Shabad
ਸ਼ਬਦ ..੧ ਓਂਕਾਰ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ II
ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕੀ
ਫਤਿਹ II
ਰਾਗ ਰਾਮਕਲੀ
ਪਾਤਸ਼ਾਹੀ ੧੦ II
ਰੇ ਮਨ ਐਸੋ
ਕਰਿ ਸੰਨਿਆਸਾ II
ਬਨ ਸੇ ਸਦਨ
ਸਬੈ ਕਰ ਸਮਝਹੁ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ਉਦਾਸਾ II੧ II ਰਹਾਉ II
ਜਤ ਕੀ ਜਟਾ ਜੋਗ
ਕੋ ਮਜਨੁ ਨੇਮ ਕੇ ਨਖੁਨ ਬਢਾਓ II
ਗਿਆਨ ਗੁਰੂ ਆਤਮ
ਉਪਦੇਸਹੁ ਨਾਮ ਬਿਭੂਤ ਲਗਾਓ II੧ II
ਅਲਪ ਅਹਾਰ ਸੁਲਪ ਸੀ
ਨਿੰਦਰਾ ਦਯਾ ਛਿਮਾ ਤਨ ਤਨ ਪ੍ਰੀਤਿ II
ਸੀਲ ਸੰਤੋਖ ਸਦਾ
ਨਿਰਬਾਹਿਬੋ ਹ੍ਵੈਬੋ ਤ੍ਰਿਗੁਣ ਅਤੀਤ II II੨ II
ਕਾਮ ਕ੍ਰੋਧ
ਹੰਕਾਰ ਲੋਭ ਹਠ ਮੋਹ ਨ ਮਨ ਮੋ ਲਯਾਵੈ
ਤਬ ਹੀ ਆਤਮ ਤਤ ਕੋ
ਦਰਸੈ ਪਰਮ ਪੁਰਖ ਕਹ ਪਾਵੈ II3 II ਇਈ
ਸ਼ਬਦ ਹਜਾਰੇ - ਸ੍ਰੀ
ਦਸਮ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ
ਰੇ ਮਨ
Re man in Gur-bani is
not so much an exhortation to self or soul or mind as a prayer to the cosmic
spirit which resonates within and without us and is thus an evidence of
omnipresence not only of an external force but of our own consciousness -- in a cosmic spread. ( Thus,
the prayer, the one who prays and the one to whom the prayer is addressed are
overlapping and are in fact shifting patterns in the same
kaleidoscope .)
Thus, "Re Man" is an outcry of the cosmic
self` or cosmic energy ( also called God- param atama- cosmic energy in the throes of self-conflict, which in fact
is a self-play ( Leela??), a self-delusion
of consciousness, spirit, mind, God, energy or whatever name you want to give
it. The problem as you know better than any of us, Rajiv, is one of language here
– language which is a tool of the rational mind, and
rational mind being just the outer tip of consciousness can hardly grasp or
express the whole truth of the ocean that spreads behind it.( And I am already
into preaching to a Prophet !!)
"Re man" is
also one half of the mind addressing the other.
ਰੇ ਮਨ ਐਸੋ
ਕਰਿ ਸੰਨਿਆਸਾ II
"Sanyasa" of
course you know. I only need to emphasize that san+nias also means "
residing everywhere", seemingly quite the opposite of what it normally
expresses.
Reach a state of such
sanyaas .....
ਬਨ ਸੇ ਸਦਨ
ਸਬੈ ਕਰ ਸਮਝਹੁ ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ਉਦਾਸਾ II੧ II ਰਹਾਉ II
ban= of course a forest
and sadan = of course a house/ home...Regard all homes as forest ( home in
Gurbani is also a symbol of soul, self, mind, consciousness within-- Ghar hi
parcha paiyeeye....find knowledge at home only).Interestingly, the Guru does
not say, “Regard the forest as your home” but “Regard your home as forest”. Here,
the Guru refers to the belief that mental detachment is possible only through
sanayasa or retiring to the forests...but the Guru is obviously not being
critical of this; he is going beyond that and is in fact endorsing the
importance of sanyasa, but is suggesting that for this, one's own home can
attain the status of a forest; its about state of mind . The chief difference
between a forest and home is not "desolation" ( which in any case a
forest never represents); the chief difference is that one regards a home as
one's own, and thus a possession,
whereas a forest is belongs to
everyone or to no one in particular, and certainly not to "me". The
Guru appears to suggest that residing in your home but by regarding it as not
your own but a place that belongs to everyone or to the universe itself, you
can free yourself of the pangs of attachment --"this house is not mine; I
merely reside here" , this world does not belong to me; I merely reside
here" --But by surrendering everything you gain everything; so you can see
that since nothing belongs to you, by the same logic nothing belongs to anyone
else either. Therefore, everything here is yours through love. And through love
alone does anything become yours; but then it belongs to anyone or everyone who
loves it, and that takes nothing away from the place or from your rights over it.
Everything is infinitely sharable because everything is infinitely lovable .
That which you possess does not belong to you. You merely possess it, as an
invader might possess your land or country, but it will never belong to him. It
will belong to you , even if you don't possess an inch of it. It will belong to
you simply because you love it. Desire
is about possessing; love is about belonging. Thus the Guru extends the space
of home to the infiniteness of a forest. And the other meaning of san-nias , residing
everywhere, also comes into play.
Thus sanyas no longer
remains an act of painful giving up; it actually transforms into a door
to "Anand" since you have expanded the bounds of your home to those
of a forest...actualy the bounds of your mind !! Thus, ਮਨ ਹੀ ਮਾਹਿ ਉਦਾਸਾ ...Now, udasa is another interesting word here,
Rajiv, as you already know all its connotations. And surely it has nothing to
do with udasi or even udaseenata... It refers to a state of mind akin to
"bairaag" -- another exceedingly fascinating phenomenon which runs
close on the bounds of Anand ( Which is untranslatable) I would like to
sit quiet one day and listen to you on Bairaag.
ਜਤ ਕੀ ਜਟਾ ਜੋਗ
ਕੋ ਮਜਨੁ ਨੇਮ ਕੇ ਨਖੁਨ ਬਢਾਓ II
(ਜਤ ) of course refers to stern discipline of mind ; For the Jog
Mat, the Jata, or long hair, among other things, symbolised
penance also, It also referred to external discipline though as a symbol of
internal penance.. The Guru obviously moves the journey completely inwards....and says cleansing of
the mind alone is purification (ਜੋਗ ਕੋ ਮਜਨੁ ). The followers
of the Jog Mat, as you know, used to grow long nails. The Guru brings up
a concept so crucial to Gurbani - nem
or niyam which to me symbolise the divine laws but is commonly taken to mean
"rules" . I go for "kudrat de nem" --- Laws of Nature .
Acceptance of these laws alone is highest discipline and highest bliss. For
me Rajiv, words 'nem" and "hukam" hold fascinating
and infinite meanings. Contrary to a tin-pot dictator's diktat, hukam appears
to me to be the ultimate embodiment of reality -- hukam, Order, Laws, Niyam,
Nem -- they all seem to refer to forces and principles that govern the
universe or life. These are immutable and hence supreme; fighting against them
or nurturing wishes or desires that run contrary to them can only lead to a
conflict with truth and therefore to pain, agony, sorrow. The greatest and the
most obvious nem or hukam or law of the universe or of Nature (
Kudrat/fitrat)
is "change" (
refers also to dynamism of reality). Everything is subject to change, said
Buddha, and Vedas and Gurbani clearly agree. Thus birth and death too are merely
parts of the same natural
nem/hukam/laws/principles. There is neither good not bad in either of these.
But to rise that level – well, well, well !! In Gurbani there is another name used for
this: Bhaana or the Will. To me at least, Bhaana and Hukam and nem and Laws of
Universe ( Laws of Physics also) are the
same thing.
The
problem of language arises here again. We seem to conclude that if there
is bhaana, then there must be one whose bhaana it is; will seems to presupposes
the one who wills ( God) and hukam seems to presuppose a haakam ( also,
mohkam, hakuoomat etc) These contradictions can never be resolved for these are
contradictions created by a rational tool called language. To me, briefly,
hukam or Will or God or nem and bhaana -- all refer to the same thing and
speak of the same truth—that Universe
and its Laws are the same thing.( You can call it God and His Will, if you
please) The universe is nothing but a
set of laws in operation; so is God -- another name for expressing the same
reality.
ਗਿਆਨ ਗੁਰੂ ਆਤਮ
ਉਪਦੇਸਹੁ ਨਾਮ ਬਿਭੂਤ ਲਗਾਓ II੧ II
Gian-- enlightenment -
alone is Guru . The other two words can mean either that this enlightenment
addresses or teaches "Atm" , self, you etc, or that Atm itself is the
updesh incarnate. I am not sure which is closer to the Guru's meaning. Will
consult someone and get back.
And the following three
words present the greatest difficulty. ਨਾਮ ਬਿਭੂਤ ਲਗਾਓ II੧ II
All my life, Rajiv, I have privately struggled to find
out what ਨਾਮ refers to. Surely, it is not name; or if it is, surely it is not in the sense of
nomenclature So what is it?.. a cosmic sound like OM ?? Or is it the unheard
melody of cosmic love anhad naad or what is it??.. I am completely at a loss
here.. i am soon going to a saint whose wisdom i trust . I wish to sit at his
feet and try to understand what this refers to . Its not as easy as that --
that I will go and in one month, I will get to understand. Wish self realisation
or revelation of truth was that easy. But I am going to make an attempt, sitting at his feet, loving, serving
everything and everyone and trying to see if I can get anywhere close to
this. If I do, you might find me dancing in the streets.....you will find out
whether or not I have found out , although then it might cease to matter one
way or the other..
I am leaving these words
completely untouched for this reason. ( Not that I understand much of what I
have written about other things !!!)
But you are going to
love the followng line ( as you do the rest of it , of course) ..ਅਲਪ ਅਹਾਰ ਸੁਲਪ ਸੀ ਨਿੰਦਰਾ ਦਯਾ ਛਿਮਾ ਤਨ ਤਨ ਪ੍ਰੀਤਿ
II
alap ahaar of course
does not simply mean "eat less" but has a larger context -- May be,
consume less, the door to peace and bliss in any case. ( It is , as you already
know, not just about eating less; its about ahar.. which is subsistence and
everything that you need for it.)
But the next two words are
fascinatingly poetic --ਸੁਲਪ ਸੀ ਨਿੰਦਰਾ -- sleep as brief and as aware (as that
of a snake !!) To be awake and alert ( chetan) or aware of truth even in sleep ( mundane ,
day to day life) is the distinguishing
mark of an Enlightened One ( Buddha, Jogi, Giani, Guru, Braham-in)
And I simply love and
adore the following words: ਦਯਾ ਛਿਮਾ ਤਨ ਤਨ ਪ੍ਰੀਤਿ…compassion, (sym—pathy, feeling
exactly one with someone), forgiveness ( the highest virtue in Sikh thought)
and love that can not be held back, love that overflows …
Plus, ਸੀਲ ਸੰਤੋਖ
ਸਦਾ ਨਿਰਬਾਹਿਬੋ ਹ੍ਵੈਬੋ ਤ੍ਰਿਗੁਣ ਅਤੀਤ – gentle, pious, (ਸਾਊ, ਸ਼ਰੀਫ਼ ਹੋਣ
ਦਾ ਗੁਣ) , the
contentment ( in the sense of accepting reality with quiet and dignified poise –
not a lazy acquiescence but a dynamic exercise of will to refuse misery over
failure to feed greed , is what ਸੰਤੋਖ is. Stay with
these virtues and then you might transcend the three legendary gunas ,
including sadgun)
ਕਾਮ ਕ੍ਰੋਧ
ਹੰਕਾਰ ਲੋਭ ਹਠ ਮੋਹ ਨ ਮਨ ਮੋ ਲਯਾਵੈ
ਤਬ ਹੀ ਆਤਮ ਤਤ ਕੋ
ਦਰਸੈ ਪਰਮ ਪੁਰਖ ਕਹ ਪਾਵੈ II3 II
Hatth here of course
means a mixture of stubborn greed and vanity. If you transcend these snakes, ਕਾਮ ਕ੍ਰੋਧ ਹੰਕਾਰ ਲੋਭ ਹਠ ਮੋਹ , then alone will self ( soul, mind) have a
vision of truth, and then alone will he rise to the level of param purakh)
As you can see, my focus is tiring towards
the end. ( Spill over of a long day at work –Vidhan Sabha Session. ( I am not
in job, but I am still in love. We will discuss later. Or does it matter??)
I will come back some other time on these two
most beautiful last lines. For the moment, I will be hoping this answers your
query at least to some minor extent, Rajiv.
Finally, I am not befooled into believing
that I am writing all this to help you understand anything better than you already
do. Knowing how far ahead of me you already stand, I will never be found guilty
of that blasphemy. Let it be said I enjoy talking to you, and hence these
rambling thoughts)
AND ONE MORE THING,
RAJIV. I am indebted to a younger but friend
here for his extremely valuable inputs into this note – a young man of exquisite
sensibility, intelligence AND, above all,
humility. His name is GURDARSHAN SINGH BAHIA. I must acknowledge his help here.)
