” We must therefore turn our back on the outside world and retire within to obtain deliverance from its agony and affliction.
Life is like an empty dream. There is nothing real about it. Just as a blossom does not last for long, so does not life. As in a dramatic performance the various actors come to play their parts as kings, queens, villains, etc., and on its conclusion go their own way, forgetting all about the ephemeral relationships, so is the world a big stage where we come to perform the predestined roles and then depart. Like the dramatic performance, our attachments in life are unreal and only for the purpose of carrying out our allotted jobs. As a guest does not insist on the comforts of a house or its surroundings apart from what his host can offer, so does it befit us all to live in this world during our temporary sojourn, resigned to His will and the provisions He has made for us.
The whole creation is engaged in feverish and senseless pursuits. It suffers dismay and disappointment at every step. We shed plenty of tears for money, spouse and children, and suffer agony and anguish through loss of them. But if we were to weep earnestly for God for only one day, we would surely attain Him. We pass our lives fruitlessly like an unpaid labourer, who works hard the whole day and comes home empty-handed. The real aim of human life remains unattained. Thus we lose both, this world and the next. Futile is human birth without Nam realization. “If a man knoweth not his self during his life time, he cannot even imagine the ills that may be in store for him after death.”
It behoves us all to sing the praises of the Lord. The real chanting is not with physical voice but by going inside and contacting the sweet melody. “By recitation He cannot be known; in delusion are all sects; by Guru’s grace is God realized and the tongue tasteth the nectar of His bliss.”17
The human form which is our most precious gift and which we have obtained after wandering through the eighty-four lakh species is the top of all creation. It is wise to put it to appropriate use and rise above the domain of Kal. “Who knoweth not Nam, he is blind and deaf; for what doth he come into the world?”18 There are two ladders; the ladder of eighty-four which leads down and the ladder of Nam that leads up. The one ushers us into darkness and delusion, and the other into light and refulgence. We must jump from the former to the latter and hold it firmly. It is through this ladder that, with devotion and love, we can ascend to higher realms and ultimately return to our eternal home.
15. Repeatedly have the saints stressed the uniqueness of Nam. Without Nam the chain of births and deaths does not cease. Nam can be contacted only with the help of one who is proficient in it and is indeed a true Master.
The physical body performs its functions only so long as the soul resides within it. In fact, everything in existence is entirely dependent upon soul for its life and activity. Form, beauty and colour all owe themselves to its spark. When the soul departs, the earthly remains possess neither value nor purpose. In a fleeting moment, the individual passes beyond mortal ken and becomes altogether a stranger to his near and dear ones. They hasten to consign him to fire or earth.
It is only in the human body that God can be realized. If, therefore, we train ourselves, with the help of a true adept, to withdraw the currents of mind and soul from the nine apertures of the body and focus them at the eye centre, we can contact Nam which alone can result in perfect peace and bliss, both here and in the higher realms. We are then like an accomplished bride who is honoured for her attainments, both in her own house and that of her parents-in-law. Knowing that this world is full of pain and grief where not even kings are happy, it is only proper that we turn to the region of Nam. “Nam is the antidote for all ills, and all sins doth it wash away.”19
Death overtakes all. Blessed are those who die daily while living; that is to say, they have learned to vacate the body during their lifetime through Surat Shabd Yoga and to contact the Master within. Such souls are the happiest brides, for they have realized their Lord in this very life and have thus consummated their union. “True wisdom hath he in whom Nam abideth and who has been united to Nam. Never again is he separated from it and in his true home doth he find abode.”20
16. Do not love the outward forms, for they are not only subject to change but will also perish. Instead, we must seek Him, who alone is permanent and unchangeable. This supreme Creator, the Final Cause, One without a second, is Nam, Shabd or Sach (truth). He is also called the Heavenly Sound. He cannot be comprehended with intellect, for intellect is limited and He is limitless. He is beyond the reach of mind and reasoning, which actually bar spiritual progress by raising senseless doubts and misgivings. The poor and the lowly, who have simplicity and innocence, advance on the path distinctly faster. No man ever achieved spiritual progress by a process of logic. “Neither by contemplation nor by intellectual discourse, can we realize Him.”21 The only way to do so is to seek a true Master and follow his instructions implicitly. Once we contact Nam, we leave the phenomenal world with its pain and sorrow behind and enter into the world of bliss. There is no substitute whatever for Nam. All other methods – recitals, penances, pilgrimages – are utterly futile. They keep us confined to the domain of duality and illusion and its eternal wheel. “In Kaliyug, Nam alone doth sustain. Save Nam all else is false and vain.”22
The sensual world is indifferent to the fate of the soul. Despite the misery it goes through, the mind still clings firmly to the momentary pleasures. “The camel loves to eat thorny bushes. The more it eats the thorns, the more the blood gushes from its mouth. Still it must eat thorny plants and will not give them up.” If we remove the benighted mind from its worldly surroundings to a spiritual environment, it will pine away. The worm that grows in filth feels supremely happy there. It thrives in filth and if we take it out, it either dies or finds its way back there. “Who hath left out Nam, in vain doth he perform other recitals. Like a worm in filth, wasteth he his time in idle pursuits.”
Only if we turn within, as directed by the Master, shall we go beyond pleasure and pain, good and evil. Those who have found the Master, learned the secret and contacted Nam within during their lifetimes, are the ones who have truly justified their existence. All praise and honour be to them. “In every heart abideth the Lord; blank is none, but worthy of worship is he who in himself hath made Him manifest.”23
The inestimable wealth is within all of us, but can be gathered only after learning the technique from a perfect adept and practising it with love, faith and humility. “None is poor, Bhikha; everyone hath got rubies in his bundle. But how to open the knot he doth not know, and therefore is he a pauper.”24 Fortunate indeed are those who have cultivated love for Nam and have turned their back on the world. “All worldly people are prisoners awaiting the stroke of death, save for that rare brave one, who hath his body in prison but his soul in heaven.”
17. He who created the soul and the body resides within each being. He is eternal and unchangeable. He can be realized by contacting Nam, which constantly resounds at the eye focus. “Gather the wealth of Nam which none can steal, nor fire can burn, nor even wind can carry. That wealth is never lost.” It is the only way to end pain and suffering, and earn lasting bliss.
Everybody is going crazy under the lash of the five passions. They are truly deadly maladies. They destroy by insidious infection and dissolution. Their end is darkness and despair. They make false pretences and hold out alluring promises. They constantly keep us in the mirage of wealth, lust and pleasures, of power and position, only to lead us headlong into the valley of death. The sole escape from their clutches is through the intervention of a perfect adept. He discloses the secret of vacating the nine doors of the body, concentrating the attention in the tenth – at the eye centre – and contacting Nam, the heavenly music, hearing which we get rid of all vices and the play of passions.
A life of piety and virtue is possible only when we rise above the nine portals of the body. So long as we remain within their domain and influence, no matter what we do we cannot conquer the mind and the senses. It is little use cleaning the utensil again and again if we put nothing into it. The pious life has a meaning only if it can achieve salvation. This can happen only if with the grace of the Lord we meet a living Master and learn from him the technique of contacting Nam. This factor determines whether we take to the path of Kal (the Negative Power) or that of Dayal (the Merciful Lord). Those who go within and develop spiritual vision know that He alone is the doer, whatever happens is according to His will, and He can be realized only through Guru and Nam.
Such persons who become one with Nam also realize that God resides in everybody. All the different forms are His, even as water, ice and steam are one; but this is clear only to those who have melted ice into water and have heated water into steam. Similarly, those who have merged their attention in Nam realize that He pervades everywhere and that all the external forms and phenomena are His manifestations.
18. All men are made alike. They have the same origin. The Maker is also one. They are a drop of the same ocean and have ultimately to return to the same absolute reality. The way to return home and realize Him is within us and is also the same for all. He is real. He is eternal. He is everlasting. Everything in the universe and the universe itself is false. He alone is true (unchangeable).
We cannot realize the Lord through contemplation, even if we adopt this method a million times. He is far above and beyond mind and intellect, both of which are truly blind. They fail to resolve even our worldly predicaments. Neither can He be attained by observing silence, nor by penances, pilgrimages and the like. Mind and its ingenuity fail to point the way, for it is beyond mind’s reach. The only way to perceive Him is by resigning to His will, by obeying the hukum* and treading the path of Shabd. The hukum or Shabd is within all of us and can be contacted at the eye focus. “By hukum all forms are made, by hukum all living beings are created. By hukum is greatness achieved. By hukum are made the high and low. By hukum are pain and pleasure set down. By hukum are some pardoned. By hukum are others made to continue in the eternal wheel. Everyone is within hukum. Exempt is none. If one understands the hukum, he will not speak in conceit.”25 Nothing can happen without hukum. It is all ordained from above. No one can die or be killed, even in the midst of flying bullets, unless it is so destined. Such a realization can, however, come only when one goes within and contacts Shabd.
The entrance to the subtle regions lies in the part of our body above the eyes. This indeed is a great mystery, for these realms lie behind the veil of mind and cannot be comprehended on the physical plane of consciousness. The surgeons and the doctors cannot discover them when operating upon the living or dissecting the dead. In order to perceive them, one has to lose consciousness of the outside world, become alive or superconscious within and contact Nam. The heavenly melody is continuously reverberating in the part of the body above the eyes. We do not hear it because our attention is directed downwards and outwards. “God is calling out to us from the top of this beautiful mansion (the human body).”26 We cannot understand Sach or Shabd until our attention returns to its source within. The whole world is spiritually asleep. We become awake when we go in at the eye centre. The sweet melody is constantly coming there, directly from the house of God.
When we lose our way in a dense forest on a dark night and are without a guide, we try to listen for some sound so that we may follow it and reach a habitation. In view of the pitch darkness and the unknown place we also look for a light to enable us to reach the place. Likewise, in our spiritual journey, God has provided divine light and sound to lead us safely home from this labyrinthine world. “Inside is the flame and in that flame is sweet melody that inspireth in us love for the true Lord.” When we carry out the instructions prescribed by the Master with faith and loving devotion, we are soon illuminated inside and contacting Nam, listening to the heavenly music, by following which we reach its source or origin. “By practising Nam, doubts and darkness disappear and the light of a million suns shines forth.”27
For God-realization therefore, we must first find a teacher, learn the secret from him and then vacate the nine portals of the body in accordance with his instructions. It is impossible to advance even an inch on the spiritual path without the guide who is well versed in this science. We cannot realize Him by recitals, penances, pilgrimages and charities. These have doubtless their own merit, but are utterly unable to release us from the bondage of birth and death. No man can enter spiritual regions so long as his mind lingers upon things of the outer world. He must go to sleep so far as the things of the world are concerned, and wake up within to attain the subtle ones. True liberation can come only when we learn the way from an adept and go within. This is the path of all the saints.