THE GLORY OF THE DISCIPLE
by
Sant Ajaib Singh Ji
This talk was given on July 8, 1980
at Sant Bani Ashram, N.H. and is the
fifth in a series of fourteen talks
on the Gauri Vars of Guru Ramdas Ji.
------------------------------------
The Seva of Satguru is pure,
Pure ones do the seva of the Satguru.
Mind has misled the soul, and mind is being misled by the organs of
senses, and the senses are misled by the pleasures. In this way, everyone
is misled.
It is like a princess who was supposed to marry a prince and take her
place as the queen. But instead of marrying the prince, she chose to be
the companion of a sweeper, and she is not honored. Our soul belongs to
Sat Naam, and she has a very high status. But instead of going to Sat
Naam, our home, she has chosen to be the companion of the mind. And
therefore she has become very dirty.
Mind is wandering here and there in the forest of the worldly pleasures.
He is also looking for the time when he will go back to his home, in the
same way that our soul is looking forward to going home.
If water is moving or dirty, it is difficult for us to see our image in
it. But if it is very clear and pure, and if it is still, then we can
easily see our image in that water. In the same way, as long as our mind
and soul are dirty we cannot see our image within ourselves, and that is
why we need to do more Simran. Simran is the only way of concentrating and
purifying mind and soul. The more the mind and soul are purified, the more
we will be able to still our minds and see our own Self.
When the King of Balkh Bokhara had the yearning to realize God, he
renounced everything. He left his kingdom and sat in a graveyard, doing
meditation. After he had left, his son had to host a big feast, at which
it was very important for the king to be present. So he came there
searching for his father and requested him to come back to the palace and
attend that party. The king didn't refuse, and he went with his son. But
in order to explain things to him, the king took some halvah (very oily
food) and he smeared it all over a mirror, so that the mirror was not
clear. Then he said, "Look here, son, as this mirror has become dirty
because of this delicious food which I just put on here and now we cannot
see our faces in it: in the same way, if our soul is not clear enough, we
cannot see the image of God."
So for doing the devotion of God, we need to make our minds very pure.
Guru Ramdas Ji here says that the service of the Satguru, is very pure
and holy, and that only those souls who are holy and pure can do the
service and devotion to the Satguru.
Prophet Mohammed said that momin or the mouthpiece of God (gurmukh) is
like the mirror of God. Whatever we are, we see our image in the Master,
we see His image according to that. Whatever thoughts we have for the
Master, they are reflected back from the Master. And we see the form of
the Master in that very reflection.
In whose heart is deceit or falsehood, they are separated
by the True One Himself.
The true disciples sit at the side of the Master and serve Him.
The false ones are not found (there), no matter how much
you search.
God is Truth, and therefore those who have no untruth within them, who
have only truth, what do they do? They come to the Satguru and they do
the meditation of Shabd Naam. But those who don't have truth within
themselves, even if they somehow come to the Master, after awhile they
get misled and they go away.
Hazrat Bahu has said, "No matter if we take the squash to Mecca, still
it will not turn into a watermelon." In the same way, no matter how much
sugar or sweet things we put into a sour well, still we will not be able
to change the taste of the water.
Guru Nanak Sahib said that if we try to explain things to a manmukh,
even after listening to us, he will go to another place.
The true disciples always obey the Master and lead their lives according
to the instructions of the Master; they make their lives true and do
meditation.
To whom the words of Satguru are not pleasing
They wander about rejected by God even if they look good
from the outside.
Those who don't like the words of the Master, who do not obey the
commandments of the Master, are tasteless from within as well as from
without. Whatever they do, has no taste; and they are always dry.
In whose heart there is no love for Him -
How long must these manmukhs be taught!
Those who don't have love for God or faith in Him, they wander here
and there in the world like madmen.
He who meets the Satguru keeps his own mind steady;
He keeps to his own.
If we want to realize God, first of all we need to go to the Master. And
after going to the Master, we need to take care of our own. What is our
own? Naam, which is present in everybody, is our own. Naam is called our
very own, because Naam is the only thing which accompanies us from this
world.
Master puts that within the disciples which cannot be stolen. Water
cannot dissolve it, fire cannot burn it, and nobody can take it away.
Even if the disciple.. wants to destroy it, he cannot.
Nanak says, He makes some meet the Master and gives
them happiness;
And to some who are deceitful, He Himself separates them.
Now Guru Ramdas Ji says that God has kept everything in His hands. There
are some people who come to the Masters and obtain the peace of their
soul. Whereas some people, those who never have any faith in the Master,
do not come to Him or believe in Him.
In whose heart is the wealth of Naam,
God Himself takes care of his affairs.
Master Sawan Singh Ji used to say that if you want to build a house,
or some furniture, you can go to a carpenter and tell him to come to your
home, and he will make the house. Then if you need something else, you can
go to him again and tell him to come. But if you have him living in your
home, you can get anything done from him as you want it. It is better to
have a carpenter in our house, if we want to make many things, than to have
to go and call him daily. In the same way, if we manifest God within us,
then everything we need is supplied to us by God, by Master, without our
asking; because He sees everything; and once we have manifested Him within
ourselves, He will provide all of our needs.
But we, the worldly people, do not even know what to ask from the Master.
Except Naam, whatever we ask from Him brings suffering to us. Guru Nanak
Sahib said, "Oh Lord, except Naam, whatever we ask from you will bring us
suffering. That is why we pray to you to give us the food of Naam so that
our hunger may be satisfied."
Their dependence on men ceases as the Lord sits near them
and takes care of their affairs.
Those who manifest Naam in their hearts, they do not remain dependent on
the world, because they become dependent on God. They have God, their
Master, on one side and the world on the other, and they do not understand
the world to be as great as God or the Master: the world finds no place in
comparison with their Master.
Namdev Ji says, "Oh Lord, if you make us rule over some kingdom, what is
our glory? And if you make us beg things from others, going from one door
to another, then what are we going to lose?"
If one has the Creator on his side, he has everyone on his side.
And all those who have his darshan praise him.
If God is in favor of you, if Master is in favor of you, then if anyone
goes to have the darshan of those Masters whom God and their Masters favor,
before having their darshan people may say anything they want to about that
Master, but that Master has so much attraction in Him that once they see
Him, they become His.
Chattar Das says that we don't know what magic Master performs in His
boat. "Those who go and sit in His boat, they never come back, they remain
with Him. Sitting in the boat of the Master, all problems, all questions,
all disputes of religion and worldly things come to an end." And He says,
"Now Hir has met Ranjah." Hir and Ranjah were two great lovers and they
are often used by the Masters as symbols of the soul and oversoul. So
Chattar Das says that when Hir and Ranjah have been united, then what can
the other people do?
Kings and emperors, all made by God Almighty,
All come and make prayers in front of such a One.
Even kings and emperors-no doubt they are also made by the same God - but
even they come to have the darshan of the Great Masters. Emperor Akbar,
the great king of India, came to see Guru Amardas; that is why Guru Ramdas
has written this.
Once Emperor Akbar was out hunting and felt thirsty. He went to a well
and met a farmer, who gave him some water to drink. The farmer didn't know
that he was the king, but he gave him some water anyway and Akbar was very
pleased with him. And he told him later on that he was the Emperor Akbar
and if he needed anything anytime, he could come to his palace and he would
receive that. That farmer was very honest, and he didn't have any problems.
But later there was drought in the country, and the farmer was in a very
critical condition financially. So he thought of going to Akbar and asking
for some help. When he went there, Emperor Akbar was offering his prayers
to God. And after he completed his prayers, he stretched both of his arms
facing toward the sky, and it seemed that he was begging something from God.
When the farmer saw that, he asked Akbar, "What are you doing?" He replied,
"You know that nowadays in this country there is a big drought, and I was
begging to God that God might send us some rain, so that we might have
peace all over the country." Hearing this, the farmer stepped back and
started to leave. So Akbar asked him, "Why did you come? And why are you
going back without saying anything?" So the farmer replied, "I came here
to ask some help from you, but after coming and seeing you asking things
from God, I think that you are not more than a beggar. What is the use of
asking help from a beggar? It is better to go to the Lord and ask from Him
directly. Why come to you and ask for help from you?"
The glory of a Perfect Master is great; by serving the great
Lord, inestimable happiness is obtained.
The Perfect Master gives the immutable donation of the
Lord's Naam every day and it still increases.
Now Guru Sahib says that the perfect Masters' glory is also very great
and perfect. And the donation of the perfect Naam which They have given
to us, that never decreases. Day by day it goes on increasing. If such a
disciple manifests that Naam within him, no matter if He gives that
wealth of Naam to all the world, still it doesn't decrease in Him; it
goes on increasing.
The critic who cannot see His greatness is consumed
(punished) by the Lord Himself.
Now He says that God punishes those who, obeying their mind, criticize
such Saints. The Saints give the initiation into Naam because they are
authorized by God and ordered by the Master. Those who criticize such
Master Saints are punished by God.
Nanak utters the qualities of the Creator
He has always saved His devotees.
He glorifies the name of God, because God has always saved the honor of
His children. He. always protects the children, as the mother takes care
of her child. God has created His devotees in every age, and He has saved
their honor in every age. He saved devotees like Prahlad and Dhru, and He
has always turned His back on the egotist and those who act from anger.
Nanak asks for the Grace of such a God.
You are the Lord, Inconceivable and Merciful, Giver and Wise.
I see no one like You.
You are wise and pleasing to me.
Now Guru Ramdas Ji again sings the Glory of the Lord. He says, "Oh Lord,
You are the giver, You are the wisest of all, and You are clever. You have
come in my heart so much that now I can not leave You. I see no one
greater than You."
Love of the family, all that is seen coming and going, is
passing away;
Those who attach their minds to the things other than You,
the Truth,
are collecting false things and false are their hopes.
Now He says, "Oh Lord, this world, this family and everything which
I saw as mine before, now looks like somebody else's. Even the body in
which I am living now seems like a rented house. Oh Lord, those who,
forgetting You, get involved in all these things, they are collecting
garbage. None of these things are going to help them, nor go with them,
except Your Naam and Your devotion. Everything else will remain here."
Once Prophet Mohammed called all His leading disciples and made them
stand in a line. He asked them what possessions they had. When the turn
of Hazrat Umar came, he got up and started counting all the things which
he owned. He started saying, "I have a son, I have a wife, I have this
and that and all these things." He took something like forty-five
minutes to tell all that he had. But when the turn of Hazrat Ali, the
very devoted disciple of Prophet Mohammed, came, he stood up and said,
"I have only God and You," and went back and sat in his seat. So Prophet
Mohammed wanted to show his other disciples that Hazrat Ali was the only
one who understood His teachings, because he said that he had only God
and the Master.
Nanak says, Meditate on the True One, as without
meditating on the True One the ignorant are consumed.
Do the devotion of Almighty Lord; because those who don't do that devotion
do not take anything from this world. Nothing will go with us except God
and the devotion which we do of Him. All the time which we spend in
devotion is counted, and only that wealth of devotion goes with us.
Mahatmas tell us that the devotion of the Lord is a very precious wealth.
If first the true love is not developed (for the Master)
Talking afterwards of it is of no use.
The Manmukh wanders about halfway; how can he obtain
happiness just by talking?
When the Satguru tells us to do devotion, to do meditation, at that time
we do not obey Him. We think that we will do it later on. But when our
Master leaves the physical body, then such people repent and weep. But
the perfect Masters, those who have done the meditation, and those who
have experienced a lot, they tell us that Masters never die. They only
change Their body. But those who are attached only to their bodies, they
have to repent and they weep. When they don't take advantage of the
Master's physical presence, they don't do the devotion, and they don't
obey His commandments, they always repent at the end - because they are
attached only to His physical body and not that which is working within
His body.
Those who say that their Master has died, they should be asked why
they became the disciple of such a Master who was involved in birth
and death. The real Master, the perfect Master, never dies. No matter
if the Master leaves the body right after initiating the disciple; for
the disciple, the Master never dies. For him, He changes His body only.
The only difference the physical departure of the Master makes is that
the disciples do not have the benefit of the physical darshan of the
Master. When the Master leaves the physical body, in no case do we change
the contemplation or remembrance of the Master. We contemplate on the
form of our Master who initiated us, and we remember Him. But if we have
any problem in our meditation, if there is any obstacle, or if we need
some questions to be answered, we can go to His successor and ask Him,
and we can go to His Satsang to receive the benefit of the physical
darshan.
One gardener may plant saplings and leave, but the other gardener who
works in his place may nourish those saplings. In the same way, one Master
may leave the body after initiating the soul, but if the other Master
comes and gives the water of Satsang to them, those saplings of the Naam
which were planted by the earlier Master, they also sprout and grow very
well.
But the new true seeker can be initiated only by the living Master.
Guru Sahib says, "The Light is the same, the practices are the same only
the body is changed." But those who have only caught or looked at the
physical body of the Master, they remain in confusion. Kabir Sahib said
that people have taken the body of the Master as their Master, but they
have not realized the real Master, the real Satguru working within Him.
And such people remain in illusion and in the cycle of eighty-four lakhs.
Guru Nanak says, "My Satguru lives forever. He never comes, He never
goes; He is immortal, and He is present everywhere."
Those who do not have love for the Satguru in their hearts
come and go from this world as garbage.
If my Lord the Creator shows His Grace, only then can one
see the Master as Parbrahm.
Those who have no love for the Master come in this world and go from
this world as refuse. Refuse means "that which is subject to destruction."
Master Sawan Singh Ji used to say that if you cannot meditate enough,
at least have complete love and affection for the Master. If you have
complete love for the Master, at the time of death, you will be inclined
to Him, you will be attached to Him, and you will go to the place where
Masters go. If we love the Master, we will definitely go to the Master
at the time of our death.
So Guru Ramdas Ji says that on whom God showers His grace, only they
see their Master as the Parbrahm or the Almighty Lord.
Then he drinks the nectar of the Shabda of Master and
removes all doubts, illusion and anxieties.
Day and night he remains happy. Nanak says, always he
sings the praise of the Lord.
Those who understand Satguru as the owner of all and those who always
drink the nectar of Naam, they remain happy; they never have periods of
dryness and they never have any problems.
He who is called a disciple of the Master rises up early and
meditates on the Naam.
The one who is called the disciple of the Master, what does he do? The
first thing he does is he gets up in the morning, he sits for his
meditation, he connects himself with Naam. The one who is called a
disciple of the Master starts his day with the work of the Master.
Hazur Maharaj Kirpal used to say, "Leave one hundred urgent works to
attend Satsang, and give up one thousand urgent works to meditate." He
used to say that as it is necessary for us to give food to our body, in
the same way, it is very important for us to give food to our soul -
because our soul has been hungry from ages and ages and it needs the
food of meditation and Shabd.
He makes efforts early in the morning; he bathes in the
pool of Nectar.
First of all we have this physical cover. Inside this physical cover is
the astral cover, and within that is the causal cover. The one who is
called the disciple of the Master, he should remove all these three
covers from his soul and rise above rajo gun, tamo gun, and sato gun.
He should enter into the Amritsar or pool of nectar, and bathe there.
There is no Amritsar or pool of nectar outside which can remove the
dirt of our sins. The real Pool of Nectar is within our body, within
our own existence.
The town of Amritsar, which is now in Punjab in India, was started
by Guru Ramdas and completed by Guru Arjan Dev, the fifth Guru. It is
a copy of the real Amritsar or Pool of Nectar in Daswan Dwar. The
architect who was told to make the copy of Amritsar said that he had not
seen the lotus of Daswan Dwar, so how could he make it? Guru Sahib gave
him special attention and graciously took him up to Daswan Dwar. That
dear one requested the Master to allow him to stay there forever, but
the Master said, No, you have to come out because you have to make the
copy of it outside; then I will take you back." So the pool in Amritsar
is the copy of the lotus of Daswan Dwar. This outer Amritsar was begun
by Guru Ramdas and completed by Guru Arjan Dev, and there was no such
place when Guru Amardas was alive. But still Guru Amardas has written
that we should bathe in Amritsar - the real Amritsar within the body in
which Truth and the true Nectar resides.
So Guru Ramdas Ji says that it is the duty of the disciple to give up
laziness and sleep in the morning and get up, and by making efforts,
reach this Amritsar and bathe there.
According to the instructions of the Master he remembers
the Lord,
By which all his sins and faults go away.
Such a disciple of the Master should read the teachings of the Master
daily, and he should reach Amritsar: because by bathing in this Pool of
Nectar, all sins and bad habits are removed. By bathing in this Amritsar,
one attains the status of Sadh.
Again when the day starts, he sings the Gurubani (words
of Master)
Whether sitting or standing he meditates on the Naam of
the Lord.
When the day starts he should not waste time. He should go to the Satsang,
and at Satsang also he should go on doing His Simran. While he is going
to the place of Satsang, he should do Simran. While he is attending
Satsang, he should do Simran. And while he is returning from the Satsang,
then also he should do Simran. He should go on doing Simran with every
single breath and should not waste any time.
He who meditates on my Lord at every breath and morsel
Such a disciple of Master is liked by the Master.
The disciple who does Simran with his every single breath is liked by
the Master.
Often I have said that when we sit for meditation, we are sitting at
the door of our Master. If the door is not open to us, it means that we
are not yet ready to enter His Home. But we should not put any condition
to the Master. We should not say that we will sit for meditation only if
the door is open to us. We should develop the quality of beggars. It is
the work of the beggars to arouse people in the Name of the Lord, and it
is the work of the householders to give to them. It is our work to sit
for meditation, and it is up to the Master, if He wishes, to open the door
for us. If He doesn't wish to, He will not.
To whom my Lord is Merciful
Such a disciple of the Master makes others hear
the teachings of the Master.
Those on whom the Lord is gracious and those with whom He is pleased,
only such people have the yearning and longing to go to the Master. Only
such people like the teachings of the Master.
Nanak asks for the dust of such a disciple of the Master,
Who himself meditates and makes others meditate on Naam.
Now Guru Ramdas Ji says, "I ask for the dust of the feet of such a
disciple, because the title of Sadh is not a small title. It is a very
great title." And He says, "I long for the dust of the feet of such
disciples, such Sadhs, who themselves do the meditation of Naam, and who
make other people meditate on Naam."
Only those who have experienced the pain of separation know what this
pain is like. Only the lovers can tell us how to love. The message of
lovers is only for lovers.
I have the pain of love and I am telling this to lovers. I will get
healed only by lovers. Without the lovers, the story of the lover cannot
be completed. If you think that this is not true, you can fall in love
and see.
Lovers do not argue with clever people; they would rather remain quiet
than to argue with the wise.
Everybody talks of their own pain. But to whom can Ajaib Singh talk
about His pain? He has the pain of love.
The reality is that such a disciple has only love for his Master, and
the pain of the love of his Master. By all means and in every way, he
sings of the love of his Master. Such a disciple understands all moments
and breaths as illegal which he spends without the love and remembrance
of the Master.
They are a few rare ones who meditate on you, the True One.
Now Guru Ramdas Ji says, "O Lord, those who meditate on You are very few.
Rare are those who are meditating on You. If we search for such people,
we will find only few in this world."
Innumerable are the ones who are benefited by the devotion
of those who remember You with one heart and mind.
Everyone remembers You but only they are accepted who
are liked the most by You.
Those who eat and dress without serving the Master are
dead and will be reborn as lepers.
There are few people who do the devotion of the Master; and those who
don't do the devotion - those who eat, sleep, and go jolly - they are
nowhere counted.
In front of others they speak sweetly, but within them is
poison.
When such people come to the Satsang of the Master, they say that
they do a lot of meditation and that they are very good in that devotion
and so forth. When they come to the Master, they act as though they are
His; but when they go out into the world, they become worldly people,
because they are always involved there.
They have deception in their minds and they get separated
from the Master.
Guru Ramdas has lovingly explained to us what the gurusikh, the disciple
of the Master, is; what is the glory of the disciple of the Master; and
up to which stage the disciple of the Master goes. According to the
instructions of Guru Ramdas, we should also try to become disciples of
the Master. We should make efforts and reach Daswan Dwar and bathe there,
and make our lives successful.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NEXT CHAPTER
BACK TO CONTENTS
HOME