THE GURU PART 3: PERSONAL Vs. IMPERSONAL GURU

Transcription

1 THE GURU PART 3: PERSONAL Vs. IMPERSONAL GURU Forsaking God, and serving another, one s honor, dignity and reputation are decreased (sggs 497). Without serving God, one who serves another wastes his time uselessly (sggs 1222). My master is eternal. He is seen by practicing the Shabad. He is not perishable, he neither takes birth nor does he die (sggs 509). Why serve another who is born, and then dies? (sggs 509). Cursed is the life, and cursed is the dwelling of those who serve another (sggs 586). False, false, false, false is all other service (sggs 1166). Life is wasted uselessly in the service of duality (sggs 1182). <><><><> Part 1 and 2 of this article reflected on Guru's meaning, His business, the True Guru in Sikhi, and the process to link with Him. One with vague understanding of the Divine Essence may argue that without a Guru in some physical form, linking with God is inaccessible. The existence of many splinter groups of Sikhism is the result of such unawakened and immature understanding of the Shabad. This Part 3 of the article will attempt to reflect on the personal (physical form) versus impersonal (formless) Guru. Tatt niranjan jot sabaayee soham bhed na koyee jeeyu. Aprampar Parbrahm permesar Nanak Gur miliyaa soyee jeeyu: The essence, the immaculate Lord, the Light of all I am He and He is me there is no difference between us. Nanak has met with his Guru who is the Infinite Transcendent and Supreme Lord (sggs 599). Jap tap sanjam karam na jaanaa naam japee prabh teraa. Gur permesar Nanak bhetiyo saachai Shabad niberaa: I know nothing of worship, penitence, self-discipline or religious rituals; I only chant Your Name, God. Nanak has met the Guru, the Transcendent Lord; through His True Shabad or Name, he is set free (sggs 878). The personal or physical form is time-bound, hence temporary. To the contrary, the impersonal form is Universal and Timeless, thus Permanent. The "outer" is transient, and the "Innermost" (the Self) is Changeless and Eternal, hence always available. This Self is the only Absolute Reality; all else is relative or shadow projected by the body-mind on the screen of the time. Even though a shadow is related to the Reality, but by itself it's not real. As clearly indicated by the Gurmat (Shabad-Giyan), the True Guru is Eternal Being who is beyond birth and death, Imperishable, True Creator, All-permeating and pervading, the Omnipresent, Infinite, and Transcendent. The Shabad urges us to take on this True Guru. Aadi ant ekai avtaaraa. Soyee Guru samjhiyu hamaaraa: From the very beginning to end, God is the only incarnation. It should be known to all that such God is our Guru (Chaoupayi Paatshaahee 10, Tenth Mahal). Sat saach nivaas sri nivaas aad purakh sadda tuhee waheguru waheguru waheguru wahi jee-o: You are forever True, the Home of Excellence, the Primal Supreme Being. Waheguru, Waheguru, Waheguru, Wahe Jee-o (sggs 1402). The people with selfish agenda has made the mockery of this sacred word Sat Guru. Consequently, the word "Guru" or "Saint" is being used so loosely that it has almost lost its real meaning. It has been (1 of 6) [3/30/ :05:02 AM]

2 molested by people such as Yoga instructors, palm readers, horoscope readers, material teachers of all sorts, guides, Raagees (musicians), Preachers, Swamis, professionals, and so on! It is so sad that now this sacred name is even linked to people such as stock market analysts, corrupt politician, thieves, etc. (such as "Wall Street Gurus", "political Gurus", "computer Gurus", etc.)! The Supreme Self, the True Guru, is more intimate than anything else because He is within (Antarguru). This Infinite Self (Jot Savroop) is ever living; because some of the essential qualities and manifestations of a True Guru is his eternal nature, omnipresence, omnipotence, all-pervasiveness, etc. He is all-engulfing, and all-knowing. He is the Absolute Knowledge, Light, or Giyan. It is because of indolence, restlessness, obtuseness, cussedness, crudity and lack of discernment and insight that we look for a Guru in the shape of a human person. In fact the True Guru, the Guru of Gurus, is ever present within, watching and waiting for his children to return to Him. He is waiting there to help us with His subtle presence or a spark of intuition, but our deluded mind have brought in the duality (Dooja Bhaav) where there is none. There is the Self and there is the physical body. Between them is the deluded mind. As the mind gets purified, it moves toward the Self, causing the body-consciousness (false ego or Maya) to disappear! Tin toon visrahi ji doojai bhaayee: O Lord, those who are in love with duality forget You (sggs 160). Thus, the reason man looks for the True Guru in a physical frame is that, in ignorance or imperfections of the mind, he keeps moving toward the body instead of the Self, and thereby mistakes the time-bound body for the timeless Self. Consequently, he extends the same mistake to the state of the Sat Guru. He therefore considers the Sat Guru to be the physical frame as well. What is this ignorance? Ignorance is nothing but the forgetfulness of the Self. The True Guru is "spiritual" as opposed to "physical". And the Spirit is formless and unlimited. To the contrary, the matter is limited and has a name, shape and form. Therefore, the True Guru is not a body, He is only Spirit, Limitless, and Formless. The Spirit is the Self. If this Self is realized, all questions will cease to be. However, our selfishness and conceit keeps us from realizing this Self, the most intimate One! As a result, we look for this Self without. In this Avidya (ignorance), which in reality is non-existence, people speak of "finding" the True Guru as some embodied being. But, the truth is that the moment we become free of our selfishness and conceit, the Self will spontaneously find us! Hayu Hayu karat nahee sach paayeeyai: By actions done in egotism, selfishness and conceit, the Truth is not known (sggs 226). Antar Shabad nidhaan hai mil aap gavaayiyai: Deep within the Self is the treasure of the Shabad; it is obtained only by eradicating selfishness and conceit (sggs 228). A living being has three essential needs in life. They are food, shelter, and clothing. If a so called living Guru is not completely Perfect, he will have a tendency to compromise with these basic needs just like any other average human being. This is where the corruption starts! As a result, we all see and hear about cheating and swindling in the society by countless so called "Living Gurus" roaming all over the world, specially North America where the Dollars are! Prabh taj avar sevak je hoyee tit maan mahat jas ghaatai: Forsaking God, and serving another, one s honor, dignity and reputation are decreased (sggs 497). (2 of 6) [3/30/ :05:02 AM]

3 Avar doojaa kiyo seveeyai jammai tai mar jaai: Why serve another who is born, and then dies? (sggs 509). Hor vidaanee chaakree dhrig jeevan dhrig vaas: Cursed is the life, and cursed is the dwelling of those who serve another (sggs 586). Jhooth jhooth jhooth jhooth aan sabh seva: False, false, false, false is all other service (sggs 1166). Doojee seva maanas birthaa. Kashoo na hoyee hai pooran arthaa: Life is wasted uselessly in the service of duality (sggs 1182). Bin prabh sev karat an sevaa birthaa kaatai kaal: Without serving God, one who serves another wastes his time uselessly (sggs 1222). Manmukh sevaa jo kare doojai bhaai chit laai: The faithless manmukh may perform service, but his consciousness is attached to the love of duality (sggs 1422). Kis sevee tai kis saalaahee. Satgur sevee Shabad saalaahee: Whom should I serve, and whom should I praise? I serve the True Guru by praising the Shabad (sggs 1048). The earth planet is never without the true and wise ones, but they are very few and far-in-between. Such pure soul neither calls himself a saint nor a Sadhu, nor he looks for followers. As such, the problem is in recognizing such true being. An average person's material senses are not so sharp or pure to distinguish between a bogus and a genuine true being. Utter chaos, confusion, cheating and spiritual corruption is the result. One of the arguments given by the so called time-bound living Gurus is that, when a Guru leaves his body, he waits "up there" for his disciples to join him later. When the disciple departs this world, the Guru meets him "up there" and rescue him from further sufferings. They argue that if you did not have an embodied Guru, then you would not have anybody waiting to rescue you "up there". This sort of arguments show nothing but shear poverty of a nonsense philosophy. If we follow this reasoning, then why cannot a Guru who died few decades or few hundred years before him do the same for his disciples? As we can see, this sort of mental speculation and material logic is totally baseless, because, according to the scriptures, there is nothing up there which is not "up here", within our body. The other argument given by the so called time-bound living Gurus is that, if a disciple has questions or doubts in his mind, where would he go to resolve them if he did not have a living Guru. All Indian scriptures including SGGS confers that one can not even meet the Ture Guru unless he has earned His Grace. Once a soul has earned God's Grace, He will guide us from within, effectionately and effectively. Are we saying that the Lord does not know what He is doing, or that He is not complete and perfect? It's not so. The Lord of the three worlds knows what He is doing. Also, he is complete, perfect Being, full and filling. It's majority of us who are incomplete, ignorant, foolish, and do not know what we are doing in life. We have turned our backs to the Shabad, rendering ourselves confused in the thick jungle of ignorance. In fact there is nothing up there that is not up hear as All-pervading Consciousness. Whatever is up there is also in our bosom. He who is in the stars, space, and planets is also in our heart. As the God, Guru, and Self are one and the same, there is no need to look for them in the externalities of the universe; they are here and now, at this very moment (Haajraa Hajoor). Therefore, there is no need to take the Eternal and All-pervading from place to place! The All-pervasive Satguru that can impart us the understanding of the Word or give the wisdom for its exposition is within everything, including us (the Antarguru). All we (3 of 6) [3/30/ :05:02 AM]

4 need to do is awaken Him by becoming spiritual beings through His Name-consciousness. Sahib meraa sadaa hai disai Shabad kamaaye. Oh ayuhaanee kade naahi na aavai na jaaye: My master is eternal. He is seen by practicing the Shabad. He is not perishable, he neither takes birth nor does he die (sggs 509). He who is in the sun is also in the man (Vedas) The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone's heart, O Arjun (Gita, 18-61) The kingdom of God is within (Bible) God is within Yourself. Dive within and realize. God, Guru and the Self are the same (Sri Raman Maharshi). As Sri Ramkrishan Paramhansa says: "There are three classes of devotees. The lowest one says, 'God is up there.' That is, he points to heaven. The mediocre devotee says that God dwells in the heart as the 'Inner Controller'. But the highest devotee says: 'God alone has become everything.'" Also, according to the Gurbani, the whole cosmic drama is none other than an expression and manifestation of one Divine Will, Divine Love, or Divine Grace. Brahm deesai Brahm suneeyai ek ek vakhaaneeyai. Aatam pasaaraa karan haaraa parabh binaa nahee jaaneeyai: The One Unique Reality is seen everywhere, the Unstruck Celestial Music is heard everywhere, the One Creator is present in all creation; there is none else than He Himself everywhere (sggs 846). Because of our false identification with the physical body, we think that the Self is this body and the body is the Self. This is error in spiritual ignorance. Under the spell of such error, people consider the Guru to be the physical body. However, from a realized man's standpoint, he is only the Self, the Infinite Consciousness; which is beyond body, mind, time, causation, form and space. As such, he is All-pervading Presence in everything and every place. Gur permesar ek hai sabh mai rahiyaa samaaye: The Guru and the Transcendent Lord are one and the same, pervading and permeating amongst all (sggs 52). The True Guru is not a body, visible or invisible; he is the Light (Giyan). Realized souls and scriptures repeatedly remind mortals not to cling to anything made from the five elements and the mind. As any form made from the five elements is unreal (transient); they tell us not to depend on any material object. The Self is the only Reality or true Teacher, all else is pointing to the Self. If we hold on to "all else", then we are sure to drown. Therefore, if the vague idea associated with the form of the Guru is rejected, only the Supreme Self will be left! The True Guru guides his disciples from within; the Source of all intuitive Wisdom and Knowledge. A True Guru is beyond death and birth; for he is in the beginning, middle and end. If you ask a true visible Giyani, he will also concur that he is within. If he does not say that, then know he is a cheat. Therefore, we need to seek and find the True Master in our bosom, then we can have unbroken (Akhand) communion with him. Neither can he forget us, nor can we go away from him. Satgur pooraa merai naal: The Perfect True Guru is always with me (sggs 618). Paarbrah Gurdev Sadaa Hajooreeai: O Supreme Lord, Divine Guru, You are always with me, ever-present (sggs 709). Jah dekho tah naali guri dekhaaliaa: Wherever I look, there the Guru has shown me that God is always with me (sggs 752). (4 of 6) [3/30/ :05:02 AM]

5 Gurmati ootam sangi saath: The most sublime Word of the Guru's Teachings is always with us (sggs 1170). Gur merai sangi sadaa hai naali: My Guru is always with me, near at hand (sggs 394). Therefore, in order to create harmony with the True Guru, one needs to abide in his inner being first. There is no space or time that can divide the superconsciousness of the True Guru and his disciple. The True Guru, having thus all pervasive-consciousness is always within the inner consciousness of the disciple. In their waking state, in the dream state, in their deep sleep state, He is simultaneously connected to him Satgur apnai ghar vartdaa aape laye milaaye: The True Guru is pervading the homes within; He Himself blends one with Him (sggs 649). Simir simir simir gur apuna soyaa man jaagaayee: Remembering, remembering, remembering my Guru in meditation, my sleeping mind is awakened (sggs 758). The Satguru is ever situated within everybody's heart-lotus. Thus, he is not apart from his disciple, and the disciple is not apart from the Satguru. Therefore, physical proximity is of no consequences. Unbroken mental communion alone matters. In other words, the mind must be connected to the Guru. To put it otherwise, one must hold on only to the Self; let "all else" go! Gur poore ke charan man vuthe: The feet (Shabad-Giyan) of the Perfect Guru dwell in my mind (sggs 758). so satigur piaaraa merai naal hai jithhai kithhai maino leae shhaddaaee : That Beloved True Guru is always with me; wherever I may be, He will save me (sggs 588). marai n jaavai sudh hee sungae satigur sabadee cheenaa : He does not die, and is not born; He is always with me. Through the True Guru's Shabad, I know Him (sggs 670). satigur naal dhikhaaliaa rav rehiaa subh thhaae : The Guru has shown me that the Lord is always with me; He is permeating and pervading all places (sggs 1248). A significant danger with a so called visible Guru is that if he claims or imposes his mastership upon his disciple, then that disciple has found a veil to his own oneness with the Universal Consciousness. The same thing can also happen if a disciple in ignorance becomes attached to some physical form of a so called Guru rather than the Aatam-Giyan (spiritual wisdom). All this, in turn, becomes an obstacle to one's own enlightenment. Man's belief that he, God, and Guru are separate from each other keeps him from the Truth, Waheguru. Such belief in one's separateness is all that stands between him and the One Homogeneous Being, Ik Onkaar. As the message is one, as the Truth is One, there cannot be two True Gurus. Thus, in reality there is only one True Guru! If one is sincere in his pursuit of the Absolute Truth, he can find it in the Shabad (Naam). The Divine Light called Self, Guru or God is boxed in the Shabad, just as the fragrance is boxed in the flower. With unwavering faith, one can link with the Infinite by realizing the true meaning of the Shabad. Accordingly, the Shabad is not a property of any caste, religion, group, sect, etc. It belongs to the entire mankind; for it's Universal. Shabad gur peeraa gahir gambheeraa bin shbdai jag bayuraanaa: The profound and unfathomable Shabad is the Guru and the spiritual guide. Without the Shabad the world is gone crazy (sggs 635). (5 of 6) [3/30/ :05:02 AM]

6 Teraa Shabad toon hai hahi aape bharam kahahee: The Shabad is Yours; You are Yourself. Where is there any doubt? (sggs 162). Shabad Guru surti dhun chelaa: The Shabad is the Guru, upon whom I lovingly focus my consciousness; I am the Chaylaa, the disciple (sggs 943). Antar shabad mitiyaa agiaan andher: When the Shabad abides deep within the nucleus of the self, it dispels the darkness of ignorance (sggs 798). Jo jo japai so hoi puneet. Bhagat bhaai laavai man heet: Whoever meditates on Him by focusing the mind in heartfelt loving devotional service is sanctified, (sggs 290). --T. Singh Back to Top Please click on the Article Menu below for many relevant essays. [Home] [Article Menu] (6 of 6) [3/30/ :05:02 AM]