And I totally agree... in fact, it is not the physical pages that we marvel at, nor the binding, or even the writing itself. What makes Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji special is the message it contains. So when people mention cases where a Gurdwara was vandalized or even if people have Gurbani tattooed or put on a kara etc. I don't see how anything can 'tarnish' it because its not the physical letters or the writing etc. Gurbani surpasses what is physical... it's the message that is contained within it and that can not ever be tarnished. And that message to me is spiritual.
There are many people however who only extract meaning from it that pertains to the physical world, and interpret merging with the creator to mean more as merging with creation... or just simply living in harmony with nature and all the rest of humankind etc. And interpret 'joons' etc as different aspects of human psyche, and reincarnation as just reliving bad experiences in this one phsyical life etc.
I do believe in everything you have written above, I also think we are getting bogged down in words, clearly I have an aversion to the word spiritual.
To me spiritual conjures up images of folks with their eyes closed, a blissful look on face, lost in some deep world, maybe lost in some deep connection. Now for anyone that struggles with this type of connection, (like me), that connection can only come from interaction with Creation, at no point have I lauded this as the only and correct way to connect, far from it, in every aspect of my life, from attitude, dress, social interaction, I seem to shy away from the herd, to want to do it in my own way, a heretic, an oddball, however it does bring to light the very (in my opinion) nucleus of Sikhism, truthful living. For me this manifests itself by way of giving, my time, my money, my energy, and at times, possibly my very life, although I am still here!
We are all products of our environment, of our past, of our living, I have spent too many periods of my life doped out, existing in a haze of maya, that for me, interaction with Creation, full on, with no thought of the self, the consequences, is the only way, I would actually concede that my complete lack of spirituality, is also on a complete par with my attitude to life in general, I give the same attention that I give to the health of my mind (spirituality), to my appearance, my physical health, my death, I exist only to serve Creator and Creation, thats it, end. It is quite a lop sided existence, but suitable for a madman. SPNadmin once wrote to me and warmly said that if I wished to live my life with one arm tied to one leg, that was my choice, but one day, I would see the sense in untying myself. I suppose what I am attempting to put across is that the way I live is for me only, I would never ever advocate it for another.
just that I think it contains multiple levels of meaning that pertain to BOTH this physical life AND that also pertain to the spiritual.
I absolutely agree
I am not saying that their interpretation is wrong.
well if your talking about me, I would not say my interpretation is absolute or spot on, it works for me, given where I am at present, but I am denying myself huge tracts of spirituality possibly due to aversion.
just that I think it contains multiple levels of meaning that pertain to BOTH this physical life AND that also pertain to the spiritual
I think on reflection your probably correct
Hence, it contains aspects of both miri and piri. Itself is the embodiment of both nirgun and sargun... having physical form and containing a message (nonphysical) The message itself also echoes of both - a meaning that can be applied to the (physical) life to live in harmony with nature etc. and also a spiritual message in the same words, describing how to overcome the cycle of (physical) births and merge back with the creator (nonphysical).
Now this just bores me, but that is my issue and my fault, while I was reading it, some chap walked in and has lost his facebook log in, I find myself reluctantly helping, I don't want to help, I have got a million things to do today, but it gets booked in, for a nominal charge, he leaves happy and relieved, I just look at the mountain of laptops that have all come in for favours, the people that wander in and want to chat, have a cup of tea, talk about problems, it is in fact, for me anyway, payback time, I spent years raping Creation, taking everything from it, abusing it, and now its time to set the balance straight, I have many many years left of restoring that balance, of putting enough back in that I can move on again, you guys, you are the free, all options are open to you, I on the other hand am in self imposed slavery to Creator and Creation, its possibly the only thing that keeps me sane. I am simply not ready for self improvement or enlightenment, for the moment anyway.
I know there are some here who only see one or the other though... and that's what this thread was about... and I am not solely on either side of the coin as you can see... I'm actually on both.
I wished to make my position clear, I think spirituality is a huge part of Sikhism, it is a workout for the brain, but it ( i feel) should be carried out very carefully, and with the warnings of our Gurus ringing in our ears, and in a manner that is in line with Sikh thinking and philosophy. Or you could be just like me and not bother at all!
What I do believe in is Gurparsad, when the time is right for me to shake of these shackles, then yes, by the grace of Creator, I will be able to embrace your thoughts and line of thinking, till then, I am going to munch on another doughnut, down a large energy drink, and try and give back today a small part of what I have had from Creation over the years. It really is the only thing that keeps me sane, giving, being truthful, attempting to keep my mind clean, trying to do the right thing, trying not to ignore when Creation asks for you to stand up and help, its a beautiful day here, the sugar is kicking in, the thieves are silent, after being so many things, a drunk, druggie, womaniser, etc etc, its nice to be a Sikh in the only way that I can., to make a difference, and to hope that one day, I get the connection from both angles, miri and piri.
I hope that explains my stand
