Understanding Japji Sahib Pauri 1 to 7

Thank You Surinder for the explanation.

I am a sikhni, it's only recently that I have developed a great interest in Gurbani and the first step of course, Japji sahib.

It was nice to understand what we recite so often.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/jap-ji-sahib/15128-understanding-japji-sahib-pauri-1-7-a.html


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"Hukam'' or Will, itself, is something which no words can describe. It baffles all description. The real understanding of the Divine Will comes only by direct revelation to every soul. But, with a view to bring home some idea of it, the Master indicates the multifarious aspects directed by His Will. He then goes on to indicate the touchstone by which one may know those who have become one with His Will. The knowledge of the Divine Will means the destruction of the ego.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=15128
STANZA II

• All things are manifestations of His Will;
  But His Will is beyond description.
  By His Will is matter quickened into life;
  By His Will is greatness obtained;
  By His Will some are born high and others low.
  By His Will are men's joys and sorrows ordained; (1)
  By His Will (the pious) obtain Salvation;
  By His Will (the impious) wander in endless transmigration.
  All exist under His Will,
  And nothing stands outside.
  One attuned with His Will, O Nanak, is wholly freed from ego.

(1) The reference here is to the Law of Karma or the Law of Cause and Effect. Our joys and sorrows are all ordained-being the result of our past actions. "As one sows, so does one reap,'' is a common aphorism. Elsewhere, Nanak, has beautifully said: The flowing pen of His Will,Runs according to our deeds.







Nanak, as a great Teacher, anticipates the confusion that might arise in the minds of some seekers by the study of various scriptures. These do not always say the same thing about God's Will, but there is no need for doubt and skepticism: for what they really describe is not God's Will (which in itself is indescribable), but its various workings and manifestations. God's Will pervades and directs His Creation, but it is something more, something that is itself and above and beyond creation.
STANZA III

• Some sing of His greatness, but only according to
  Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=15128
  the power bestowed upon them;
  Some sing of His bounties, taking them as His signs;
  Some sing of Him as incomprehensible;
  Some sing of Him, as transmitting dust into life, and life
  into dust again: Creator and Destroyer, the Giver of life
  and its Withdrawer.
  Some sing of Him as at once the nearest, and the most remote,
  There is no end to His description.
  Countless have tried to describe Him, but He still stands
  beyond all description.
  His recipients may tire, but His bounty is untiring;
  Ages upon ages, Man has fed upon it.
  His Will directs the world;
  And yet, O Nanak, He dwells beyond concern or care.

God's Will is indescribable and the question arises-how may we become one with it? Guru Nanak replies that the best we can do is to sit in meditation at the early hour of dawn and commune with His Holy Word. Our actions and our efforts count no doubt-it is through them that we achieve human birth-but, says Nanak, we cannot earn Salvation, for it must come as the gift of His Grace. Guru Nanak, in the Jap Ji, turns time and again to this paradox, that Salvation is only possible through His Grace, yet we need effort to achieve this Salvation.
STANZA IV

• True is the Lord, True His Holy Word;
  His love has been described as infinite.
  Men pray to Him for gifts, which He grants untiringly.
  When all is His;
  What can we offer at His feet?
  What can we say to win His love?
  At the ambrosial hour of the early dawn,
  Be you in communion with the Divine Word
  And meditate on His Glory.
  Our birth is the fruit of our actions;
  But Salvation comes only from His Grace.
  O Nanak, know the True One as immanent in all.

Communion with the Holy Naam-the Divine Word- together with meditation on His Glory, is the "open sesame" to the realization of the One Being. Word is the substance and the power by which all life is made. Holy communion with its rapturous strains, is a gift that can be attained only through a Living Master. In His company a life of holy inspiration and love of God is followed and the inner eye is opened to see the presence of God in all things. Nanak had hinted of this in the prologue itself and now proceeds to describe the greatness and importance of such a soul. A True Master is not a mere human being, but has become One with God, and as such contains in Himself the powers of all the gods and goddesses. He is veritably the Word made flesh and blood. The one lesson that such a Master teaches His disciples is to meditate always upon the Lord, the Creator of everything, and never to forget Him.
Stanza V

• He can neither be established nor created;
  The Formless One is limitless, complete in Himself.
  Those who worship Him are honoured;
  Nanak, ever sing of the Treasure-house of all virtues,
  Let us sing of Him and hold communion with the Word,
  with hearts full of loving devotion;
  For then shall all sorrows end and we be led joyously Homeward.
  The Master(1) is the Song Eternal or Word personified;
  He is the Vedas, the scriptures;(2)
  He is saturated with the Divine.
  He is Siva(3), He is Vishnu,(3) and He is Brahma;(3)
  And their consorts Parvati,(4) Lakshmi(4) and Saraswati(4) also.
  The greatness of the Master, even if known,
  cannot be described with mortal eloquence.
  My Master has taught me one thing;
  He is the Lord of everything, Him I may never forget.

(1). The word used in the original is Gurmukh, which at once means the mouthpiece of God and the Master who leads His disciples on the Path of God.
(2). The Master possesses the knowledge of the Divine on which all scriptures are based.
(3). The Master displays all the attributes of the gods forming the Hindu trinity: Brahma, Vishnu and Siva, symbolic of the principles of creation, preservation and destruction. Like Brahma, the expounder of the Vedas, He imparts Divine knowledge and thereby gives a new birth to His disciples-the birth in spirit. Like Vishnu He protects and preserves them from all harm and like Siva, He destroys all evil propensities in them.
(4). Similarly the goddesses: Parvati, Lakshmi, and Saraswati are symbolic of devotion, wealth and learning. He is a prototype of all these virtues.

In this stanza, Nanak develops more fully the paradox just touched upon in stanza IV. One cannot attain union with God through the observance of certain outward actions, viz: reading of scriptures, saying of prayers, going on pilgrimages, observance of silence, fasts and vigils, performance of rites and rituals, all of which but form part of Apra Vidya which prepare the ground for creating interest for higher life and developing devotion. You may make the best use of them. But these outer acts cannot give emancipation. They are by themselves meaningless. What matters is His glance of Grace. If one has received this, one is blessed indeed. And yet, if Salvation depends on God's love alone, let us not live in idleness. A life of inertia can lead nowhere and God helps those who help themselves. No doubt Salvation is achieved only through Grace, yet one must make oneself worthy of the same. And the only way to make oneself worthy is by following the Path taught by a true Master. By becoming conscious of the Divine Plan, we make His Will our own.
Stanza VI

• If I may only please Him, 'tis pilgrimage enough;
  If not, nothing-no rites or toils-avails;
  Whichever way I look, I find that in His creation,
  None has won salvation without His Grace-regardless of Karmas.(1)
  You can discover untold Spiritual riches within yourself;
  If you but abide by the teachings of your Master.(2)
  My Master has taught me one lesson:
  He is the Lord of everything, may I never forget Him.

1. Karma: Action. This term in Indian thought refers to a very complex Hindu doctrine. It emphasizes belief that our present actions determine our future, not only in this life but in the life to come. There is nothing like chance. Man works according to a chain of cause and effect. Though spiritual salvation is not possible without Grace, yet, says Nanak, we must deserve that Grace by our Karmas or actions in this life or the lives preceding.
2. Guru: This term makes its appearance frequently in the Jap Ji and indeed is freely used in all the Sikh scriptures. It stands for a spiritual teacher and whenever Nanak uses it, He does not mean any person who sets up as a spiritual guide, but one who has reached the highest plane in the spiritual journey, who is no longer separate from the Almighty and has become His mouthpiece.

Through certain yogic practices one can prolong one's life and master super human and miraculous powers. But, says Nanak, these do not necessarily win God's goodwill, without which all is vanity. In fact, in a later stanza XXIX, Nanak unequivocally states that such supernatural powers, more often than not, become hindrances in the way of full realisation of God.
STANZA VII

• If one could extend one's life to four ages,(1)
  nay make it ten times longer;
  If one were known throughout the nine planes of creation;
  And everyone therein followed him in respect;
  If every creature praised him to the sky:
  All this and more has no value if God's eye looked not
  kindly upon him:
  Without His goodwill, he will be reckoned as
  the meanest worm amongst worms;
  And sinners shall charge him with sins.
  O Nanak, He bestows virtues on those who have none,
  and adds to the store of the virtuous.
  But there is naught that can bestow aught upon Him.

(1) Nanak here is referring to the ancient Indian doctrine of the four Yugas or cycles of time, which somewhat parallels the Western belief in the Golden Age, the Silver Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. Nanak makes frequent use of such concepts and doctrines from ancient Hindu lore; but He refers to them not in a spirit of scientific truth, but often as a Divine poet, who employs allusion and mythology to drive home His point.

Guru Ji gave us the way out of this bhavjal on the very first Ang.

Namjap's post #38 is awesome, however clarification on the following would be great:

Above stanza 5:
"Holy communion with its rapturous strains, is a gift that can be attained only through a Living Master. In His company a life of holy inspiration and love of God is followed and the inner eye is opened to see the presence of God in all things. Nanak had hinted of this in the prologue itself and now proceeds to describe the greatness and importance of such a soul. A True Master is not a mere human being, but has become One with God, and as such contains in Himself the powers of all the gods and goddesses. He is veritably the Word made flesh and blood. The one lesson that such a Master teaches His disciples is to meditate always upon the Lord, the Creator of everything, and never to forget Him."
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=15128

and above Stanza 7:
"2. Guru: This term makes its appearance frequently in the Jap Ji and indeed is freely used in all the Sikh scriptures. It stands for a spiritual teacher and whenever Nanak uses it, He does not mean any person who sets up as a spiritual guide, but one who has reached the highest plane in the spiritual journey, who is no longer separate from the Almighty and has become His mouthpiece."
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=15128

My confusion comes from:
1. Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji is our "living" Guru and is not flesh and blood -- is the author suggesting the Guru should be a real person?
2. Guru Nanak didn't have any one specific human spiritual master. I always understood Guru Nanak's references to Guru as being God (or an "aspect" of God which functions to enlighten us), or as Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji but never a human person.

Namjap ji, if you see this post, I would appreciate your insight please.

I am looking forward to a reply as well....