VIII / (vii)

Godman is the only True Friend

All the worldly connections are severed at the time of death. All friends, all relatives, the wife and children, must part. Who is there to accompany you to the other world? Oh, none. But the Word – the Word personified in the Godman does. It helps you in all your undertakings here and hereafter. The Godman receives the initiates at the time of death, when all others fail. Like a never-failing Friend, He always holds out His helping hand in weal or woe.

The Master says:

Oh Nanak! Sever all thy connections of ephemeral nature, and seek thou the lasting friendship of a Saint, for all else shall forsake thee even in life, while He remains steadfast unto the last and thereafter.

Guru Amar Das, Maru War M5

Whosoever fears the pangs of birth and death, let him seek out a Sadhu.

Guru Amar Das, Gauri Sukh M5

When one resigns himself to the will of the Master and places himself under the protecting power of the Master, the Master will hasten to wake up the Divinity in him. The Master never leaves the probationer, once taken over, until He betakes him to God, whose prototype He is on earth. He talks face to face with His devotee and gives him His counsel in time of need. He moulds the disciple into the likeness of God and makes him a living temple of the Divine Consciousness.

Whoever shall leave me not in weal nor woe, neither in the beginning, now nor in the end, such a friend my mind hankers after.

Guru Amar Das, Gauri M5

Catch hold of the hem of Him, oh courageous soul, who knows the mystery of all the planes above and below, and who may accompany thee both here and hereafter.

Maulana Rumi

There are three things required of a Sikh or the disciple in relation to his Master, to enable him to create receptivity of the Master’s favour. He must sacrifice his body, his mind and his possessions – nay, even his very life should be consecrated at the feet of the Master. It is not because the Master is covetous of any reward from His disciple, but that the disciple should sacrifice all he holds dear in this life. The Master does not accept a speck out of it, but gives them back, all intact, as a sacrificial offering. He instructs the disciple not to defile himself by misuse of his possessions, but to make the best use of them to the benefit of his brethren, the poor and the needy, the sick and the infirm, so as to help in the harmonious development of all around him.

Let the disciple stand before his Master with his all at His feet, but the Master would accept naught out of it. He would thus stand in full resignation, ready to receive the Grace of the Master and the beginning of his realisation. He has to make himself a vehicle for the Master, like a rebeck or a lyre to be played upon, creating sweet symphonies of the Holy Naam. All social connections, all attachments to worldly possessions, all clinging to name and fame, all the physical comforts, all the evil thoughts surging in the mind, are to be placed before the Master, to let Him work His will through him.

Discipleship truly consists in unswerving devotion and resignation to the will and pleasure of the Master. It, however, does not consist in seeing the form of the Master, but in attuning to His Divine Will. By complete resignation, all mental chattering is thrown overboard and then there are no more cravings or desires. The tumultuous hubbub of the life of senses is replaced by calm and collected serenity born of resignation and through renunciation. It is in these silent hours that spiritual consciousness begins to dawn.

The bonds of relationship between the Guru and the disciple are the strongest in the world. Even death cannot sever them, for they are tied by the Divine and Omnipotent Will of God.

Oh Lord, it is by Thy Grace alone that we are led to the Satguru.

Guru Ram Das, Suhi Asptpadian M4

The Master ever remains with the devotee, wherever he may be. Death and distance are immaterial in the relationship of the Master and the disciple. He is always by his side, here and hereafter.

The Master acts as a lodestar in all Spiritual Endeavours. He extends all feasible help to the devotee with His exhortations without and within, always keeping him steady on the right path and bringing him back to it even when anything goes awry. Distance does not stand in His way. The Master’s helping hand goes to the devotee, far and near – in the burning desert-sands, on the snow-capped mountain-tops, and in the dreary wildernesses. He exercises a healthy and a corrective influence on the spiritual aspirants by releasing forces within His field of influence, like a mighty lodestone that has marvellous attraction within its magnetic field.

The True Master nourishes the devotee with His own life-blood. The follower of the Master is always in a state of perpetual bliss.

Guru Arjan, Gauri Sukhmani M5

Maulana Rumi repeats the same thing:

The Hand of the Master is the hand of the Lord; long and high, it penetrates through the seven heavens.

The Master talks with His devotee face to face in all the planes and gives him His wise counsel in times of need.

Guru Nanak says:

The Master is ever with me, and so is the Lord. I am doing all my work with a constant remembrance of Him.

Guru Nanak, Asa M1

Guru Arjan says:

The Master looks after me in all places; what fear have I, then, to entertain.

Guru Arjan, Majh M5