What is the Meaning of Oneness

The oneness of the Master with the Lord means that his essence is merged in the essence of the Lord, and they are One. The Lord is infinite. He pervades everywhere. The Master is the point where He is manifest, and the whole world derives spiritual Light from him. The Master, so to say, is the bulb in which the electric light is made to appear. The Lord enlightens the people of the world by this bulb. The Master is not the body. He transcends it. The disciple is also not the body. When he transcends the bondage of the body, he sees the glory of the Master. The Satguru is the place where the sun of Reality rises. 

One of the Saints says:

He has hidden a sun in man.

The True Master is hidden in the human body. He radiates the Light of the Lord. This body is not sufficient to manifest His light and beauty. In order to know Him as he really is, we have to rise above the body. His eyes are the windows of the Lord's home, and in them shines His Light. We cannot understand it by any worldly example. The Perfect Master remains intoxicated without wine and satisfied without food.

The man of God remains intoxicated without wine; the man of God remains satisfied without any meal.

Maulana Rumi

His eyes remain fixed on the vision of the Lord, and his hand is the hand of the Lord.

His eyes are fixed on the vision of God; His hand is the hand of God.

Maulana Rumi

The Master is not a creature of this world and is not in the bondage of this body. He goes beyond all the lower worlds and regions, the mind and the intellect, and lives and moves in the spiritual regions. And he, in his mercy, gives eyes to thousands of persons to see inner sights and cross these regions.

The living Master is one with the Lord. He is the true manifestation of the Lord in this world. He has been given the duty of working for the salvation of its creatures. He is the manifestation of the Shabd. He is the source of love. He is the incarnation of bliss and peace. 

Only man can guide man. This is the law of nature. The Master assumes human form according to this law, so that he may persuade people and unite them with the Lord through his own strength. He can every day, or whenever he likes, enjoy the bliss of the innermost and highest regions of Light and Life.

The Sikh Gurus and other holy men have clearly stated that there is no difference between the Master and the Lord. In fact they are one.

The Lord is infinite, transcendent and powerful. Oh Nanak, He is met in the form of the Master.

Sorath M5, 599-6

My Guru is true and eternal; He does not come and go; He is the imperishable one. He pervades all.

Suhi M5, 759-7

How can the Master's greatness be described? He is from the beginning and has been throughout the ages. He is the very Lord.

 Asa M5, 397-1

The Gurus say:

We have churned the ocean of the body and have made the wonderful discovery that the Master is the Lord and the Lord is the Master. There is no difference between them.

We churned the sea of the body, and saw a wonderful sight. The Lord is the Guru and the Guru is the Lord. Oh Nanak, there is no difference or distinction.

Asa M5, 442-18

The Lord lives in the Master.

The Creator Himself is in the Master; the Lord is manifested in the Master. Myriads of men are redeemed by him.

Maru M1, 1024-9

Without the Master love does not awaken in the heart, try as you may. The Lord has enshrined Himself in the Master, and the Master unites us with Him. All homage to the Master!

Maru M4, 996-13

The slanderers come to grief and suffering; there is no difference between Namdev and the Lord.

Namdev, Bhairon 1166-12

Kabir Sahib says,

I have become one with the Lord. My mind is filled with the joy of union.

I and you, my Lord, are now one. My mind is filled with the joy of union.

Kabir, Gauri 339-8

He again says,

Ram and Kabir are united and nobody can distinguish between them.

I have ascended to the Lord's throne, and have met the Supreme Music – Maker. Rama and Kabir are now One, no one can distinguish between them.

Kabir, Ramkali 969-16

The Lord and the Master are one.

The Lord and the Master are One; oh Nanak, the Lord loves the Master.

 Maru M1, 1043-9

The Master and the Lord are One; He pervades everywhere.

 Sri Rag M5, 53-5

The wave goes back to the ocean; the Lord and His servant are One.

 Sarang M5, 1209-17

Oh Nanak, the devotee and the Lord are One; by remembering the Lord, one merges in Him.

 Vadhans M4, 562-6

Oh Nanak, the Saint and Hari (the Lord) are One; remember Him, blessed is His Naam.

 Sri Rag M4, 79-6

There is no distinction between the Saint and the Lord; there is barely one like Him in a million.

 Gauri M5, 208-17

The Lord and His servant merge and become One; the Lord and His servant are alike.

Asa M4, 447-15

The Lord and His devotees are one. Let there be no doubt about this. The Saint is like the wave, which is nothing but a rise of water and not different from it.

The Lord and His devotees are One; there is no difference between them. The wave rises from the water, then it subsides in it.

Dasam Granth

The drop, when it falls into the ocean, becomes one with the ocean. The Lord is wonderful. The Master is the means of manifesting Him.

The transcendent Lord is wonderful, and the Master is His image.

Bhairon M5, 1152-15

All religious books say that there is no difference between the Master and the transcendent One.

Oh Nanak, I have studied the Smritis and the Vedas; there is no difference between the transcendent One and the Master.

 Bhairon M4, 1142-9

The Lord is the Shabd, or the Word made flesh. He pervades the Master as the Shabd. He distributes the gift of Shabd through the Master. He is the Incarnation of the Shabd.

The Lord Himself pervades the Guru; He pervades as the Shabd. The Master loves the True One, and He merges in the True One.

Malar Var M1, 1279-14

The Master is One with the Lord, as is the Shabd.

The Lord Himself is the Master and the Shabd. He has loved the devotees through the ages.

Gauri M3, 246-7

The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us, full of Grace and Truth.

Bible

There is no difference between the Guru, Satguru and the Lord.

There is no difference between the Perfect Master and the Lord; devotion to Them is crowned with happiness.

Sri Rag M4, 77-5

The Master is the True Being who repeats the Naam of the Lord, on hearing which the souls are redeemed.

The Perfect Master is the True Being; He repeats the Naam of the Lord. He who hears what he says is released; may we be a sacrifice unto him.

Dhanasari M3, 667-6

The Perfect Master is eternal and everlasting. He is free from birth and death. He is never-changing. He is never destroyed. He is sustained by the Nam or power of God.

The Master is eternal; He does not come and go. He is the imperishable One; He pervades all.

Suhi M4, 756-7

The Master is unchanging; His mind is still. He is sustained by Naam.

Sarang M4, 1199-5

The Perfect Master is a manifestation of the Lord. His words are nectar and make men immortal.

The Perfect Master is the image of the Lord, and His words are nectar.

Malar M5, 1264-6

The Master, being one with the Lord, is the creative cause of the universe. He sustains the entire universe and its living beings.

The Master is the creator; the Master is the sustainer; His words are true.

 Sri Rag M5, 52-13

The Master is the Lord, the Creator. He is the sustainer of the entire universe.

 Suhi M5, 741-12

The Master is a fountain of happiness; the Master is the creator. He is the life of the souls; Nanak is sustained by the Master.

Gauri M5, 187-12

Tulsi Das Ji says:

I bow at the holy feet of the Master. He is the ocean of compassion and mercy. He is, in reality, the Lord in human form. His words, like the rays of the sun, dispel the thick darkness of attachment.

I bow at the holy feet of the Master; He is the Lord in human form. His words are like the rays of the sun; they dispel the thick darkness of attachment.

One day, Lord Christ asked his disciples:

But whom do you say that I am? 

Simon Peter answered and said: 

Thou art Christ, the son of the living God. 

And Jesus answering said to him: 

Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: because flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in heaven. And I say to thee: That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

St Matthew 16:15-18

On another occasion he spoke more clearly to them. Philip saith to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us." 

Jesus saith to him,

Have I been so long a time with you; and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father also. How sayest thou, show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father is in me ?

St John 14:8-10

Jesus also said:

I and the Father are one. He that seeth me hath seen the Father. This that I tell you I do not say of my own, but the Father abiding in me doth His works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.

Guru Arjan Sahib, when speaking of his oneness with the Lord, clearly stated:

My temple is the highest. My region is endless. My Kingdom is an everlasting one. My wealth is immense and is not subject to decay. My glory has existed throughout the ages. My followers are at every place. I am praised in every home. Devotion is given to me in all the lands. The Lord is manifest within me. The Father has become one with the son. When the Father is pleased, He and the son are dyed in the same colour.

My temple is the highest of the high. My region is endless and indescribable. My kingdom is eternal. My wealth is immense and everlasting. My glory resounds throughout the ages. My glory is manifest everywhere. My praise rings in all homes. All the people give me devotion. My Father is manifest within me. The Father and the son have become one. Oh Nanak, God, my Father, loves me. The Father and the son are blended in the same hue.

Bhairon M5, 1461-13

Hindu scriptures also say the same thing.

The Master is Brahma; the Master is Vishnu; the Master is Maheswara; the Master is the transcendent One. I bow to such a Master.

A drop merges in the sea and becomes the sea. It is so stated in Mandakya Upanishad. As the flowing river disappears in the sea, losing its name and its form, thus a wise man, freed from name and form, goes to the divine Saint, who is greater than the great. He who knows that highest Brahm also becomes Brahm. That divine Being manifests in his body. How can He Who pervades everywhere confine Himself to one place, and how can the Infinite Being be limited to the human body? 

In this connection Lord Krishna says in Verses 24 and 25 of Chapter 7 of the Gita:

The undiscerning think that I am the unmanifest that has come to manifestation; they do not know my higher being, immutable, supreme. Veiled by Maya, I am not known to all. This world is deluded and does not recognise me as unborn and immutable.

He again says in Chapter 9,

I pervade all the universe in my unmanifest form; all beings are sustained by me, but I do not depend on them. Fools scorn me because I have taken the human form. My higher being is not known to them.

The Muslim holy men also say that the Master is, in fact, the Lord. 

Maulana Rumi says that the hand of the Master is not smaller than that of the Lord. It wields His very same power. His reach is very long and extends beyond the seventh heaven. His hand is connected with the Lord. No one can imagine his grandeur. He is a brilliant sun hidden in the form of a man. Try to know him as he really is.

Powerful is the Master's hand; it is not less strong than that of the Lord; His hand is the power of God. One should believe in its greatness for it extends to the highest heaven. In his palm flows the eternal current; the Lord is without rival or partner in His grandeur. He has hidden a sun in man. Know the Master as He is.

Maulana Rumi

Maulana Rumi again says:

The light of the Lord shines in the Master. We look at his manifest human form and therefore do not know that He is in fact the Lord Himself. He has assumed the form of a man, but in reality He is the Lord.

The Light of the Lord shines in the Master. You can see this if you master your mind.

He further says that the Lord has said that He is very vast. He cannot be contained in the hills, dales, lands and skies and so forth. It is curious, however, that He is contained in the heart of a Master. In other words, the ocean is contained in a pot. If you want to search for Him, look for Him there.

In his manifested form the Master is human, but his soul is one with the Lord.

His body is in this material world, but his soul is in the heavens He is beyond the ken of matter and mind.

Shams-i-Tabrez says that the perfect Master is the king of kings. The Lord has closed the doors to His abode and is sitting behind them. But He manifests Himself in human form as a Perfect Master and comes to earth to open the doors.

That Great King is sitting behind firmly closed doors, but He Himself takes the form of man and opens them.

Bulleh Shah says that the Lord comes in human form to awaken the people.

God has come in human form; He has come to awaken the people.

The Gurus say to the same effect:

The Lord has come in human form; He is called Ram Das (Servant of God).

Sorath M5, 612-7

Our Lord is very wise and is called a Saint.

Kabir, Asa 476-14

Oh Pipa, Om is the real essence. Only a Perfect Master can reveal it.

Pipa, Dhanasri 695-15

The Master is the immaculate Lord; do not consider Him to be a human being.

Ramkali M5, 895-5

The servant of the Lord is like the Lord Himself. The form makes no difference.

Maru M5, 1076-3

Bhai Gurdas says:

That One took form, and was called Guru Gobind. The formless One assumed form; He is One, but appears as many.

Var 25, Pauri 1

He who imparts to you true knowledge, know him to be the Lord. He is the real Shabd. Consider him to be one with the Lord.

He who imparts the true knowledge, know him to be the Lord. He is the true Shabd; He is One with the Lord.

Basant M3, 1174-17

When a blackbird is being taught to speak, a mirror is placed before it and a man hides behind it and speaks. The blackbird looks at his own reflection in the mirror and thinks that someone of his species is sitting there before him and speaking. Similarly, the Lord is hiding behind the garb of the Saints and speaks through them. The Lord is indescribable and wonderful. He has to take a human form to manifest Himself to the human beings. How can He communicate with human beings without a body? 

Kabir Sahib says that Brahm speaks under the cover of body and cannot speak without it. How can one see a personality who has no attributes unless it takes a form like us?

The body of a Master walks on this earth, but his soul soars to the seven skies. He is human in outer form, but God speaks through him. He is in reality God. He is God plus man, that is, a Godman. He is the string that connects us with God. 

The Master is the Shabd-personified, but he has to take a human form so that he may make us understand him.

The position of a Master is similar. He takes on human form to take human beings to their original home. Outwardly, he appears to be a prisoner amongst other prisoners; but in reality he is the king of all regions and universes. He is not a prisoner. He is, no doubt, in the guise of a prisoner; but he is here for redeeming the prisoners and has come here to free them of their bondage.

Guru Arjan Sahib says:

He who sent you is calling you back home to enjoy the bliss of the eternal kingdom.

He who sent you calls you back. Travel happily and return home comfortably. Sing the bliss of union with the Lord. Enjoy the eternal kingdom. Come home, oh friend. The Lord will remove your sufferings. Your troubles will be ended. The Lord is manifested in the Master. He destroys and removes suffering. The welcoming music is playing, and the Lord will welcome you there. Be firm and have no doubts; the Word of the Master will sustain you. His glory pervades the world. His court is resplendent. He sent us into this life, and it is He who is calling us back. The Creator has done a wonder. Oh Nanak, all glory be to Him, the True One.

 Dhanasri M4, 378-2

When Rani, Queen, Indra Mati, by intense meditation, reached the True Region, she saw that Kabir Sahib was sitting in the place of the True Being. 

She said, 

Oh Lord, why did you not tell me earlier that you were the True Being, and I would have recognised you.

Kabir said, 

How could you have believed at that time (before you had developed spiritually)?

(See also Indra Mati in the Anurag Sagar.)

All the Saints who have reached the true and nameless regions are one with the Lord. When this is so, how can one be great and the other small? All are the same. If we consider one to be greater and the other smaller, it is our mistake.

He who differentiates between one Saint and another, goes to the region of hell.

Millions of people visit a Master and see him. They hear his discourses and describe him according to their own respective understanding. They call him a kindly gentleman or a philosopher or a learned man or a wise moralist. They comfort themselves by so describing him. But there are very few amongst them who see the Lord in him. Everyone praises him according to his own degree of understanding. 

If the Master were only a man, he could give us nothing more than human virtues. But in fact he is more than human. One who is not developed inwardly, fails to recognise him. He reveals himself only to those who are sufficiently developed. He whose eye is not trained cannot recognise him. How can a blind man see or recognise another person by his face? 

Unless the Lord or the True Being is Himself kind to a person, that person will not recognise the Guru as Guru. Unless the perfect Master, who is Truth incarnate, reveals himself, one cannot recognise him. Even if the Master should live next door, an undeveloped person would not know him. Very often, the members of a Perfect Master's own family fail to recognise his stature.

No one can recognise him without good fortune. But one who recognises him, recognises the Lord. 

Bhai Nand Lal says:

The Lord is ever present. See His holy vision.

When the seeing inner eye is opened or the Lord Himself makes Himself known, then one begins to feel the reflection of the Lord within him. The only object of Simran (repetition) is to open the seeing inner eye so that we may be able to see the Lord everywhere and in the Master, where He is manifest. But this is possible only by the Lord's Grace.

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