Powerfull

bilaaval mehalaa 5 ||
moo laalan sio preeth banee || rehaao ||
thoree n thoottai shhoree n shhoottai aisee maadhho khi(n)ch thanee ||1||
dhinas rain man maahi basath hai thoo kar kirapaa prabh apanee ||2||
bal bal jaao siaam su(n)dhar ko akathh kathhaa jaa kee baath sunee ||3||
jan naanak dhaasan dhaas keheeath hai mohi karahu kirapaa t(h)aakur apunee ||4||28||114||


Bilaaval, Fifth Mehla:
I have fallen in love with my Beloved Lord. ||Pause||
Cutting it, it does not break, and releasing it, it does not let go. Such is the string the Lord has tied me with. ||1||
Day and night, He dwells within my mind; please bless me with Your Mercy, O my God. ||2||
I am a sacrifice, a sacrifice to my beauteous Lord; I have heard his Unspoken Speech and Story. ||3||
Servant Nanak is said to be the slave of His slaves; O my Lord and Master, please bless me with Your Mercy. ||4||28||114||

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During Rehraas

During Rehraas a few days ago, I was (again! ) thinking. What's the message? Whats the point of the prayers at all? I then decided to use my Punjabi skills to try to figure out the message within the bani.

Some of the stanzas were comprehensible, and some were a bit more complex. Here's what I realised;

Some of the shabads focus on:

- How we should be inspired by the thirst others have had; not being able to live without Naam/Shabad/Akal. Examples are often given (several examples are given in bani; That a Sikhs love should be like; a fish not being able to live without water; a person not being able to live without oxygen; rain birds thirst for water)

- Other focus on humility; where the highest of the highest call themselves lowest of the lowest (kire/ants/insects)

- Other remind us that this life is temporary, and can be disconnected any minute. This actually reminds me of a teacher that just passed away a few days ago. One day he was walking talking, having a good time, making everyone smile in his lectures; the next day he was no more. Felt very odd; but that shook me. The shook me completely; I've been reminded daily by the Guru that this life is temporary, and that although we're not meant to neglect worldly things, we cannot forget that ultimately, we're not going to stay here...yet has this made any difference to my lifestyle? Hardly.

- Other Shabads constantly remind us that the POINT of life IS to become one with Akaal (eternal). We waste our life doing all sorts of other things. That being said, it doesn't mean that other things shouldn't be done, or that Sikhs should become sadhus in mountains and try to become one with the eternal; it doesn't work that way; it's meant to be a balance. That's something I’ve notice I need to work on. A lot of people are probably thinking; this guy’s is being really humble; but I'm not. The point of making this post is not to seem or act humble; because my Sikhi is seriously not very developed [people who have personally met me can wiconfirm this ]; the point is to remind myself (and hopefully some other soul might give me some insights/feedback, and get some might get some insights out of this post).

- Then there’s Shabads praying for the 'kirpa' of Vaheguru, and that he always bestows his hand upon our head, and keep us his sanctuary; other giving insights how much we've been blessed with; how much God has and can give, depending on efforts we make, and the decisions God makes.

The above messages are just the few things I've understood from the Bani; there is yet a lot to be decoded, by those who actually have made efforts to understand it.

Then there’s the morning prayer. My habit is a bit weird; getting up, taking a shower (being the late awakener I am), it's constantly about breaking new records on how quickly I can complete the paath. Never any focus.

Rehraas on the other hand has become a time to reflect, reason, to think, to feel, to remember, to be reminded, but that only comes at times when I really have time, and am not stressed to do thousands of other things.

Feedback and critique of above thoughts appreciated.

Who is great by the greatness of Maya?

ਗਉੜੀ ਮਹਲਾ 5 ॥
ਵਡੇ ਵਡੇ ਜੋ ਦੀਸਹਿ ਲੋਗ ॥
ਤਿਨ ਕਉ ਬਿਆਪੈ ਚਿੰਤਾ ਰੋਗ ॥1॥
ਕਉਨ ਵਡਾ ਮਾਇਆ ਵਡਿਆਈ ॥
ਸੋ ਵਡਾ ਜਿਨਿ ਰਾਮ ਲਿਵ ਲਾਈ ॥1॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਭੂਮੀਆ ਭੂਮਿ ਊਪਰਿ ਨਿਤ ਲੁਝੈ ॥
ਛੋਡਿ ਚਲੈ ਤ੍ਰਿਸਨਾ ਨਹੀ ਬੁਝੈ ॥2॥
ਕਹੁ ਨਾਨਕ ਇਹੁ ਤਤੁ ਬੀਚਾਰਾ ॥
ਬਿਨੁ ਹਰਿ ਭਜਨ ਨਾਹੀ ਛੁਟਕਾਰਾ ॥3॥44॥113॥

Gauree, Fifth Mehla:
Those who seem to be great and powerful,
are afflicted by the disease of anxiety. ||1||
Who is great by the greatness of Maya?
They alone are great, who are lovingly attached to the Lord. ||1||Pause||
The landlord fights over his land each day.
He shall have to leave it in the end, and yet his desire is still not satisfied. ||2||
Says Nanak, this is the essence of Truth:
without the Lord's meditation, there is no salvation. ||3||44||113||


Shabad: 188.

Hope to write a few thoughts about Maya: What it is. What it does etc. Need a bit more time and more brain activity which is mostly spent on chemistry.......

The hardships you suffer are from your own actions. |

ਕਰਮੀ ਆਪੋ ਆਪਣੀ ਕੇ ਨੇੜੈ ਕੇ ਦੂਰਿ ॥
ਜਿਨੀ ਨਾਮੁ ਧਿਆਇਆ ਗਏ ਮਸਕਤਿ ਘਾਲਿ ॥
ਨਾਨਕ ਤੇ ਮੁਖ ਉਜਲੇ ਕੇਤੀ ਛੁਟੀ ਨਾਲਿ ॥੧॥

According to their own actions, some are drawn closer, and some are driven farther away.
Those who have meditated on the Naam, the Name of the Lord, and departed after having worked by the sweat of their brows.
-O Nanak, their faces are radiant in the Court of the Lord, and many are saved along with them! ||1||

Shabad: 8


ਸੁਖੁ ਦੁਖੁ ਪੁਰਬ ਜਨਮ ਕੇ ਕੀਏ ॥
ਸੋ ਜਾਣੈ ਜਿਨਿ ਦਾਤੈ ਦੀਏ ॥
ਕਿਸ ਕਉ ਦੋਸੁ ਦੇਹਿ ਤੂ ਪ੍ਰਾਣੀ ਸਹੁ ਅਪਣਾ ਕੀਆ ਕਰਾਰਾ ਹੇ ॥੧੪॥

Pleasure and pain are the consequences of the actions of past lives.
The Giver, who blesses us with these - He alone knows.
So who can you blame, O mortal being? The hardships you suffer are from your own actions. ||14||

Shabad: 1030-1031


I'm not really suffering from any hardship or anything - Everything is going as it should be. I'm happy with life. It's just that today I was in the Gurdwara and there was an Akhand Paath, and the Sikhitothemax thing was running. Gurbani is just full of jewels. All of it's so true. We've got 'good phases' in our life, and 'bad phases'. Often these are due to our own actions, and our own mentality. We are the ones who put ourselves into the sticky ****.

We can't blame God when we ourselves are responsible for it. We are responsible for our actions and their rewards, yet we blame God. Poor God. God has to endure the torture of listening to us whining and complaining about being stuck in some hard circumstance the we ourselves put ourselves into!

God has a lot of patience. Thank God for that, otherwise we'd be quite screwed =D

naanak moorakh eaek thoo

ਨਾਨਕ ਮੂਰਖੁ ਏਕੁ ਤੂ ਅਵਰੁ ਭਲਾ ਸੈਸਾਰੁ ॥
ਜਿਤੁ ਤਨਿ ਨਾਮੁ ਨ ਊਪਜੈ ਸੇ ਤਨ ਹੋਹਿ ਖੁਆਰ ॥੪॥੨॥

naanak moorakh eaek thoo avar bhalaa saisaar ||
jith than naam n oopajai sae than hohi khuaar ||4||2||

O Nanak, you alone are foolish; all the rest of the world is good.
That body in which the Naam does not well up - that body becomes miserable. ||4||2||

Shabad: 1327-28

ਦੁਬਿਧਾ ਮਾਰਿ ਹਰਿ ਮੰਨਿ ਵਸਾਈ

Wanted to post about something really cool that happened a few weeks ago...
While I was doing Paath in the morning some doubt-thoughts appeared in my mind..about the existance of God. Not that God doesn't exist..but some other issues that hunted me for several weeks regarding God's existance.

Ironically the answer to the doubts lay in the Paath I was doing...but since I couldn't understand it, there wasn't much I could do at the time.... (which means I should start reading interpretations and translations of the nitnem banis...)

Went to the Gurdwara after Nitnem and this is the Hukamnama that Guru Ji blessed me with...:

ਧਨਾਸਰੀ ਮਹਲਾ ੩ ਘਰੁ ੨ ਚਉਪਦੇ
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ਇਹੁ ਧਨੁ ਅਖੁਟੁ ਨ ਨਿਖੁਟੈ ਨ ਜਾਇ ॥
ਪੂਰੈ ਸਤਿਗੁਰਿ ਦੀਆ ਦਿਖਾਇ ॥
ਅਪੁਨੇ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਕਉ ਸਦ ਬਲਿ ਜਾਈ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਕਿਰਪਾ ਤੇ ਹਰਿ ਮੰਨਿ ਵਸਾਈ ॥੧॥
ਸੇ ਧਨਵੰਤ ਹਰਿ ਨਾਮਿ ਲਿਵ ਲਾਇ ॥
ਗੁਰਿ ਪੂਰੈ ਹਰਿ ਧਨੁ ਪਰਗਾਸਿਆ ਹਰਿ ਕਿਰਪਾ ਤੇ ਵਸੈ ਮਨਿ ਆਇ ॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
ਅਵਗੁਣ ਕਾਟਿ ਗੁਣ ਰਿਦੈ ਸਮਾਇ ॥
ਪੂਰੇ ਗੁਰ ਕੈ ਸਹਜਿ ਸੁਭਾਇ ॥
ਪੂਰੇ ਗੁਰ ਕੀ ਸਾਚੀ ਬਾਣੀ ॥
ਸੁਖ ਮਨ ਅੰਤਰਿ ਸਹਜਿ ਸਮਾਣੀ ॥੨॥
ਏਕੁ ਅਚਰਜੁ ਜਨ ਦੇਖਹੁ ਭਾਈ ॥
ਦੁਬਿਧਾ ਮਾਰਿ ਹਰਿ ਮੰਨਿ ਵਸਾਈ ॥
ਨਾਮੁ ਅਮੋਲਕੁ ਨ ਪਾਇਆ ਜਾਇ ॥
ਗੁਰ ਪਰਸਾਦਿ ਵਸੈ ਮਨਿ ਆਇ ॥੩॥
ਸਭ ਮਹਿ ਵਸੈ ਪ੍ਰਭੁ ਏਕੋ ਸੋਇ ॥
ਗੁਰਮਤੀ ਘਟਿ ਪਰਗਟੁ ਹੋਇ ॥
ਸਹਜੇ ਜਿਨਿ ਪ੍ਰਭੁ ਜਾਣਿ ਪਛਾਣਿਆ ॥
ਨਾਨਕ ਨਾਮੁ ਮਿਲੈ ਮਨੁ ਮਾਨਿਆ ॥੪॥੧॥
663-664
Click here for translation


Really crushed the doubt. Although the Shabads doesn't explain what I was having doubts about it was like a tap on my head from Guru Ji.. with him saying:
"My Son, trust me.. trust....by following the Shabad Guru your doubts WILL be removed"...

Simplying reading my mind...knowing the doubts existed...he gave me the path to remove these doubts... he spoke to me through the Hukamnama...Now comes the hard part: following these instructions..

I know this means very little for others... just as little as ..someone telling me about them personally seeing someone elevating while doing pagti...meant to me...

Anyway..this shabad has kept the candle lit for a few weeks..and filled my required quota of inspiration for quite a while....

Trust the Guru. Experience and talk to your Guru. He is not a book, or someone to be feared. Go forward and talk to him....

ਦੁਬਿਧਾ ਮਾਰਿ ਹਰਿ ਮੰਨਿ ਵਸਾਈ...

ਭਈ ਪਰਾਪਤਿ ਮਾਨੁਖ ਦੇਹੁਰੀਆ - Some thoughts

I do realise that many of my posts are pretty long and boring. I will try to cut them down. This post will also be quite long..but in future..I shall try to make the posts shorter.

While attending a Sikhi Week lecture about Why Are We Here? A few thoughts arose. The main Shabad that was brought up was:

ਭਈ ਪਰਾਪਤਿ ਮਾਨੁਖ ਦੇਹੁਰੀਆ ॥
ਗੋਬਿੰਦ ਮਿਲਣ ਕੀ ਇਹ ਤੇਰੀ ਬਰੀਆ ॥
ਅਵਰਿ ਕਾਜ ਤੇਰੈ ਕਿਤੈ ਨ ਕਾਮ ॥
ਮਿਲੁ ਸਾਧਸੰਗਤਿ ਭਜੁ ਕੇਵਲ ਨਾਮ ॥1॥
ASSG 12

This human body has been given to you.
This is your chance to meet the Lord of the Universe.
Nothing else will work.
Join the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy; vibrate and meditate on the Jewel of the Naam. ||1||


Gurbani says that we've been blessed with this chance to make a difference. To change ourself. To change the world. Yet do we do this? The speaker stopped talking and arranged two small discussion groups about what our goal is in life. Out of 10-15 people sitting around in our group, only 1-2 said that their goal in life was to meet Vaheguru (I was not one of those..).


Although we might all say that ideally, we should make more effort on the spiritual path... it is something we should really ask ourself: How much of an effort are we making?
Are we taking that little step that will make Guru Ji come so much closer?


Bhai Gurdas Ji writes:
ਚਰਨ ਸਰਨਿ ਗੁਰ ਏਕ ਪੈਡਾ ਜਾਇ ਚਲ
ਸਤਿ ਗੁਰ ਕੋਟਿ ਪੈਡਾ ਆਗੇ ਹੋਇ ਲੇਤ ਹੈ ॥

charan saran gur eaek paiddaa jaae chala
sath gur kott paiddaa aagae hoe laeth hai ||

By taking one single step towards the Guru
The True Guru will take many (I believe kot means Thousands? or millions?) of steps towards you to recieve you.

Yet do we take that step? Do we acknowledge that: Vaheguru, you are with me? I'm not sure I should be posting about this..since I personally do not. Although I might say that, in theory, the goal of my life is to meet parmatma, my practicle life doesn't show this. I do not remember Vaheguru. I do not treat my everyone with respect... It's so interesting how we read this shabad everyday...(sometimes) understand it...but fail to realise it.

There's nothing wrong with getting degrees and good job, as a matter of fact..it's a really good thing to do so... but should that not be something secondary? Doesn't Gurbani say you should live a practicle life..yet at the same time be pious? Isn't a Sikh to be beutiful like a lotus in a dirty pond?

Again, I don't know whether I should've posted this..since I do not do this myself..it's just some observations I made from the talk I listened to...

What is the point of your life?


Bhull Chukk Maaf

P.s I might not post for a while now. Hasdey roh, Vasdey roh (",)
The morning Hukam Guru Ji blessed me with.

ਕਬੀਰ ਮੁਹਿ ਮਰਨੇ ਕਾ ਚਾਉ ਹੈ - Some thoughts

ਕਬੀਰ ਮੁਹਿ ਮਰਨੇ ਕਾ ਚਾਉ ਹੈ ਮਰਉ ਤ ਹਰਿ ਕੈ
ਦੁਆਰ ॥
ਮਤ ਹਰਿ ਪੂਛੈ ਕਉਨੁ ਹੈ
ਪਰਾ ਹਮਾਰੈ ਬਾਰ ॥੬੧॥

kabeer muhi
marnay kaa chaa-o hai mara-o ta har kai du-aar.
mat har poochhai ka-un hai paraa hamaarai
baar. 61

Kabeer, I long to die; let me die at the
Lord's Door.I hope that the Lord does not ask, "Who is this, lying at my door?"
61

Bhagat Kabeer Ji, 1367

I've noticed that this shabad is often quoted after the passing away of a Gurmukh. Is the death above, physical death Bhagat jee is talking about? Is Bhagat jee longing for a physical death?

This shabad has been on my mind for quite a while now. As I understand Sikhi, life is something positive. A chance. A chance for change. A chance to meet the eternal. So why long to die?

bhee paraapath maanukh dhaehureeaa
gobi(n)dh milan kee eih thaeree
bareeaa

This human body has been given to you.This is your chance to
meet the Lord of the Universe.

Guru Arjan Dev Ji, 12

Yet the verse by Bhagat Jee, according to the translator, is longing to die. The other Shabad by Guru Arjan Dev Ji now comes to mind;

pehilaa maran kabool jeevan kee shhadd aas
hohu sabhanaa kee raenukaa tho
aao hamaarai paas 1

First, accept death, and give up any hope of life.
Become the dust of the feet of all, and then, you may come to me. 1

Guru Arjan Dev Ji, 1102

Is this physical death though? It seems as if it is the death of vanity that is being stressed.It never was the physical death. Life is something positive. Life is a chance we human beings have been blessed with to make it a better place. To contribute to the world... To do selfless service. To Jap naam and remember Vaheguru (something I do not do much... I'm being truthful and not humble at all..)

It seems as if Bhagat Jee is longing to kill vanity, attachment, ego, hankar etc (something he himself probably killed long ago).

I got this understanding from Prof Sahib Singh Ji (Great scholar of Gurbani) who in his interpretation of Gurbani, writes that that Bhagat Jee longs to abandon Ego, and worldy attachments.. something we only can be released from when we surrender at the door of Vaheguru.

Sri Guru Granth Sahib Darpan. English translations, in my opinion, shouldn't be blindly be accepted.... The Punjabi interpretation by Prof Sahib is great!

Since I do not have much knowledge of Gurbani, I was hesitant to post this, and I request my visitors to give their input into this Gurbani Tuk by Bhagat Jee, since most (if not all) of you are more knowledgeable about Gurbani than me…


Bhull Chukk Maaf Karni.