Jap-the missing link

One creator present as one essence everywhere, whose name is the truth, architect of the universe, who has no fear, and no animosity, eternally consistent, eternally present, who is able to give direction

Jap-meditate

this essence entered into you at birth, remains with you your entire life, and is inside you as long as you exist, on death, this essence lives on, being shared with everything you have interacted with, either physically, emotionally and mentally.

The concept for this thread came to me a few days ago, I am not a big one for meditation, so how does the repeating of bani on a daily basis sit with me, given one day I hope to be Amritdhari. Also the hair, where does that fit in..

The way I now look at it, the hair which also has the Creator present in it, is what physically connects us to the world, it is in contact with the air round us, it is the first thing that touches another person, when you touch an arm, or a face of a loved one, the hair makes us whole, makes it easier to connect with the creator's essence within us all, I wonder if there are different levels of connection, does a man with kesh but cut beard have a partial connection better than say one with a full beard, is there any point in doing this by halves? I think it is a mental attitude as well, if you can kid yourself into thinking that you are pretty much 90% keshdhari, and in your mind that is enough, does that attitude propagate throughout you, if 90% is enough, 80% will probably do, on a bad day, maybe 75%, you make deals with yourself, you ride the middle ground, I think this is completely acceptable for most people, but if you want the message in its entirety without blanks, clearly it has to be 100%.

As for daily prayers said twice a day, I think the first prayer is to get you ready for the day, your role in the soap opera that is your life, to remember how to act, how to talk, how to think, to remind yourself how a sikh behaves, and the night prayer, to go over the day, to see how you did, to feel happy that you acted in accordance with the Creators essence, to feel maybe you need to try harder if you failed, however, for these prayers to have an effect, surely they must be recited with the days events in mind, both before and after, deep thought must surely need to go into the thinking, each line must be remembered and applied to that day, to your life, to you, otherwise, surely it is just lip service, ritual and pointless
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/gurmat-vichaar/37374-jap-the-missing-link.html

so, finally, and my most grateful thanks to Ambersariaji for his inspiration in coming to this point, here is my own interpretation of the first 10 lines of Japji Sahib


One creator present as one essence everywhere, whose name is the truth, architect of the universe, who has no fear, and no animosity, eternally consistent, eternally present, who is able to give direction, embrace these concepts and apply them, this essence entered into you at birth, remains with you your entire life, and is inside you as long as you exist, on death, this essence lives on, being shared with everything you have interacted with, either physically, emotionally and mentally.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=37374

or., to take the highlights from each individual post

Treat all life as you would treat yourself, be truthful and honest in all interaction, in this spirit of equality and honesty, plant your seeds, both in action, thought, and voice, to rid yourself of fear and animosity, but always be true to the part of Creator you have connected with already, have faith and trust that part of you, listen to it, it will never change, it cannot be swayed, it is the truth, apply these concepts to your life, plan your day with these concepts in mind, review your day by these concepts, remember this essence entered into you at birth, remains with you your entire life, and is inside you as long as you exist, on death, this essence lives on, being shared with everything you have interacted with, either physically, emotionally and mentally.

 
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