XXII / II

To gain His Pleasure

When I came to the West, many people were helped and I told them that the credit for the blessing went to my Master. Forgive me, but so many seekers for Truth have spent their whole life struggling to find it – and did not receive even a glimpse of Light. Here, everyone gets Light. It is another matter if after receiving the gift they refuse to keep up the practice and thereby lose It; but at initiation, almost all get something, do they not? Those who obey instruction increase their progress daily – 100 percent. Who is there to place his hand on his heart and declare such assurance? Ashtavakra gave this knowledge to King Janaka, and even today people are still repeating His name. How great is the Mercy of the Master Who gives such an invaluable boon! The age has changed, and so have condition. If today this experience was not given so easily, no one would come on this Path.

In the West many sects have sprung up, which deals with suggestion, hypnotism, mesmerism and other doctrines, which are not Spirituality. Spirituality is purely a matter of self-analysis, knowing oneself and knowing God – the demonstration of which is given at the time of initiation. Many are doubtful of this science in the beginning but I tell them to see with their own eyes, for there is no greater proof. In the past the subject was very vague, for Masters agreed to give the experience only after long years of study, when one was fully prepared. Today, it can be seen immediately what Spirituality is. What a magnificent blessing!

“Brothers, this is the Guru’s court, He is doling out this gift! Eat, drink and be merry;”

You should eat, drink and enjoy for you are getting this gift free – there are no charges. Even if you spend all life in penance, you will not get this thing that way. Only one man was to be found in King Janaka’s age Who was God-realised; that was Ashtavakra. Today, can you find thousands? In the past there were few, and even now there are few; but the world is not without them. Make the most of the good fortune, for blessed are they who have received this rare gift.

“I have become the Lord of this physical form, and have tied up the five devils.”

Masters have no ego; They always acknowledge in humility that everything is achieved by the Guru’s Grace. Why shouldn’t he gain full control over his mind and senses, who has all Love for his Guru alone. He says He has become Lord of the house, and ‘He has captured the five thieves, viz., lust, anger, greed, attachment and ego. Who can make such a statement? Only with the Guru’s strength can anyone declare so boldly.

“Oh Satguru, when I came to Thy feet These five strange aliens came under my control; He was pleased and I was blessed with His Grace; now they cannot revolt or raise their heads.”

The five senses of action and knowledge are foreign to our nature; they must be overpowered and placed under our orders, instead of vice versa. When that happens, they have no courage to stand and defy us, and they will not disobey. Can anyone affirm such a staggering achievement? People say that Saints and Mahatmas do not assert Themselves, but They do speak directly. If They did not give the information of what to get and how to get it, where would we begin to seek for the Truth? They tell us that there is such a wonderful nectar inside that will intoxicate the soul. They Themselves are intoxicated; Their mind and senses are completely controlled. Their eyes are open but They do not see; Their ears are open but They do not hear, if They choose not to. They are the controllers of all the senses. With Whose power is this achieved? With the Grace of Their respective Gurus! When one gets the Naam’s Inner Nectar, all worldly intoxicants seem ridiculous, and when the seed of Naam sprouts, all outer things become meaningless. All Glory and beauty lies within you. You will forget outer things with their false attraction. The five devils will come under perfect control, and will have no courage to jeer at you; there is so much nectar within that even they become intoxicated!

“Oh Satguru, again and again I glorify Thee; with each breath I think of Thee!”

There was a certain intoxicated lover of Bheek Sahib, who constantly repeated Oh Bheek, oh Bheek, for he saw God clearly in his Guru.

His contemporaries condemned him as an atheist, and passed judgement for his execution; but they could not execute him without the king’s authorisation, so they brought him before king. It is possible that his king was Akbar the Great, who was renewed for his keen sense of justice. When the king looked at the accused man, he said, I feel he is an intoxicated Holy Man, and he asked him, Who is your God? The man replied, Bheek. The king then asked, What is your religion? and he said, Bheek. At this, the king ordered that he should be released. His accusers protested that he would run away, but the king said, It does not matter.

He then looked keenly at the Holy Man and told him, For a long time we have been without rain, and if it does not come soon, there will be famine in the land. So could you please ask your Bheek to send the rain? The man replied, Oh yes, I will ask Him to send the rain. Only complete faith in the Guru could display such calm confidence. He who has not experienced the True Inner Connection with his Guru will not have such strong faith, for faith is built on knowledge. When the Holy Man turned to leave, the king asked him when he would return, and he answered, On the third day I will return. The very next day, there was such a heavy downpour of rain that the whole countryside was flooded, and on the third day the Holy Man returned to the king’s palace. The king smiled at him and said, Your Guru was very gracious to us, in sending the much-needed rain. I am giving you these precious gifts – please place them before your Bheek Sahib as my thankful offering. The devotee got very indignant, saying, These perishable things for my Guru? Most decidedly not! 

Such people care nothing for the world and its possessions.

“You have brought life to this derelict house (body); I could sacrifice myself in gratitude.”

Gratitude is a very rare virtue. Because of friends and relatives, we even risk our Guru’s displeasure, and this is due to lack of gratitude and faith. We sometimes consider the Guru to be less able than an ordinary man. With this type of outlook, what can we hope to achieve in progress? The worldly things are more beloved: Guru and God are accepted casually for whatever can be derived through them materially. The attitude is one of tolerant duty, with respects paid in a condescending manner. Man always thinks he is the greatest of all, but if he really became great he would not be in this blind egoistic state.

“I am in perpetual dhyan (contemplation) with my Beloved; the fruit comes to him whose attention pierces through the veil.”

If you completely surrender unto Him, then Nature itself will be at your beck and call, and all your desires will be fulfilled.

Guru Amar Das Ji says,

Oh mind, you once desired a thousand things, but did not get one; now see, that each thought will be fulfilled.

“All the work has been resolved, and the mind’s hunger satisfied, what else can I desire from You but You? All else is misery upon misery. Give the Naam, which renders all fulfilled and takes away the hunger of mind; I have abandoned everything and am a True Servant of the Lord.”

He who surrenders to the Lord lives without worries, doing the work sincerely and truthfully, and leaving all else to the Guru.

“That Naam – giver of all happiness – has been tied to me.”

Naam is the sustainer of all things. He who has Naam has got everything. 

During one of my visits to America, an intimate meeting was arranged with a group of scientists. One man asked many questions and obviously strongly doubted the subject of Spirituality. After some discussion, I asked him if science had succeeded in creating even one ounce of consciousness. He said, No. I then explained to him that the pursuit of science must necessarily remain in the domain of matter, whereas all the teachings and knowledge of the Saints lie in the domain of consciousness. There were a number of disciples present at this meeting, and they were of the opinion that this gentle man would not turn up on the morrow, which was chosen for the initiation program. But he was the first to arrive, and he got the most experience. So this is a Path of awareness – the Path of Perfect Masters, and you may accept it as Their Mercy, or due to Their greatness, that They have made such a difficult achievement into a child’s play. Were it not for this fact, the seeker would require a great background of a past lives and then many years of study in preparation for this Path.

So Guru Arjan advises us to eat, drink and enjoy what we have got for this is the precious time and the rain may not fall forever.

“I am the most content of all; the Guru has established the Shabd within me.”

He is encouraging us to have some longing for a thing of which we have no conception of the value. All the wealth is lying in the disciple’s Father’s Home – and for whom is it but His own child? The most obedient child will naturally receive the most. Whatever the Guru has got, He considers not His own; and the more He gives freely, the greater the flow. Eat, drink, and enjoy to the fullest, while you have the opportunity.

“Satguru, the Lord, placed His hand on my head and manifested God within me.”

His greatness is proven when He actually shows the way, even without the physical gesture of placing the hand on the head. By His Grace alone do we rise above body consciousness and see the Light within. He is the Giver – comparable to none other.

“I have opened a True Dharamshala¹ and have gathered the True Seekers there.”

A blind man cannot seek one with sight, but one who can see can gather the blind together. Christ told us of the sheep He had to find and take care of. Man is helpless with merely his own efforts to assist him. Sincere seekers will find that all will be arranged and made possible without them doing anything. Even before I arrived in America, there were people who knew nothing about me, who were seeing the Master’s form and also Baba Sawan Singh Ji within. When they saw me physically, they told me that they had been seeing me within for months, and some for a year or more. Brothers, it is all His work, not mine.

During my first world tour, on the way back to India, I agreed to pay an unarranged impromptu visit to Germany. Someone who was accompanying me remarked,

But how will those people recognise You, for they have never seen You? In other countries at least the program was prepared. Even if they recognise You by Your clothes, how will You know them?

I replied,

He Who is sending me there will make all the arrangements – why should I worry? He will Himself arrange all to receive me.

When the plane landed in Germany there was a small crowd awaiting me, and each person had a rose in his hand.

I said,

You see, there is my reception.

They came running towards us; asking about the luggage and telling us the cars were ready and waiting. So He Himself does His own work. The commission comes from the Lord and He works through whomsoever He chooses, be it one or thousands.

“I wash His feet and fan Him; again and again I express my thankfulness for finding Him.”

A True Guru never says He is a Guru, but in all humility will serve whoever goes to Him, for He comes to serve humanity and to give something to the world. When He comes, the entire world gets the benefit of His Light.

“I got Naam, dan (alms) and ashnan (bath).”

The Guru gives us the Naam, which you should know is the sustainer of the entire creation. Contact with Naam, the Nectar of the Lord, creates True Love in us, and as Love knows only giving, the disciple himself becomes a giver. He is born to serve and give Himself to the world. While He has the physical form He will give, give, and give. When the physical form is no longer there, who can ask from Him and who will come to take? He starts to give everything: physically, materially, and eventually He gives the mind. Having become the controller of the mind, He serves humanity with unending joy.

“Nanak with the Naam rises in continual heights of Glory; peace be unto all the world, under Thy will, oh Lord!”

The Master serves all humanity with His good will; physically, mentally, and even outwardly in all manner of ways, making use of whatever outer knowledge He has acquired in His lifetime, to help the people to understand the Truth.

The bath that the Guru gives in the Holy Waters of Naam will purify the mind and senses from the all evil. These three things – Naam, dan and ashnan – are gained by sitting at His feet. Unfortunately, people think that by ashnan, bath, is meant an outer bath to clean the body. Though it behooves man to keep the temple of the Lord clean, the Inner Cleanliness is vitally more important – and that is the work of Naam.

One of the clearest criteria that can be observed in True Master is that He is always sacrificing Himself for the sake of others. He knows how to give and give only, not to take. He is a giver, not a beggar. If the Guru starts to take, then what will we give? He has no thought of business, but gives this priceless jewel as a free gift of nature. In many countries they take up collection to pay the lecturers and the expenses of the arrangements, etc.

When I was travelling in America I gave free talks without charges, collections, or need for buying tickets. One day I was giving a talk on ‘God and Man’ a man stood up; he was a Russian and offered five thousand dollars to me. 

I told him,

Look here, I have not come to collect dollars. What I have gained at the feet of my Master is a free gift of Nature, and must therefore be given freely.

The people were at the first surprised, and then overjoyed at this. Through this very principle the praises of True Masters are being sung all over the world. I am receiving invitations from America, Europe, the Far East, Australasia, the Middle East and Africa, and they state they have heard of the gift which is being given to all. Dear brothers, who am I to give It? – The Giver is giving It, with His Grace, and with the Grace of all the Great past Masters, for Whom, forgive me, we have not enough respect, I am sorry to say.

“All are being freed, oh Nanak, on the boat of Truth. Day and night there is awakening in the world; all listen with open ears to praises sung in Thy Name.”

When the Master comes the world begins to awake, and hearing His words they wonder, 

What is this new thing which is entering our very being?

During my tours abroad, many talks were given in churches. They rarely allow outsiders to speak in the church, yet they welcomed me for they said that these teachings are as given in the Bible.

One minister went as far as to say, 

I have been in charge of a Presbyterian church for forty years, but today for the first time I have understood what the Bible is telling me.

He came and bowed to me in front of everyone with tears in his eyes. I want to point out that all Glory and praise be to those past Masters Who have given us these teachings.

“Now orders have come from the Gracious One through which all pain and misery will vanish. They are at peace, for through the Naam They gained True Humility.”

Initiation into the Holy Naam is a panacea for all ills, and the repetition of Naam brings peace and True Humility. He who sees the Truth in all its Glory will be full of humility. 

St Augustine says there are three ways of realising God: The first is humility, the second humility, and the third humility.

In the courts of the Masters, humility reigns supreme, for True Humbleness is the adornment of a True Saint. They are Ruler and Controller of this Great Power, and yet They never show pride or vanity, giving small indication of what They are and yet saying, It is His Grace.

“The Amrit is drizzling down; His words are those of the Lord Himself.”

Remember, that water collects on the lower levels. When the cup of humility is ready, then the Inner Amrit will fill it to the brim. Some people say doubtfully, ‘How can you say these things are true?’ The Masters explain that whatever words come from the True Master’s mouth are words from God Himself.

“In full faith I rely on You; You Yourself will do everything for me.”

All is the Lord’s work – what is it to me if the world blossoms or perishes? My work is but to be a tool in Your hand, to do what You will. With Your Mercy alone is the world gaining any benefit. With Your wealth the world is prosperous. A time like this may never come again – we are encouraged to eat, drink, and enjoy the blessings pouring out from the Lord.

“Your devotees have but one desire, and that is You.”

A True Gurumukh will have desire for God alone – so much so that ‘he’ should become ‘Thee’ and ‘Thee’ should become ‘me’, and no one should say there is any difference. 

Hafiz Sahib says, 

I should become You and You should become me; I am the body and You should be the Life; that no one may say that I am one thing and You are something else. 

There is some slight difference in the wording, but both Master have given exactly the same meaning.

“Oh Giver of peace, reveal Thyself to me; clasp me to Thy breast; allow that I may never be separated even for a second.”

It is the True Disciple’s constant wish that he may never be separated from his Guru. It is a great blessing to have a Living Master, and even greater blessing to be near Him. The bath taken from His glance of Mercy is a flow of Truth which cleanses deep through the being. The devoted disciple sheds tears at the very memory of this. He who sees Him outside and inside both gets some consolation during separation; however, he also cries out of Love, for there is nothing more beloved for him than his Master. The yearning of the heart pours our of the eyes, and there are no words to describe this condition.

“I searched in the world, above the world, below the world; but could not find one like You.”

How can there be another like the Satguru? Only a Satguru can be the same as a Satguru.

Do you know the story of Sukhdev, son of Maharishi Ved Vyas?

When Sukhdev wanted a Perfect Guru, his father told him that King Janaka was the Enlightened Soul of that age. After that, Sukhdev went to King Janaka’s kingdom several times but always returned without having seen the king, for he had the doubt in his heart that this king enjoys the pleasures of palace life with all His queens, etc., how can He possibly give any enlightenment? 

Now Narad Muni, a powerful devotee of Lord Shiva, saw that this man was losing all his progress with each doubt he had about King Janaka, the Great Soul. To save what little he had left, Narad Muni turned himself into a very old man, filled a basket full of mud and began to pour the mud into a fast-flowing river, just as Sukhdev was passing on his way once again to King Janaka’s kingdom. He saw the old man and asked him what he was doing. The old man replied, I am building a dam. Sukhdev laughed and said, Have you no sense, you fool? Can you build a dam by just pouring mud into fast flowing water? First put some foundation of wood or rocks, and then put the mud. The old man replied, I might be a fool, but I have only wasted one day. The biggest fool is Sukhdev who had finished nine of his merits of progress, and the tenth and last he is about to destroy by again doubting a Perfect Master.

This encounter with Narad Muni shocked Sukdev to his senses, and he went straight to King Janaka’s palace. He stood near the stables and sent a man to tell the King that Sukhdev has arrived. The king said, Tell him to wait there until I call him. In strict obedience to the Master’s orders, Sukhdev stood on the same spot, first for a whole day, and then all the next day. Sometime on the third day he was called into the palace. Having stood obediently in one place for so long, he had become covered in horses’ dung up to his waist, for the groom had been shovelling it into the corner where he stood. So he took a bath and changed his clothes, and then presented himself to the king. As he came near the king, he saw that He was reclining on a couch, with one foot resting on a red-hot iron plate. The other leg was being massaged with cool sandalwood paste by some of His beautiful queens. It was very revealing to Sukhdev, and he gazed in amazement, a man came running into the court and cried, Your majesty, the city is on fire! The king said, It is God’s will, and did not move an inch. After some time another man entered the court and said, Your majesty, the palace is on fire now, and the flames are coming towards this room. The king replied, It is God’s will.

When the Sukhdev saw the flames and felt the heat, he picked up his stick and small bundle of belongings and prepared to rush out, but the king caught hold of him, saying, You are a fine kind of world-renouncer! My hole city has burned away, the flames have consumed my place, and I merely said that it was all God’s will; but you in your panic are trying to save a stick and a bundle of cloths! He then talked to Sukhdev for a long time, telling him, You are a Brahmin and full of ego about it. You are also very proud of being the son of Ved Vyas. 

Doctors operate to remove morbid matters, and in this way King Janaka was removing the doubt and faults in the mind of Sukhdev. When Sukhdev Swami returned home after his initiation, his father asked him, What is the Guru like? Sukhdev replied, In brightness He is like the sun, although the sun has got heat and he has not. He has got the coolness of the moon, though the moon has shadows on it and my Guru has no shadow.

A Guru is a Guru. The stories of the Great Masters are for people whose eyes are opened. Otherwise … for instance, Guru Nanak was not permitted to enter the city of Kasur because the people, blinded by lack of understanding, declared He was an atheist and a bad influence. Wherever the Truth works in full power, the Negative Power will also work in full force against it. He does not want his prisoners to escape his clutches, but regardless, the Satguru goes on distributing the wealth without concern. 

When I was small, about twelve or thirteen, I remember clearly that one day I read the life of Ramanuja – I was very fond of reading biographies.

Now when Ramanuja was initiated by his Guru he immediately went and stood on a platform and collected a huge crowd around him. He shouted to them, Today I have been initiated by my Guru and I am going to tell you all about it. Some of the people were shocked and warned him, Are you mad? You will go straight to hell for disobeying your Guru! I was deeply impressed by his answer. He said, I alone will go to hell, but so many of you will get salvation! 

Reading this, I vowed that, if ever I get any Spiritual Wealth, I will give and give without hesitation.

My Master saw that I was a spendthrift, and that is why He gave me the work. It is all His Grace.

One of the initiates, an English lady, once met a Christian friar and she asked him,

Have you ever seen the Inner Light?

He replied,

Yes, after nineteen years of hard penance on Mount Sinai, on one occasion I saw some cloudy Light, but very dim.

She said,

Why, I see bright Light daily.

What value can we place on such treasure as Naam? We do not seem to know how to respect It even. We get this precious thing and, having no value for It, do not keep It carefully. It is gained too easily and freely.

The western people have more respect for It. My first western tour was for four or five months only, and in this short time there was a grand awakening all over the western hemisphere. There was a genuine surge of seeking for Truth, and when they got it, there was more respect for what they had been given. In India we take it for granted. 

Christ said,

Take heed therefore that the Light which is in you be not darkness.

St Luke 11:35

Introspect your deeds daily, with the help of the Spiritual Diary – and do not allow anything to cause you to forgo your meditation. If you live like this, there will never be darkness within. Tragically, we do not care – we have no time for the most important work. If you had to die today, what would you do? *Do not live in the illusion of thinking or believing that after death you will get something. If you have not made Spiritual Progress in this life, you will not be a Spiritual Person merely by going through the death-change. Believe in the salvation of life. Do, and see for yourself. (* This section is adjusted to the First Edition of 1975; Editor’s Note 2011.) If you do nothing, then how can your condition be helped?

“Each place is permeated with You; oh Nanak, only True Bhakti will make this apparent.”

The name of Prahalad is well-known in the history of True Devotees.

He was ordered to wrap his arms around a red-hot iron column, to test his faith in what he believed. Even the large crowed present at teaching time murmured Oh God as he approached the column. But what did God do, to preserve the faith of young Prince Prahlad? The prince saw a small ant running up the fiery column, and with joy in his heart he leaned forward and clasped his arms around it. The column immediately split open and out of it stepped the Avatar, Narsing.

I am illustrating that God is everywhere, but only those whose eye is open can see His Glory in all things. True Devotees have got His sustaining protection; standing in the midst of the thousands, they can be pillars of the strength and faith. 

In the West, many intellectual people came to hear my talks, and not for one moment did I ever stop and wondered how they would receive my words; with Great Power I would emphasise the teachings. It is all His Grace, and He Himself prepares everything. The trouble is that we forget that He is the Doer, and not ‘I,’ and we do not keep our face turned towards Him. Rather we go on finding fault with Him, and are full of doubts. Like this, how will we grasp the help offered to us?

_______________

Explanation: 1) In India, a common place of rest for travellers, erected in the name of righteousness.