The sweet Memory of Hazur

by R.N. Bhatnagar; this article was translated from the Urdu Sat Sandesh by T.S. Khanna

The time of initiation, Hazur used to say,

When you get initiated you are contacted with the God-in-action-Power. Then there is no need of outer worship, pilgrimage, fasting, etc. The people are wandering in search of the wordless Word … the Guru is always with you. He is inside as well as outside. He will do all the work. Whatever you are told by the Master you should perform it. Practise Shabd with all your heart and soul.

Generally people forget these things. There are only a few dear ones who remember. Others seek out some kind of excuse for not complying. Of course, simple and honest people get more benefit.

A simple minded girl once took initiation. She practised daily and reached the Radiant Form of the Master, so much so that she could also see Him outside. After some time she was married. In her father-in-law’s house the family was very fond of going to places of pilgrimage; they did not have the technique of going within.

At one Satsang, this girl stood up:

Maharaj Ji, I have a request.

Hazur said,

What have you to say?

The girl replied,

Maharaj Ji, when I went to my father-in-law’s home, the family was getting ready to take a bath in the Ganges. They invited me, but I declined. But they persisted, So I agreed.

Hazur :

Then?

Girl:

Then I had to take a bath in the Ganges.

Hazur:

What happened then?

Girl:

They gave me a paisa (penny) to offer to the Ganges. When I refused they were displeased. I also got mad, grabbed the paisa and skimmed it across the surface of Mother Ganges.

Hazur:

Then?

Girl:

You disappeared, Master.

Hazur smiled and told her,

Whatever happened, happened; now touch your ears (a sign of repenting).

The girl touched her ears and said,

Master, You should also touch Your ears, that You will not disappear.

*****

When Hazur initiated aspirants in Dera, the men and women would sit separately in two rooms. He would ask everyone when he/she had attended Satsang and whether they understood the Path of the Saints. Then He would send them to the respective rooms.

Once a young widow made her way, without permission, to the room for the women who had been selected for initiation. There she was sitting among the others when Hazur came in to start initiation. Before starting He got permission from His Satguru, Baba Jaimal Singh; only upon His approval would He conduct initiation. This is the Glory of a Perfect Master: notwithstanding being perfect and competent Himself, still He keeps everything according to the will and pleasure of His Master.

The blessed Hazur opened His eyes and said there was one lady who was there without permission:

It is better that she get up herself and go away as she will not get initiation at present.

Everyone heard, but that woman did not move. Hazur suggested that all of them go out and walk around the rooms three times and then return; the woman without permission could stay outside. – This was to save her embarrassment: this way she could slip away quietly and no one would know.

They followed the Master’s order, but when they returned the widow was still among them. Hazur said the same woman had come again, but she could still go out; but she would not. So the Master pointed towards her and asked her to stand up and go away. She was stunned but stood up and said,

Why is the Master asking me to get out, while He is giving Naam to others? Why should I not also receive?

Hazur told her that it was not a matter to disclose. The lady insisted on knowing openly which fault she had committed and why she was deprived of initiation. Again Hazur told her that it was not proper to tell the reason; again she repeated her demand.

Then the Master said,

May I tell you that you have committed many sins?

Still she kept her mood:

Tell me what kind of sins I have committed!

Hazur replied,

Then I have to tell how many babies you have killed – how many abortions you have caused.

The woman was stunned and terribly ashamed, but she realised that the Master knew everything. It softened her down and she spoke in a gentle voice:

That was not my fault. It was the fault of my brother-in-law.

Hazur said,

You were also at fault. All right; go now.

She was exposed before everyone, disgraced and humiliated. There was no place to hide her face, and she started crying. Then she gathered her courage and said,

Maharaj Ji, I am the worst sinner of all. There is no doubt about it. I will go. I came to You because I heard that everyone is forgiven when he goes to the Master. Please have mercy upon me and tell me the place where I could go and be forgiven.

After uttering these pathetic words, she started crying with great sobs and wept for several minutes. But the Master is the Ocean of Grace:

All right; sit down. But do no more!

She received initiation.

*****

When the Great Master Sawan Singh retired from government service – in the year 1911 –, He settled at Dera Baba Jaimal Singh. There were comparatively few Satsangis in those days; yet quite a number visited the Dera for Hazur’s Darshan and Satsang. On the way to Dera, there was a rivulet called Nala which had run dry. It had been a canal in the time of the Moguls and is recorded by the government as Shah Canal. The devotees who crossed Nala found it difficult and sometimes hazardous, especially in darkness and rainy weather. Several times Hazur asked the residents of Dera and a nearby village to get together and fill in some part of the canal for a pathway. All said ‘yes’; but the work of filling up the canal was still not done. Hazur was touched to see the hardship of the people who had to cross Nala. Again and again he asked for a crossway but no heed was paid.

Then early one day, about three in the morning, Hazur took a basket and shovel on His shoulders and started out alone from Dera. The people of the neighbourhood were fast asleep. Hazur was compelled but willing to do this work by Himself.

But one farmer was awake and recognised Hazur by His walk. He was sure of Hazur’s presence, and woke others so that they could see Him too. Soon the satsangis of the entire village were awakened and the devotees were dispatched all over to run and bring baskets and shovels.

The farmer said,

Hazur asked us several times to make the walkway but we have kept putting it off. Shame on us.

The news reached Dera and the neighbouring villages. Soon there were about two hundred people gathered together, and work began. Hazur had tilled only a few baskets with earth and stone when the others joined in. They asked Him not to do anymore. The work went rapidly and did not stop until a safe pass was made.

Hazur had deep Love in His heart for those who came to Him for Darshan and Satsang. He always sacrificed His personal comfort for the sake of others.

This was the living example of His Love for His children.

*****

It was midnight in Hazur’s village and it was raining as if all the waters of the monsoon were pouring down that night. Around the mud houses of the village blew a wind so fierce that it seemed even the mountains would be swept away. In the midst of the wind and torrent, a house collapsed, and the Master heard the noise above the storm’s screaming. Hazur rushed out without dressing and reached the site of the fallen house.

There He removed debris with His own hands and hauled the injured family one by one to shelter. He didn’t stop to consider whether they were Hindu or Muslim, friend or foe, native or foreign, satsangi or atheist. He simply took care of them and didn’t worry about His own safety. In the morning, the villagers were surprised to find out what had happened while they slept.

*****

Hazur used to say in Satsangs that if a disciple meditates regularly according to the instructions of the Master, then the Guru will do his work. Many heard this, but only a few put it to the test. The following is an eyewitness account by Ganga Ram of what happened one day at Dera:

Once I stayed at Dera for about five days. The beautiful setting, seclusion, peace, and the attraction of Hazur’s company were very satisfying. In later years, though, the setting changed; but in those days only a few people were coming to Hazur.

Early one evening He asked us to finish some work around Dera, and then we would all sit in Bhajan. With these words He too set to work, trimming a thorny hedge with His bare hands. I started to help Him, but Hazur asked me to stop. So I stood aside and could only watch.

Then Bibi came running to the Master:

Maharaj Ji, what are You doing? Are the groundsmen and sweepers of Dera all dead?

Hazur answered,

What can I do? The disciples do not give me a breathing spell,

and again He busied Himself with the thorns. We didn’t understand; but it was finished in a little while. Then we all went into meditation.

According to Ganga Ram, this happened the day before I arrived at Dera along with several other disciples. We had come from Attari for Darshan. One of our party was anxious to tell of a strange thing he had witnessed just the day before:

The other farmers and I were working in a field and it was getting late. Already the time for doing Bhajan was at hand, but we had not yet trimmed the thorn bushes.

Let’s sit in Bhajan,

said one brother.

We should not delay it. We ought to do Bhajan first, and this work Hazur Himself will do.

We agreed, and went to a quiet secluded place for meditaticn. When we got up from Bhajan we were surprised to find that the thorn bushes had already been trimmed. We couldn’t figure out who could have done all that work. We were wonderstruck.

When the disciple finished, Maharaj Ji smiled and said,

When the disciple has unflinching obedience and surrenders all his work to the Master, then Master Himself does the work.