The Raajsic and Taamsic diet excite the mind. For example, mark the behavior or difference in nature of a flesh eating animal and a vegetation eating animal! Also, different kinds of foods produce different effects in different parts of the brain. Intoxicants, tea, coffee, and spicy and sour foods, for example, excite emotions and passions, and weaken the immune system. Naam Simran is impossible with such restless and corrupt mind. To the contrary, the Saatvic diet calms the mind; hence very conducive for Naam Simran.
· Alu malu khaayee sir chhaayee paayee. Moorakh andhai pat gvaayee - One who eats filth corrupts his mind — the blind fool loses his honor (sggs 467).
· Jit peetai mati door hoyi baral pavai vich aayi. Apnaa paraayaa na pchhanayee khasmahu dhakke khaayi. Jit peetai khasam visrai dargah milai sjaayi. jhoothaa mad mool na peechayee je kaa paar vassayi - By drinking, his intelligence departs, and madness enters his mind; he cannot distinguish between his own and others' — he is struck down by his Lord. By drinking, he forgets his Lord, and he is punished in the Court of the Lord. Don't drink the false wine at all, if it is in your power (sggs 554).
The corruption of mind and physical senses go together. According to the scriptures, the first limb of the physical body to go out of control is tongue, followed by the part of genital. When the tongue is out of control, the genital (i.e., the urge for sex or lust) also goes out of control. Raajsic and Taamsic diet is very conducive for exciting the genital part. When lust remains unfulfilled it manifests into anger. As a result, man looses control over mind and body, and behaves as an animal. In this heinous condition, man has no possibility of becoming a Bhagta (pure devotee). The Gurbani asserts that:
· Mailaa khaai phir mail vadhaaye manmukh mail dukh paavaniaa - Eating filth, the self-willed manmukhs become even more filthy. Because of their filth, they suffer in pain. (sggs 121).
· Jihvaa indree ek suyaayu - The tongue and the sex organs each seek to taste (sggs 153).
· Jihvaa indree saad lobhaanaa. Pasoo bhaye nahee mitai neesaanaa - You are lured by the tastes of the tongue and sex organs. You have become a beast; this sign cannot be erased (sggs 903).
· Nanak kaam krodh kinai na paayo pusho giaanee jaaye - Nanak, by lust and anger, no one has ever attained God. Go and ask any divine (sggs 551).
· Urajh rahio indree ras prerio bikhai thagayuree khaavat he - Entanglement in the lures of sensual pleasures is like eating poisonous drugs (sggs 821).
As revealed in the Gurbani, from cradle to grave, a sense-blind man goes through 10 stages of wasting his life. Out of these 10 stages, in one stage man runs after only food and drinks. As a result, in the immediate next stage his mind becomes mad and blind in his lust. Baabaa Nanak puts it so beautifully as follows:
· Panjve khaan peevan kee dhaat - In the fifth stage, man runs after food and drinks (sggs 137).
· Chhivai kaam na poochhai jaatt - In the sixth stage, he does not even inquires a woman's caste in his urge for lust! (sggs 137)
Claiming To Be Equal To The Master
Essentially, there are two kinds of living beings: (a) liberated souls, and (b) conditioned souls. Liberated souls are those who have realized the Self, and, hence, have freed themselves from the sense-slavery. By controlling their senses, they have ascended themselves to be situated in the Pure Consciousness.
Conditioned souls are those whose senses, mind, intellect, and consciousness are contaminated by this mundane world or Maya. In other words, conditioned souls try to dominate the material nature and, hence, become subjected to its effects (i.e., lust, anger, greed, attachment, false ego, suffering from repeated birth and death, etc.).
· Ih tan maya pahiya piaare leetra lab rangaaye - This body fabric is conditioned by Maya, O beloved, this cloth is dyed in greed (sggs 721).
A conditioned soul has four kinds of defects: 1) he has propensity to cheat others; 2) he is illusioned by Maya or ignorance, consequently, he does not know his true position in relation to God; he has taken the body as his real Self; as a result, he commits sins to fulfill the ever ending demands of his physical body; 3) his senses are contaminated; consequently, he cannot gain Self-knowledge as imperfect senses are unsuitable to do so; and 4) due to such conditioning, he commits mistakes.
The scriptures provide us with an estimate of such conditioned souls in our human society. The scriptures also reveal to us that those individuals who truly abide Lord's name in their mind are very rare. Out of thousands and millions, one may endeavor for spiritual attainment, of those who have achieved spiritual attainment, hardly one knows Reality in Truth. This means that about 99.9 percent people are simply living in a state of mental delusion. This also means that only less than 0.1 percent people are truly interested in Transcendental Knowledge!
· Jan Nanak kotan mai kou bhajan ram ko pave - O servant Nanak, amongst millions there is hardly any mortal, who attains the Lord's meditation (sggs 219).
· Kotan mai Nanak kou narain jih cheet - Rare is the one amongst millions, who enshrines the Lord in his mind, O Nanak (sggs 1427).
· Manushyaanaamam sahasreshu kashchid yatati siddhaye, yatataam api siddgaanaamam kashchin maamam vetti tattvatah - Among thousands of men, one strives for spiritual perfection; and, among the blessed true seekers that assduously try to reach Me, hardly one knows Me in fact (Geeta 7-3).
There are four principles common to human beings and animals. Animals eat, sleep, defend and mate. Similarly, about 99.9 percent of men are also merely engaged in these animal propensities, namely eating, sleeping, defending and mating. In this abominable condition, mortals claim to be equal to Spiritual Masters or God. In such a contaminated state of the senses-mind-intellect, an individual begins to logic that: "If the Master ate Abhakh, what's wrong me eating it", or "if the Master did this, what's wrong me doing it". This is a heinous show of false ego and spiritual ignorance at its best! If a crow tries to be equal to a swan, he is certain to make fool of himself!
· Khasmai kare braabaree phir gairat andar paayi - If one claims to be equal to his Master, he earns his Master’s displeasure (sggs 474).
· Satigur kee reesai hor kach pich bolde se koorhiaar koorhe jharhi parheeai.....: Jealously emulating the True Guru, some others may speak nonsense, but the false are destroyed by their falsehood. Deep within them is one thing, and in their mouths is another; they suck in the poison of Maya, and then they painfully waste away (sggs 304).
· Hansa vekh trandiyaa baggaan bhi aayaa chyu. Dub muye bag bapure sir tal upper payu - Seeing the swans swimming, the herons wanted to do it too. But the poor herons drowned and died, and floated with their heads down and their feet up (sggs 585).
· Hansaa vich bethaa bag na banayee nit baithaa machhee no taar laave - Sitting among the swans, the crane does not become one of them; sitting there, he keeps staring at the fish (sggs 960).
· Sarvar andar heeraa motee so hansaa kaa khaanaa. Bagulaa kag na rahayee sarvar je hovai ati siaanaa - The diamonds are in this lake; they are the food of the swans. The cranes and the ravens may be very wise, but they do not remain in this lake. They do not find their food there; their food is different (sggs 956).
Since the senses of a Spiritual Master are all divine; they are ever in a state of perfect control and harmony. They have no material desires other than serving the Lord. During their stay on this earth, whatever they do is for the Divine Cause only, not to gratify their personal senses or desires. While the sense infatuated mortals (over 99.9%) eat or perform actions to simply gratify their senses and material desires. To justify our wicket sense tendencies, we say "If the Guru did it, I can do it too". However, our limited senses and mind as well as our false ego never let us inquire into a basic question: have we lifted ourselves to the Divine Consciousness of the Master?
The Spiritual Master is beyond the effects of tripple-qualitied Maya. His actions are selfless. As such, he only wants to help embodied souls for final redemption. That's his job. By doing this job, as the Gurbani says, sometime the Master/Lord can kill a being and then revive. Can we do that? The answer is no. The reason being is that majority of us belong to the 99.9 percent category, having our soul covered with rubbish of limited senses, limited mind, and inflated ego!
· Satgur meraa maar jivaalai - My True Guru Himself slays and then revives (sggs 1142).
· Aape maare jeevaale aape tis no til na tamaayee - The Lord Homself slays and himself revives, he does not have an iota of averice (sggs 912).
To justify Abhakh diet, the Abhakh eaters often quote the following verse of Baabaa Nanak: "Maas maas kari moorakh jhagre...: The fools argue about flesh and meat, but they know nothing about meditation and spiritual wisdom.... (sggs 1289).
Firstly, have we raised our consciousness to the level of Baabaa Nanak? If someone has become Baabaa Nanak (that is, Braham Giani), then for him there is no questions or answers, birth or death, light or darkness, good or bad, sin or virtues, this or that; for he has become living liberated (Jeevan Mukta). If not, then one needs every help he can get to reach to the mental state of Baabaa Nanak! Otherwise Naam Simran, meditation, Gurmantra, selfless Sevaa, devotion or Bhagti, scriptural study, religion, Dharma, Kirtan, Satsang, etc., has no meaning!
Secondly, as repeatedly declared in the Gurbani, the only cause of Jeeva's bondage is enjoyment for sense gratification. The Guru who has declared this countless times in the Gurbani, how the same Guru can encourage Jeevas to enjoy sense pleasures? He cannot, because he is born to redeem the humanity from their bondage, not other way around! A true Guru, thus, cannot contradict himself. All contradictions exist in our sense infatuated consciousness. If any Shabad or verse is viewed esoterically in line with the spirit of the entire SGGS, one will not see any confusion or problem there.
The name 'Sikh' is not a social status or a title; it's a state one has to reach. And, as repeatedly declared in the Gurbani, one cannot reach there with affinity for sense gratification. Therefore, if one is a true 'Sikh' (i.e., spiritual seeker), then how he or she can even think of sense gratification in the first place? Knowing that spirituality and sense gratification are of opposing nature, now, how in the world a noble spiritual Master and a Teacher like Baabaa Nanak can encourage any 'Sikh' to engage in sense gratification? It is the instinctive or the desire-mind which has been swayed by the life's sensuousness entertains the exoteric meanings of the scriptural statements. In fact we are urged not once, but several thousands of times in the Gurbani to kill this desire-mind which entertains the thoughts of sense gratification! If we don't, then we cannot realize our Spiritual Nature.
Thirdly, if we read the rest of the Shabad from which this verse is quoted, then we will realize that the whole Shabad was spoken to the hypocritical Pandits (Pujaarees), who pretended to be pure on the outside, but were impure on the inside. In their prejudices and false pride, these Pujaarees usually pretend of maintaining superficial cleanliless by, for example, protecting their body, kitchen or food from being touched by anybody else.
The Gurbani tells us that the taste of the elixir of Lord's Name and the other taste of worldly objects are of the opposing nature. Accordingly, no true Spiritual Master will ever encourage his disciples to engage in consuming Abhakh which is unconducive to spiritual progress. It is a shear jealousy that leads an immature and unawakened Jeeva to act like being equal to the Master. Perhaps not knowing that the jealousy only retards spiritual progress in the seeker! Baabaa Nanak reveals the Truth to us as follows:
· Satigur kee reesai hori kachu pichu bolde se koorhiyaa koorhe jharhi parheeyai. Onaa andar hor mukh hor hai bikh maya no jhakhi marde karheeyai: Jealously emulating the True Guru, some others may speak of good and bad, but the false are destroyed by their falsehood. Deep within them is one thing, and in their mouths is another; they suck in the poison of Maya, and then they painfully waste away (sggs 304).
· Kali hoee kute muhee khaaj hoyaa murdaar - In this Dark Age of Kali Yuga, people have faces like dogs; they eat rotting dead bodies for food (sggs 1242).
· Ras suyinaa ras rupaa kaaman ras parmal kee vaas. Ras ghore ras sejaa mandar ras meethaa ras maas. eto ras sareer ke kai ghat Naam nivaas - The pleasures of gold and silver, the pleasures of women, the pleasure of the fragrance of sandalwood, the pleasure of horses, the pleasure of a soft bed in a palace, the pleasure of sweet treats and the pleasure of eating meat—such pleasures of the human body are so numerous; how can the Naam, the Name of the Lord, find its dwelling in the heart (sggs 15)?
In the following Shabad, Baabaa Nanak gives us the characteristics of this age of Kal Yuga we are living in. In this Shabad, Baabaa Nanak makes it very clear as to who in Kal Yuga eat meat of killed animals, and why they eat it! Baabaa Nanak declares that in this age of ignorance, people have mouth like that of a "dog", and, thereby, they eat dead animals for food as the dog eats dead carcasses! Why? Because people are devoid of Dharma and Vichaar (spiritual or inner reflections or inquiry); consequently, we bark only falsehood!
· SHALOK, FIRST MEHL: Kali hoyee kutte muhee khaaj hoyaa murdaar. Koorh boli boli bhayukanaa chookaa dharam beechaar. Jin jeevandiyaa pati nahee muyiaa mandee soi.....: In this Dark Age of Kali Yuga, people have faces like dogs; they eat dead animals for food. They bark and speak, telling only lies; Dharma and Vichaar have left them. Those who have no honor while alive, will have an evil reputation after they die. Whatever is predestined, happens, O Nanak; whatever the Creator does, comes to pass. || 1 || FIRST MEHL: Women are made weak (suppressed by men), and men have become their captor or Sayyaad (Sayyaad means a hunter who captures the Bulbul birds and encages them). Humility, self-control and purity have run away; people eat the uneatable, forbidden food. Modesty has left her home, and honor has gone away with her. O Nanak, there is only One True Lord; do not bother to search for any other as true || 2 || (sggs 1242).
· SHALOK, FIRST MEHL: Je ratu lagai kaprhaia jaamaa hoi pleet. Jo ratu pevahi maansaa tin kiyu nirmal cheet: Clothes stained with blood become impure. Similarly, O man, if you consume blood (and flesh, etc.) of other beings, then how you can have pure consciousness! (sggs 140).
· Jayu sabh mahi ek Khudaai kahat hau tau kiyon murgee maarai. Mullaan kahahu niaau Khudaaee. Tere mann kaa bharam na jaaee: You say that the One Lord is in all, so why do you kill chickens? O Mullah, tell me: is this God’s Justice? The doubts of your mind have not been dispelled (sggs 1350).
· Sarjeeu kaatahi nirjeeu poojahi ant kaal kau bhaaree: You kill living beings and worship lifeless things; at your very last moment, you will suffer in terrible pain (sggs 332).
Clearly, the reason people label gurus for eating "Abhakh" is: (a) they themselves are addicted to consuming "Abhakh", and (b) they lack understanding of the Divine Word. In truth, when it comes to consuming Abhakh, the Gurbani teaches us in a strong language to stop living a life of a "dog", and start living a life of a Gurmukh (spiritual being). To this end, in the following Shabads, we are told to make "modesty" and the "Love for God" the "dish of meat". This is declared by the Gurbani to be the "true food" of a spiritual seeker! How wonderful!
· Kali kalvaalee kaam mad manooyaa peevanhaar......: The Dark Age of Kali Yuga is the vessel, filled with the wine of sex; the mind is the drinker. Anger is the cup, filled with emotional attachment; egotism is the bartender. Drinking too much in the company of falsehood and greed, one is ruined. So let good deeds be your distillery, and let Truth be the molasses you ferment; make the most excellent wine of Truth. Make virtue your bread, good conduct the ghee, and modesty the dish of meat. By becoming a Gurmukh, these are obtained, O Nanak; consuming them, evil and corruption depart (sggs 553).
· Kaayaa laahani aap mad majlas trisnaa dhaat.......: The body is the bottle, self-conceit is the wine, and desire is the company of drinking buddies. The glass of the mind’s longing is filled to overflowing with falsehood; the Messenger of Death is the bartender. Drinking in this wine, O Nanak, one takes on countless vices and corruption. So make spiritual wisdom your molasses, and the Praise of God your bread; let the Love of God be the dish of meat. O Nanak, this is the true food; let the True Name be your only Support. || 2 || If the human body is the pitcher, and Self-realization is the wine, then the Ambrosial Nectar streams down. Joining the Sat Sangat, the glass of the Lord’s Love is filled with this Ambrosial Nectar; drinking it in, one’s evil and corruption are eradicated (sggs 553).
· Jo dhoojai bhaae saakuth kaamunaa arathh dhurugu(n)dhh suraevudhae so nihuful subh agiaan: The faithless cynics in their love of duality and sensual desires, harbor foul-smelling urges. They are totally useless and ignorant (sggs 734).
However, unfortunately, in order to gratify corrupt senses and deluded mind, the material seekers do not hesitate to blame, charge or label even gurus for things they never did! We are "Kache" (unripe or false); and in this state of "Kach Nikach" (falsest of the false) we eat and drink Abhakh (unnatural diet) and label our gurus for doing the same. This is how the man's corrupt and stubborn passion for sensuousness is! The Gurbani reveals to us that this sense-slavery cannot stop until one abides in the Naam.
· Bedu parhe mukhi meethee baanee. Jeeaan kuhat na sangai praanee: With his mouth, he recites the scriptures in sweet musical measures, and yet he does not hesitate to take the lives of others (sggs 201).
· Rojaa dharai manaavai Alahu suaadati jeea sanghaarai. Aapaa dekhi avar nahee dekhai kaahe kayu jhakh maarai: You keep your fasts to please Allah, while you murder other beings for pleasure. You look after your own interests, and so not see the interests of others. What good is your word? (sggs 483).
· Deesut maas n khaae bilaaee. Mehaa kusaab shhuree satt paaee. Kurunehaar prubh hirudhai voot(h)aa. Faathhee mushhulee kaa jaalaa thoottaa: The cat sees the meat, but does not eat it, and the great butcher throws away his knife; the Lord abides in the heart; the net holding the fish breaks apart (sggs 898).
We can become pure on the inside by following the injunctions of the scriptures; which include many regulations. If one has lifted himself to the transcendental state of Baabaa Nanak, he is Jeevan Mukata; thereby none of the regulations apply to him. Otherwise, the underlying message of the following verses applies to rest of us.
· Jo priyaa maane tin kee reesaa. Koore moorakh kee haatheesaa - The mortal competes with those who have been accepted by the Beloved Lord. This is how stubborn the false fool is (sggs 738).
· Hari bin kashu na lagayee bhagtan kayu meethaa. Aan suaad sabh feekiyaa kari nirnayu deethaa - Nothing seems sweet to His devotees, except the Lord. All other tastes are bland and insipid; I have tested them and seen them (sggs 708).
