This Satsang is also available as a PDF pamphlet (German only).
— Unless otherwise cited, all quotes are from Adi Granth —
Dear brothers and sisters,
For the devotees… for the whole world, for all the beings… there is a big chaos going on currently….the world is under a critical situation…which is due to this pandemic. So please limit your travels in this situation. If it is necessary to go anywhere, first evaluate the risks, try not come in close contact with others and do wear your masks. And if anything (untoward) happens to you then do let us know. We have to take full precautions.
Dear loving souls of God,
Folks who have been into public ethos and vedas (scriptures) get bitten by five serpents. (5 serpents here mean: anger, greed, lust, attachment and ego) Birth after birth they dwell in sorrow, cry and scream. One who neither had faith in a Satguru’s words nor seeks the company of saints, cries and shrieks.
So, it is being said that a man is busy in gathering things…and he is wandering around assuming that perhaps the Supreme Lord is sitting somewhere over there, or hovering in skies, or residing in heaven, or maybe he dwells in Kaaba or perhaps he lives in Kailash…But in truth, the Lord resides within us. He is not anywhere far away. We do not have to go around looking for Him. But the one who works according to Guru’s instructions, having received the Naam from him…..one who is able to find a Guru and follows him…and attends satsangs….that person achieves his goal, which is actually the goal of every human life. He can achieve it and make his life fulfilling. He can get rid of suffering and maladies.
Weary of reading vedas and texts
Worn out after umpteen prayers
But God is found neither in pilgrimages nor Mecca
Whosoever has found Him, has found Him only within
The people are busy in reading (texts). And look for God here and there. But….their life passes by just like that. Their time in human form gets over just like that. And that’s how people come and exit the world again and again. They do not get anything and leave in ignorance. That is why…whatever we are looking for, we have to look for it where it is.
All the saints have told us that it is not far away…it is closer to us than anything else….but the people like to bow here and there. However, the Lord of this universe cannot be known until we pick up His sound and seek refuge in Him. Till then, we cannot be in bliss, we cannot be at peace. Till then, we will have to leave the world in ignorance only. And traverse through hell like lives. The vicious wheel spanning 84 Lac lives starts again for us then.
So the most significant thing for a human being is that if he wants to find Lord, if he wishes to know Lord, if he desires to be in bliss, then he should start looking for a saint/ a mahatma. And if he finds a Saint, then he should attend his satsangs. In Satsangs he will get to understand the secret of human life…why have we come into this world as humans…. and what can we as humans do to get that eternal happiness. until we do that we cannot be happy in true sense. So first a human being should look for a perfect saint (Mahapurush), then attend his satsangs, and then after receiving Naam from the Guru… as in having found Guru, one should seek Naam….and after that devote himself to Bhajan Simran. Then he can find the Lord. And make his life fulfilling.
If one is not able to find Guru in one’s life…is not able to seek refuge in a Guru, and is hence unable to receive Naam, then that person’s life goes waste. That is why satsang is very important for us. When we start attending satsangs, our karmas get cleansed from the first day itself. And one gets that tool that one needs on this path ahead. Using that one can make one’s life blissful.
“One in whose heart dwells that eternal sound (kirtan), gets rid of all kinds of sufferings”
Lord Krishna
Lord Krishna is saying that until we perform Bhajan and Simran of Naam…. the first course is that of Simran, second course is that of contemplation (dhyan) and the third course is that of Shabad. Once Simran is perfected, the contemplation deepends. Once contemplation deepens, one wakes up to the Shabad/ the Sound which is flowing within us all the time and which will pull us up.
That is why Soami ji Maharaj has also said that,
“Plead again and again with every breath,
Because only Guru can take you out of the physical plane” (tan dhaam literally means where bodily forms dwell)
So, everytime …every moment… when we sit for Bhajan Simran, we should plead to the Guru, and surrender ourselves to him… then one day that Sound current will definitely open up to us, pull us out of our bodies and take us to its abode. When that happens the soul merges with the supreme consciousness… it takes the form of that supreme Lord…it becomes one with the supreme Lord.
So until you get the Shabad….the Shabad which is an inner sound current… which we have to catch and follow to reach our true home…. untill it starts flowing within us… until we catch it, we cannot reach our real home. Without it we cannot achieve anything.
That is why it is being said,
“Without the Sound/ Shabad we dwell in darkness
And our visits and exits (from the world) will not halt”So everything lies in the sound current.
Meditate on the Sound,
The Sound which is yielded in the Meditation
Since the sound current….a lot of people feel that inspite of trying for so long they are not able to meditate….the more Simran you do, the deeper will be your meditation. When your meditation will be deep enough, the sound current will be heard and it is that which will pull one up. This is the work we have to do.
We are living in several delusions…many of us believe in doing yoga… some believe in kundali yoga, some believe in hatha yoga, people try different varieties of yoga…but which form of yoga yields the highest result?… the one which gives us THAT, what is THAT? Waking up to the sound current! Then you do not need to do anything, absolutely nothing, no need of any exercises or anything else. The day you are able to hear the sound current…. please sit for 10 hours, 12 hours…however much you like….And then your body will catch no ailments, no suffering. Your body will be like the Truth (sach), full of bliss.
Your life will be full of bliss. Whenever you will get up having done some Bhajan, you will heave so much bliss…. your body will have such swiftness, such power, such energy that it is not possible to put it in words. And as you are able to do Simran, then next step is that of contemplation….and for that also you do not need to stress…no need to stress about anything: should we anticipate deep contemplation or expect to hear the sound current or should the Simran go on… should we continue with Simran or what we should do now and what we should not! You have to do exactly as you have been instructed to do. Then …it is the grace of the Guru that takes us further…. it is the Guru who does everything then…. because if you have put in efforts you will defintely reap its fruits. So, keep working hard and one day you will reach your goals… all your efforts will definitely get valued.
So, who are you? You are a soul. And God is supreme soul (paramatma). He is in form of supreme consciousness and you are in form of a soul. But once we get onto the right path… and when we start treading on it…then one day we will definitely reach our home. And the soul, which is like a drop, will merge into the ocean of supreme consciousness….that supreme Lord is like an ocean. When the drop merges with the ocean, it becomes the ocean. So for this do the maximum Simran you can, with Simran your meditation will deepen, in deep contemplation you will be able to hear the sound current…after that you only have to focus on the sound current. The sound current then starts ringing from your whole being…every part of you…from every part of the universe. And you will heave so much bliss, so much joy that it is inexpressible. So the real yoga is that of Shabd Yoga, which is what we have to do…it is the highest form of yoga! No maladies will touch your body. If there are any ailments pre-existing in the body then they will get over. Even worst kind of diseases… untreatable diseases too get over. And our body is free of suffering. No ailments can remain in it. No suffering can touch it. But for this we have to put in some efforts. If we will work hard, the life will be indeed be blissful. Then every moment you will heave that bliss…that absolute bliss…. then no yoga is needed…. the Lord is with you!
So, Dariya Sahib, who was a big saint, has said something very beautifully:
“Dairya, as you chant the name of Ram, karmas and illusions go away
When a perfect Guru blesses you, no hurdles can come in your way”
So the path of Shabad that you have got onto…which can remove all obstacles ahead of you, destroy all your sufferings… catch it and follow it.
So Dariya Sahib is saying,
“Dairya, as you chant the name of Ram, karmas and illusions go away”
– there is no need to get into any rituals or deeds….you only have to merge with the supreme Lord…then everything will fall in place for you. All sufferings will depart. There will be shortage of nothing.
So, Dariya Sahib is saying that
“Dairya, as you chant the name of Ram, karmas and illusions go away
when a perfect Guru blesses you…”
what does this mean? As the sound current will start flowing from all of universe, from tiniest of the hair on you, then it means you are having Guru’s grace on you, you are being blessed by the supreme Lord… then you cannot have scarcity of anything. All things will start falling in place for you. And one day you will get what you have been seeking.
So this body that we have got, what is its purpose? Its purpose is to let us seek the supreme Lord…. it is not easy to get a human form…after lot of pain (chiron literally means incisions), after eons and eons we are able to get it.
This rare form that you have got
after navigating through millions of lives
don’t let it go to waste
Be Alert! Remember the God every second that passes by
The mystics have always emphasized that the longer you sit in Bhajan, the more time you give it, the maximum time you devote to it…the better….our dear Hazur…the perfect saint Kipal Singh ji Maharaj used to emphasize that we must sit in Bhajan for 3 hours, 4 hours…. for at least 4 hours…. please do sit in Bhajan for 3 to 4 hrs….Maharaj ji said even if you sit for 3 hours with dedication, you can have a fulfilling experience. But the life is passing by…. <BLANK SCREEN>
So, we spend most of our time in worldly matters, a lot of time goes away in satiating our appetite with food and drinks… and then whatever time remains in hand we spend that in resting. If any time is still left, we spend that engaged in our sufferings. Then, how can we devote ourselves to the Bhajan Simran of Naam? What is this Naam? Naam is Shabad/ sound current. The more you will attach yourself to the sound current, the better…Shabad is precious to the universe, Shabad is what energises and sustains the universe, Shabad is God, Shabad is the supreme consciousness…but only few fortunate beings are able to discover its truth. How does one realize this truth? The truth unfolds if you look for it where it flows. There, where you will find a perfect Satguru dwelling, right there this truth will unfold itself. With that tool of sound current we have to find the route to our true home. This is the goal of our lives.
Kabir Sahib was a great saint. He often used to say:
Without Shabad surat is blind
tell me, it should go where?
Until the door to Shabad opens
one just wanders here and there.
He is giving a beautiful message: without Shabad, the soul which is in the form of surat, lacks its identity. So the great saint has tried to make us understand that “without nirat (= shabad), surat is blind, tell me where should it go?”…(Maharaj ji repeats it again)… Kabir Sahib is saying that without Shabad…
“without nirat the surat is blind,
tell me where can it go then…
until the door to Shabad opens
one will keep on wandering here and there.”
But as we practice meditation we eventually wake up to both nirat and surat. Through nirat we visualize and through surat we listen. That makes us a spectator as well us a listener…. our real eyes open up, and so do our real ears. So as we devote ourselves to meditation we eventually become observers and listeners of truth. Otherwise we cannot hear anything, we are deaf to it… and also blind if the eye that beholds the truth remains closed…. the eye that can behold the truth is here (Maharaj ji is pointing at the middle of the forehead). When this eye will open up you will be able to see everything, when these ears will open up you will be able to hear everything… all this you will get to understand then. But if you remain blind and deaf then what can you really know about the truth? Therefore, the great saints have told us beautifully that we are unable to see in real sense- these physical eyes cannot behold any truth, these are eyes of Maya! What is Maya? Maya is nothing. It does not have any identity of it its own. It is similar to a shadow.
This world is like a bush tree which we keep peeling…we believe that maybe we will find something inside, maybe we will achieve something as we peel, but as we continue to peel we realize that the efforts are futile because we do not find anything in it. That is how this world is…. people are busy in gathering things, collecting resources, working on this and that …. but a man gets nothing out of it in true sense…. look at the greatest of people in history… they actually took away nothing out of this world, they came, and they left in suffering, but achieved nothing out of it.
Dadu Sahib has given us a wonderful message:
Dadu, stop being proud (of any claims)!
Fare through the life without ego
So many deals and transactions are being made
in this grocery store called the World
People claim a lot of great things- that they we can build stairs to the heaven, they know the way to the heaven…but they cannot do anything in reality, they cannot build any such thing in truth… they achieved nothing out of this world, they came here empty handed and left empty handed. Variety of claims have been made but nothing has been achieved by the claimants because this world really gives us nothing at all. This world is an illusion, a deceit.
All we need is to go within, that is all we need…. an inner journey, that is exactly what we need…so in this context Bhramanand ji…another great saint….has given a beautiful message to the world:
I have seen something wonderful oh saints!
Something wonderful has caught my sight
A well full of nectar hovering in the sky forever showing bliss.
Even a disabled one can ascend to it without stairs
And fill cups after cups to drink this nectar.
Bhramanand ji is saying that he has seen something strange in the sky- a well hovering in the sky which can satiate one’s thirst… So, he is saying that yes this is possible, he has seen it. In the middle of the sky he saw a well full of divine nectar. But how can someone who is disabled, has no legs, no arms… how can he go there? Someone asked him this. His reply was- indeed any disabled, anyone without legs, anyone without arms- anyone can and again and cleanse himself… and become pious.
So in the next shloka, Bharmanand ji is giving a beautiful message:
There is an eternal orchestra without players…
After bathing in that nectar as we move ahead, we hear an enchanting orchestra which gives the soul an indescribable joy and bliss. So Bhramanand ji is saying:
There is an eternal orchestra without players
Of bells, conch horns and drums
The deaf gains so much joy from it
And remains unaware of his body
It is being said…that an orchestra is forever playing within us, and it makes us so joyful that we cannot express it. The one who hears that shabad, gets so absorbed into it that he forgets about the world. One gets drowned in this joy…gains so much bliss that we just cannot put that feeling in words. This is what Bhramanand ji has very beautifully said in these verses.
Then one heaves so much joy that it cannot be expressed in words. When we ascended to that level, we find that the body has been left much beneath us…. this body is only a cloak… and who are we? We are souls.
A soul is so so wonderful in its form, it is endless and limitless, it is so magnificent that we cannot describe it in words. So in the next shlok Bhramanand ji is saying:
There are castles with no land beneath
No tools, no materials have been used to build them
The blind* heaves so much joy looking at each
And then wants to narrate what he has seen reach there and fill buckets of that nectar to drink it again and again and to bathe in it again
(*the one who has closed the eyes to look within)
So Bhramanand ji is saying that there are castles that exist without any land beneath… we just cannot imagine how they have been built without using any materials or tools… but indeed they exist. When a seeker reaches that point in his journey in meditation… then he is able to hear that sound and behold that light.
(Maharaj ji is repeating the verses)
“There are castles with no land beneath;
No tools, no materials have been used to build them.
The blind* heaves so much joy looking at each,
And then wants to narrate what he has seen”
Then, he is led to the path of complete knowledge. The knowledge of whole universe dawns on him. He gains that ultimate knowledge. Eventually, he becomes the ‘all knowing’. He would know and understand everything. And that eye (pointing at forehead) is then completely open.
Kabir sahib is also saying….oh he was very great saint…
Ram’s test (or path) is a tough one,
One cannot stand it if one is always lying.
Only that person can bear this test,
who learns to die while living.
So the one who masters the art of dying while living …practices dying to live and living to die only that person is able to clear this test…. this is a tough test to pass, only a blessed one is able to fare through it completely…. a difficult exam… a very difficult task….
“Ram’s test is a tough one”
… but a fibber cannot stay steady on this path. Truthfulness is important…staying honest and truthful is important to achieve that goal. Only the truthful one is able to reach his true home.
So Kabhir sahib is saying that the whole world is trapped in lies and delusions. Only a blessed one is able to walk the path of Santmat…. that person indeed has to be a blessed one. The whole world is in a web of lies. So many people enter this world and exit but only few get onto this path, not everyone is blessed enough to get it. A lot of people recite the rosary, some chant Ram Ram, some call upon Allah Allah… but all these are futile efforts. Different great sages have given different names to the God…some have called him Ram, some have called him Rahim etc , …varieties of names have been given to God ….which is fine but in reality He has no name…He is nameless (anami)…and only a blessed and fortunate one is able to know him.
You move the beads of rosary in your hands
As you chant, you move your tongue inside your mouth
But your mind moves out in ten different directions at once
This is not called Simran!You have been reciting rosary for ages
But have not been able to control the mind
Leave these beads aside
Get hold of the beads of mindSpells and charms are deceitful
The whole world is busy in them
Without getting to know the sound current
None can fare through
So he is saying that the world is busy doing so many things…some people recite the rosary, some like to chant, some are into charms, some read texts and pray, some go on pilgrimages. But nobody has found Him in these. Whoever has found Him has found Him within only.
So,
Without getting to know the sound current
Practising rules, rituals and ethics
with ego dwelling in our hearts
Says Nanak that this won’t yield anything
It is same as bathing an elephant in a muddy water
So whatever we do…. penance, prayers, reading of texts…. okay it is still better than not doing anything to seek the truth…atleast this way one is remembering the God….that itself is a very good thing…. because the one who has not received Naam, has not found the Truth,, where can that person go? If such a person is doing these things then that is fine… but until we catch hold of the true path … until we reach the stage of sound current…. how can we reach our true home? No, we cannot reach there. It is that sound current that leads us there. It pulls us up takes us higher. And hence leads us to the ultimate truth.
The sound current or Shabad is God, it is the supreme consciousness itself, it is the Lord of the whole cosmos, it is everything. So, how fortunate is the one who meets a Guru who is a living embodiment of that sound current/ Shabad!… That person finds the way to the Truth. Only a blessed one is able to find the path of the Truth. Only the one in whose destiny it is written to tread on it, finds it.
One marked one reaches the real home;
only they get to do the Bhajan and Simran of the God.
Says Nanak, only he heaves the bliss within whom the eternal sound current flows.
Blissful is the one, who can hear that sound current… within whom it flows all the time… only that person is happy in true sense else noone is happy in this world. Only the one who has this grace upon him, the one who is marked to receive it…. only that person meets a Guru who is a living embodiment of the Shabad. Only that person can catch the Shabad and reach his true abode.
So in Guru Granth Sahib also the great saints have said that:
Let Ram’s naam dwell in your heart
There is nothing like it.
All obstacles go away with its Simran
so that you can get His darshan
So it is being said that as you do Simran of the Naam…. which you have got from your Guru… and as you attach yourself to the Shabad, your life will become fulfilling.
“Let Ram’s naam dwell in your heart”
… you have to do the Simran with devotion…
“There is nothing like it”….
no deeds, no rituals can ever be at par with its power…. all your sufferings will vanish. Your life will become blissful….
“There is nothing like it.
All obstacles go away with its Simran
so that you can get His darshan”.
So all kinds of sufferings start leaving you. And eventually you get the Darshan of the supreme Lord inside. Then one feels that the life is abundant. There is not shortage of anything. So if that is what you can make of your human life, should you still look for anything else? If we can catch hold of the Truth and walk the path of Santmat and reach our home, what else would we want.
So
Without Guru none can get it
Not even by earning millions of good karmas (deeds)
In reality, there is no Guru from this world…in reality the Guru is the supreme Lord himself. But until we come across someone who looks and conducts exactly like us i.e. Guru in a human form who can communicate with us in our language, we do not understand him. Since the Guru enters this world just like us and talks to us in our language… we should pay attention to what he says to fulfill the goal of our lives. … So.. as is being said,
“Without Guru none can get it”…
the Guru is always full of compassion, mercy and love and comes here to connect us with the Naam. And whatever deeds and rituals we perform…how much ever we want to… they are all futile. It is all a deceit! So it is better that we understand this truth and start treading the path to our true home to gain that eternal bliss.
Nobody seems happy in physical body
Whoever I have seen has some sort of suffering
Yet everyone likes to preach
and claim great things
None is happy
Neither the householder
Nor the recluse
Sukhdev proudly renounced Maya
yet the monk is unhappy
the king is unhappy
the sage is unhappy
And why not?
Everyone is engaged in fulfilling desires and dreams
In every house desires and dreams dwell
As I utter this truth, none concurs
But I cannot lie
If we talk about the true path, nobody likes to believe. Nobody wants to walk on the path of the Truth. They want to remain as they are. They reside in a world of deceit and live through it. But there is none who is ready to accept the Truth. The whole world is in some sort of suffering. But we can get rid of sufferings only when we meet the one who can bestow upon us the real happiness. Until we meet that giver, one cannot be happy in reality….
“There is no real happiness without Bhajan of naam (Hari)”.
But what does the world think about bhajan and simran…. most of the people think that singing hymns is bhajan… singing sacred songs and playing music is bhajan for them… but bhajan is actually something else. Bhajan is listening to that sound current which is eternally flowing within us. When we are able to catch and follow it, then that is called bhajan. Without that bhajan we gain nothing. Without bhajan we will leave the world as empty handed as we were when we entered.
So, until we hear the Naam… which is achieved at higher plane… which has to be earned through practice… until then we have gained absolutely nothing. That is why all the great saints have given this important message:
“Without Naam you cannot fare through,
However much you may read the texts”
Some people read religious texts, some read scriptures, some read this and some read that… many of us our busy reading… but the path to Truth is not about reading various books, it is about practising and experiencing. Until we receive naam, nothing can be gained. So it is important that we receive the naam first. For that we should find out where can we get it, and how to get it. And once we get naam, we should practise maximum possible bhajan simran, sit as long as we can for it, take joy in it and aim at reaching our true home eventually. And you will definitely reach. You will not require anything else.
He walks without legs
He listens without ears
And without hands
He does variety of things
(-Ramcharitmanas)
You will be so equipped (because of naam) that you will not need anything else. Then all you have to do is meditate and reach your ultimate home.
The one who reads the four*, the eighteen* and the nine* quickly forgets whatever valuable message he learns
One who has not known the sound current
Is more or less like a parrot**
(* the four = the 4 vedas; the eighteen = the 18 puranas; the nine = the 9 grammar texts
** literally ‘chindool’ means sparrow not parrot. But here it means a bird that just repeats what it hears, without understanding any meaning.)
So those who read sacred texts or listen to discourses only to mug up the content have been compared to a parrot… that they are just like parrots…. they read something and believe that is sufficient. But reading will not take us higher.
You may read for years and years
You may read for months and months
You may read prayers after prayers
You may read text after text
But, in truth, all that this will do is intensify your ego
So reading will not take us anywhere on this path. Through practice you have to earn everything. Only then you will gain anything. So, meditate and earn it! If you have received naam then fix some part of your daily schedule for bhajan simran. Else you may have regrets later
So okay, this is enough for now (Maharaj ji meant this for satsang)… and as you have been told today, take care of yourself, if you are required to visit any places for anything then reduce/ limit your frequency of travels. If you have been initiated then spend ample time in bhajan simra. If you are not initiated then also you can remember the God/ Paramatma with any name. Devote the maximum possible time to remember the Parmatma because we are in tough times. It is a delicate situation.
All the mystics have said that, 2000 onward there will be such an era wherein the powers of both Kal and Dayal will flow strongly in every direction.
One will save oneself from the trap of Kal
Only by meditating on the Guru
(thakur) (-Surdas ji)
So, from 2000 onwards there will be such an era that we would find traps of kal/ negativity in every direction, only he who would remember the name of the Lord (satguru or thakur) would escape the trap. 2000 onwards… all our scriptures, vedas, puranas, saints… all have talked about this that 2000 onwards a vicious, tough time will come. We should forego our evils as much as we can and have mercy and compassion for all. We should love all and pray to Paramatma for everyone…for everyone’s well being… that everyone gets rid of sorrow. Even when we sit in bhajan simran we should perform them while praying for everyone. We should not ask for anything for our own selves. We should ask for the world. If you ask for something good for the world, it will bring good fruits to you too. May such a determination be part of everyone’s life that we are completely devoted to the ultimate truth (Sat) and do jaap of his name i.e simran. Even if we are not initiated we should keep seeking Him and call Him from within. And with that pray to Him humbly that may everyone get rid of suffering…may happy times return for all. May this world be happier and peaceful, oh Lord I pray to you.
May every sentient being be at peace
May none suffer from illness
Pray for everyone’s happiness and when we sit for bhajan then that also we should do for the whole world’s benefit. We should increase the time we give to bhajan to the maximum possible extent. Sit in a samadhi like state. Then this grim situation that has taken over the world will fade away. It will go away 100%. When everyone will sit in bhajan for the whole world it will definitely have its effect….If all of us across the world sit in bhajan like that then it is just a small thing that will go away. Only then it will go away otherwise not so easily. Good times will certainly come back. Take care of yourself. Wear your masks and take precautions. Limit your stepping out.
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