Blessed living Memories

by Arran B. Stephens

In the early morning of 2^nd April, 1967 thousands of eager devotees and seekers after Truth began quietly streaming into the sacred precincts of Sawan Ashram in Delhi to commemorate many blessed living memories of the late Param Sant Hazur Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj (1858–1948) and to imbibe the same One Master-Power working through His Spiritual Son, Param Sant Kirpal Singh Ji.

Spiritual Aspirants from all parts of India came to commemorate this sacred occasion. No sacrifice was considered too great to be with the beloved Master once again. The congregation quickly swelled to tens of thousands, filling every inch of the beautiful Ashram grounds, sweetly singing poems of extreme Love, called bhajans, beseeching their Sacha Padshah – True Emperor – to come out and give them His enlivening glance of Grace. These inspiring hymns, composed by various Masters of the highest mystic rank, sung from the overflowing heart, swept spontaneously like waves of divinely charged electricity through the crowds, blending all castes and creeds, rich and poor, high and low, into one essence of Universal Love. The atmosphere became so highly charged that one might have thought this indeed was a different and new world. Certainly a far cry from the mad rush and chaos of the materialistic one.

Clad in immaculate white, the Satguru emerged from His bungalow at 7.30 a.m. and walked through the awaiting crowd, giving a nod of the head and blessing with folded hands. Gracefully mounting the stairs, He seated Himself cross-legged on the raised platform, and for several minutes, looked in great, great compassion across the sea of upturned faces. The presence of the Great Master before His children brought forth a swooning sigh as though the vast assembly were of one breath. He began speaking very quietly and endearingly of the importance of the precious human life which we must not waste in vain in useless outer pursuits, but direct our activities and energies to the realisation of our self and God, for which purpose we were granted this human birth. Guru Dev’s spiritually intoxicated words, revealing endless vistas of the ancient Love-wisdom, flowed out like a bubbling brook, irrigating the thirsty hearts of His children. For a practical experience of the Light of God, and for those who wished to meet the Inner Master and or His Master in Their Radiant Light forms, the Beloved gave His blessings and instructed the Sangat – congregation – to sit in meditation.

After an hour sped by in hushed silence, the Lord of the congregation called all to open their eyes, and enquired how many bore witness to the Inner Radiant Form of the Master; over 200 men and women humbly raised their hands in affirmation of the sublime experience. For many, this was the first time this heavenly vision had manifested. Many of them had not only seen the Guru Swaroop – Master’s Radiant Form – but the vision of His Master as well. A few were even taken to the feet of Baba Jaimal Singh Ji, Swami Ji and other past Great Saints, through the abundant Grace and God-Power working through the Living One, Sant Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj. When the Master enquired how many of the assembled thousands saw the Inner Radiant Light of God inside their human temples, over 70 per cent raised their hands, and their shining faces obviously revealed the Inner State of their minds and souls! How fortunate are the chosen few who are led to the Lotus Feet of the Living Master.

Throughout the morning, many important religious and various Spiritual Leaders came to the speaker’s rostrum to sit and discourse on a common platform with the Great Master. Numerous heart-stirring events from the illustrious life of Hazur Sawan Singh Ji were given by many of His prominent initiates. Fortunately, the God-Power which manifested through such Great Masters as Christ, Guru Nanak, Swami Ji, Hazur Sawan Singh Ji and others continues to flow in free abundance through the Living Master, Who is the highest expression of Divinity existing for the spiritual and moral upliftment of mankind in the present age.

For over 24 years, the Master sat at the Lotus Feet of Hazur and imbibed and attained the highest Spiritual Perfection, which is obvious for those who are gifted with Inner Vision … and if we are blind He can make us see!

In open Satsangs, Hazur Sawan Singh Ji many times proclaimed that Kirpal Singh would carry on the Sacred Work of Naam Initiation after Him, whereby the seekers would receive first-hand Spiritual Experiences unto the True Home of the Father. Satguru Kirpal Singh, through His unparalleled Love, devotion and perfect background, was the one divinely appointed Nadi-Son of His Satguru, that is son through Spiritual Transference of Power, as contradistinguished from Bindi-Son. (Literally, bindi means a drop of sperm or son through physical conception or family inheritance.)

Many who have received nothing elsewhere, have upon coming to Sant Kirpal Singh Ji, risen above body consciousness, and received first-hand preliminary mystic experience of the Light and Sound, much to their gratitude and joy. For those who are sincerely in earnest, God has ways of arranging a meeting with a True Master, Who has the competency to put one on the Inner way until that soul is ultimately merged in irrevocable union with Absolute God.

These people, from the simple hard-working peasant to the rank and file and intelligentsia of society, have a Great Love for the Master. One after another would come forward, filled with Divine Fervour and Inspiration, praising the Master to the skies … nay, even the very heavens, were resounding with praise! These men and women spoke from their own experiences of His Grace, and being such a generous Master, He has revealed Himself unto many … perhaps such Inner Grace has never before been so lavishly distributed in the history of Mastership. His Grace is in full tide – it is up to us humbly to approach Him for gift of Divine Succour.

The Master is truly a saviour; a Christ; a Messiah; a Satguru. He has given the gift of Love even unto the most stoic of intellectual sceptics, who remain in His presence even for a little while. Even truthless dacoits and the wayward sinners have found complete transformation in His presence. He works like the fabled philosophers’ stone that turn base metals into gold. He being Love and God personified, awakens the Love of God in all and sundry. Naam, or the God-into-expression-Power, the primal Light and Sound of creation, is also a Current of Love from the Almighty, and when a soul is connected with this All-powerful Current through the impartation of the Grace of a Living Master, it also naturally begins to awaken in Love. God, Naam, and Master, are all One.

People all the world over – those who are under His direct guidance – are getting advanced Spiritual Experiences just as people in the times of the Masters of the past, but the Living Master, a living symbol before His children, in His characteristic humility, would smile and bow His Godly Head, and reiterate:

It is all due to the Grace and kindness of my Master that people are obtaining solace and benefit from my presence.

He would say,

Commander orders, ‘Fire,’ and I must fire.

Denying all such praise, the Master would give all credit to His own Beloved. Maharaj Ji related how His Master once told Him that He had to carry on the Spiritual Work after Him, to which He – our Kirpal – replied:

Just like a water-man, I will water the plants, but it is Your water.

Affirming the Unity of Masters He said:

Guru-Power works from one Human Pole to another, but the Power is the same.

There is no question of degree of difference from One Perfect Master to another. Outwardly They differ, but inwardly, They are One with the One. Through the vehicle of every Master, souls drank the heavenly Nectar of God, and for the living seekers after Truth, a Living Master-Soul is needed to come into contact with God. One cannot achieve Him alone, or through imperfect teachers and guides with which the world abounds in this day. It is, however, impossible to find a genuine Satguru unless God Himself so wills. It is through His Mercy and kindness that we are brought to His Holy Feet.

Self-effacing humility is the significant sign of recognition of a genuine Master. His sweet words, His lustrous eyes, His kindly radiant beauty are infused with Spirituality. The Great Ones rarely directly refer to Themselves, even though They may be One with God, but always place the honours the world heaps upon Them at the feet of Their own Master.

In the Satsang, many prominent persons who were initiated by Hazur Sawan Singh Ji, came forth, publicly speaking of the miraculous appearance of both the Masters in their meditations, and subsequently how they were led for further guidance and help to the Living One.

Wonderful stories were narrated of the innumerable evidences of Divine Protection of the Master, extended to the disciples in times of great odds and danger. There was one disciple of Hazur Sawan Singh Ji who disbelieved and doubted in the present Master. During the recent fighting between India and Pakistan, this man’s village was invaded one night by hostiles who were firing and looting homes at random. Leaving his possessions behind, he began to run for his very life with the enemy at his heels. He ran and ran, but to his apparently great misfortune, he stumbled and fell into a ditch. He thought his end had come. Just at this moment, the Masters appeared, both gracious Kirpal and majestic Sawan, and each taking one of his arms, carried him off to safety, out of danger’s reach, after which They disappeared. Ever since, this fellow has been very grateful and devoted to the True Son of Sawan.

Countless are the incidents of miraculous protection of the devotees of the Master. The worldly minded and sceptic would scoff, but what is normally termed fantastic and miraculous, are common everyday occurence in the lives of those rare Souls Who have become One with God. Never exhibiting His mystic powers outwardly, but keeping them in reserve to assist and teach His dear children, the Master gradually reveals Himself and His Godly attributes as the disciple grows and unfolds in purity, receptivity, and humility.

One of the many notable seekers was Sri Raguvacharya, an old devotee from Rishikesh, in Uttar Pradesh. This man recognised the Inner Greatness of Sant Kirpal Singh, when He retreated to Rishikesh in 1948 after the physical passing away of His own Satguru, Hazur Sawan Singh Ji. Sri Raguvacharya related how he took ill and ‘died’ several years ago. As his spirit withdrew from the physical body, rising up on the Inner Planes, he was taken to the Lotus Feet of the luminous forms of Sawan and Kirpal. The Radiant Master turned to Raguvacharya and commanded him to return to the physical plane and complete further work allotted to him. He still looked hale and hearty at 110 years of age.

Numerous devotees and poets sung their compositions in praise of the Lord, including many of the beautiful hymns the Living Master had written to His Master in the days of discipleship.

Another Satsang was held from 4.00 p.m. to 9.00 p.m. continuously. The interest of the devotees never waned or slackened, rather it waxed and increased, mounting on the wings of Love, inspired by the Satguru. Many more spoke, including several devotees and students from the Western Hemisphere, attracted here by the Universal Light of the Master. The writer of this report, having been afforded the privilege of corning to the Lotus Feet of the Master in India from far away Canada, gave a brief talk from his experiences of the Living Master’s mission of connecting the yearning souls to their Creator. This is a mission of incomprehensible greatness illuminating the sincere seekers with conscious contacts of the Light and Sound of God, in all countries and lands where people are awakening from materialism to the unchangeable Spiritual Truth as given out by the Satguru Kirpal Singh Ji Maharaj, Who is the living successor of the Master-Saints of all times.

Towards the close of the wonderful Satsang, a white sheet was suspended from the ceiling of a canopy over the crowd to serve an excellent two-way screen for the showing of one of the available movie films that were taken of Hazur Sawan Singh Ji. The multitudes sighed with wonder at the image of beautiful Sawan moving on the screen. There were several thousand of Hazur’s initiates present amongst the approximately 20,000 Satsangis.

Late at night, the Master was giving private interviews to aspirants, never sparing Himself for a moment. His message is one of solace and hope and to the endless stream of humanity which knocks at His door, He has a sure Spiritual Remedy to every ill and evil. The names of Sawan and Kirpal were on the lips and hearts of everyone as they retired into peaceful sleep under the stars on the hallowed ground. Truly, the Holy Bhandara – anniversary – reached its natural and perfect close, and the mantle of peace and silence descended upon the Ashram of the Master.

On the following day, Naam-Initiation was given to 215 newly selected and accepted aspirants, including an American lady who ‘just happened’ to be passing through Delhi, the day before. On hearing of the Great Kirpal Singh, she came to see Him, and was caught by a tremendous power coming from His eyes. She had been looking for a Master for many years and, as it so often happens, she unexpectedly met a True Master. She decided to cancel her train ticket to Bombay and to stay on a while at the Ashram.

After the Master had sifted those who were not yet ready for Naam He began to unravel the secrets of the beyond, explaining the mysteries of the Inner Planes of creation leading up to the True Abode of the Father, the Path each soul must embark upon ultimately to attain Union with the Supreme Father, the sole purpose for us being born in human form.

Satguru Ji revealed the Sacred Secrets of the various Lights, and Sound Currents of each region the soul experiences as it proceeds upwards after consciously rising above body consciousness, via the Third Eye or Single Eye. He then bade all to sit for meditation; and after an hour the blessed Lord enquired of their Inner Experiences. With His Grace, everyone experienced the Inner Light and Sound of creation, also known as the Word or Naam. The American lady was very pleased with her experience, as were others, and many were shedding tears of gratitude and wonder at having witnessed the Radiant Form of the Master at their first sitting. Over a hundred of the newly initiated were blessed with this heavenly vision while repeating the Holy Names, and others saw the strong Light of the Inner Sun, Moons, Stars, and some saw the strong and red rising sun.

The initiates then sat as instructed for listening to the Sound Principle for half an hour. The Great Master enquired of their Inner Experiences. All heard, according to their background and receptivity, the sublime Music of the beyond; bells, gongs, conches, drums, violins, and flutes – such a wonderful start on the journey back to God.

After imparting the mystic contact of the audible Life-Stream, Maharaj Ji called all of Hhis newly born children of Naam to gather up closer, whence He personally exhorted them to continue in their Holy Meditations and develop the initial experience by day to day practice. He strongly emphasised the necessity of keeping the diaries of self-introspection, to live an ethical and honest life, keeping in contact with the Master personally or by correspondence, as one desired to progress spiritually, and thus achieve the goal of life. The Lord spoke endearingly of the Radiant Form of the Master as an unpaid counsellor that guides the footsteps of the child disciple both in this world and in the beyond, which one should strive to meet while alive. When the disciple of a Perfect Master dies, if he has not contacted the Radiant Friend within in lifetime, this sublime Form appears to escort the soul of that initiate into the beyond at the time of death, ensuring its safety against the onslaughts of the Negative Power. That soul would then be placed in a suitable and deserving Spiritual Region where it can work towards ultimate liberation or, if worldly inclinations were still uppermost, in the initiate’s consciousness and if no efforts were made in life, the Master may have to send it back into the world in a better and more spiritually congenial atmosphere where it can attain better Inner Progress and achieve the necessary Love for the Master. The whole process, however, depends entirely on the sweet will and pleasure of the Satguru, as He, being a Conscious Co-Worker of the Divine Plan, holds the reigns of the destiny of His children in His almighty grip. But this does not debar personal effort on the part of the child disciple, rather, the beloved Master constantly exhorts us to make greater and greater efforts to become worthy of His all-in-all Grace.

Separate from the initiation scene, in a specially screened area, 90 children were given special premission to sit for listening to the Sound Current.

Guru Dev strode over to where the children were sitting, and one by one, He would, with one hand behind His back, bend over and tap the children on the top of their heads with the finger of His other hand, and would help them to stand up. (Some were really spiritually intoxicated). He would then enquire what they saw and heard within. Over sixty of these boys and girls witnessed the Radiant Guru Dev, and many also saw Hazur Sawan Singh Ji standing beside the Living Master, Whom they had never seen nor heard of before. Only when a photograph was shown to them did they recognise Who the kindly old Man with the white beard was. Others saw the Master in His Radiant Form conducting Satsang to countless souls on the Inner Planes.

One simply cannot know the magnitude and the far reaching effect such acts have, on the part of the Godman. Truly, the Master-Power or God-Power working through the focal point of the Living Master is controlling and guiding the destiny of the child humanity. These children may become illumined leaders of tomorrow, and in all countries of the world where the illumined initiates of the Master dwell, there will be a Force of Light shining in the darkness, through the merit of their connection to the Living Master. This Great Force of Truth is the only hope and solution to the abundant materialistic and degenerate influences rampant in the world of today. This Light which lighteth everyman that cometh into the world is, unfortunately, unseen, unnoticed, forgotten and sadly neglected but one merciful glance from a Master-Soul can open the Inner Eye of the individual soul to behold the mysteries of God’s Light, and thus reveal one’s native Godhead radiating in all Glory. The luminous form of the Master then appears, and guides the blissful soul into experiences and Kingdoms beyond all earthly description, until it beholds and unites with the Lord of all.

Before that Light can really shine in its native and pristine splendour – and not under a bushel – surpassing countless outer suns and moons, we, as His erring children, must first learn to rise above our petty hatreds, jealousies, and limelight seeking amongst ourselves, for this not only reflects very badly on our own lives, but on the very Path we live to tread upon. The Master and the path are perfect in all respects, but we individuals, with one foot in the Divine, and the other in human folly, sometimes judge the Master from our own limited vision. It is surely no fault of the Master if some of His children are disobedient.

The Path of the Master, which encompasses God in His Nameless and Formless State, His vast creation, from the physical universe to the astral, causal and great causal regions, up to the Sach Khand, the True Home of the Father, Naam, the God-into-expression-Power, and the individual soul is the Path of Love. God, being all Love and Truth, in a state of absolute consciousness, projected forth all creations from the tiny drop to the limitless universe, as a ray of His Love. The Naam-Power sustaining and controlling the creation, seen and unseen, being a direct emanation from the Sat Purush, is also Love, and where It is fully manifest, in a Master-Satguru, that place also is Love … Love personified. All of these things: God, Creation, Sach Khand, Naam, Soul and Love are unknowable without the Grace of a Godman.

Love and surrender of one’s all unto the feet of the Master, chaste obedience unto His Holy Command, and communion with His Holy Naam, will take one surely and swiftly across the enchanting panorama of existence, and place that jubilant spirit into the lap of the Eternal Supreme Being. The Satguru is the reflection of Sat Naam or God, in this world, and in the beyond, and as such, grants God-experiences to those who approach Him with humility and sincerity. God is unknowable. With the Satguru’s Grace, He becomes known as a living reality, shining in the temple of our inmost being. And thus we are liberated.