3 February 1903

Best regards from Jaimal Singh to my obedient son, Babu Sawan Singh, and to Basant Singh, Babu Gulab Singh, Chanan Singh, Narain Singh, Nanak Singh, and the little boy. 

May the Grace and Mercy of Hazur be upon everyone. 

Your letter was received and I was very happy to read it and learn your news. In the letter you have asked for the craftsman Nabi Bakhsh and Babu Gajja Singh to come there, but both are in Rawalpindi. I immediately wrote a postcard to them, that they should go to your place, so they may have already reached there. Therefore please let me know whether or not they have come. Secondly, the girder dealer is taking a long time. Send him an urgent telegram to ask why the girders have not yet been dispatched. It would have been nice if the girders had arrived by now because the weather is good. Later, the hot weather will come and cause much difficulty. Write about your illness, whether you have recovered by now. Always let me know immediately whenever you are ill. 

You should not become perturbed by illness; rather, consider the soul, body, and vital energy – jio, pind, and pran – all to be the Satguru’s – and indeed they all do belong to the Satguru. Pain or pleasure that has been planted in the body will surely bear fruit, but a Satsangi will go through only a sixth part of it – he is let off the other five. Look upon pain as pleasure and learn to endure it. As the hymn from Sri Guru Granth Sahib says:

Je sukh dehi ta tujhahi araadhee, dukh bhee tujhai dhiaaee. Je bhukh dehi ta itahee raajaa, dukh vich sookh manaaee. 

You give me joy, it is You I worship; in hardship too I think of You. You give me hunger, still I am sated; the pain You send is the pleasure true. 

Remember these words and fix your mind in them. The words of the compassionate Hazur are: 

Dukh kee gharee ganeemat jaano,

Look upon the hour of pain as a blessing,

because the moment of suffering is always welcome as it reminds you of the Lord. It comes through His Grace, not by itself. So do not worry in suffering for it will come to an end shortly. Keep your thoughts towards the Lord, and also do your official work. Just be there as an observer – the Lord will do the work Himself.

I had conveyed through Chanan Singh that you should eat a small amount of wheat pudding regularly. So prepare it like this: take ghee worth five rupees, sugar or crystallised sugar worth six, and cream of wheat worth five. Mix them together to make the pudding and eat as much as you can; that is, eat what you can digest daily. Also, soak chickpeas in water and make a curry dish with that water. Eating that every day will improve your digestion and gradually make it normal. The physical hardships that you are experiencing are like the onset of a storm when the force of the wind tears off the branches of many trees and even rips out some hole trees by their very roots. Suffering of this kind similarly debilitates the body. Indeed, such an attack enervates the whole body, but one should not worry – you will get well soon. Rather, make sure to keep me informed of your condition. When you feel that the pain is unbearable, put your mind in Bhajan or Simran and you will be all right. Warm greetings from Bibi Ji to you, her true brother.

Warm greetings also from all the residents of the Dera. We have now less than half a canister of coal tar left. You should definitely send two canisters of coal tar. If two are not possible, at least one is definitely needed. We also need twenty blocks of stone to support the girder-ends. Please write in case they are not available from your place; we will then get them from Amritsar. So please send them soon, or reply by return post so that other arrangements can be made – whatever you do, please do it soon. But the coal tar, at least, must come in time. Do dispatch it soon. After arranging all these things please reply by return post. If your body is still weak and you are unable to function properly, even then you should write and we will stop the work. The work can be started again later when you are physically fit, but send the reply promptly; do not delay. We have nine men working as carpenters. For stoppers and ventilator-frames, wide planks of deodar costing 30 rupees will come from Amritsar. Double sets of cross-ties and boards are to be prepared, as we would like to put up a box ceiling. For the rest, write soon what would suit you in this. Your postcard has also arrived. I am delighted to know that your illness is gone. You will regain full health. Hazur Himself will be graciously merciful; He is always by your side. Please do not feel perturbed. He will bless you with Grace and Mercy. 

3 February 1903