harsimiritkaur
SPNer
iqlµg nwmdyv jI ] (727) Naam Dayv Jee:
Bibi Har Simrat Kaur Khalsa
Guru Granth Parchar Mission of USA
(510) 432-5827 harsimiritkaur@khalsa.com
Namdev1270 A.D - 1350 A.D
When Fifth Guru Guru Arjan dev ji compiled Guru Granth Sahib, he decided to give some recognition to the saints of Bhakti Saint movement, of medieval India. Bhagats Kabir, and Sheikh Farid, belong to this movement which swept across the North India from 1100 A.D. till 1600 A.D.
Namdev was born in AD 1270. His father was Damasheti, a low-caste tailor, and his wife, Gonabai, in the village of Naras-Vamani, in Satara district of Maharashtra. Janabai was the family's maidservant, bhakta, and poetess who recorded the history of Namdev. He was married before he was eleven years of age to Rajabal, daughter of Govinda sheti Sadavarte. He had four sons and one daughter, Namdev was influenced by saint Jnanadeva, to the bhkati path. He spent much of his time in worship and kirtan, chanting mostly his own compositions. He roamed, about the country with Jnanadeva and the other saints, then later came to Punjab where he lived for more than 20 years at Ghuman, in Gurdaspur district, where a temple in the form of samadh in memory of him. This temple was constructed by Sardar Jassa Singh Ramgarhia and the tank by its side was repaired by Rani Sada Kaur, mother-in-law of Maharaja Ranjit Singh . In his early fifties, Namdev settled down at Pandharpur where he gathered around himself a group of devotees. His abhangas or devotional lyrics became very popular, and people swarmed to listen to his kirtan. Namdev's songs have been collected in Namdevachi Gatha which also includes the long autobiographical poem Tirathavah. His Hindi poetry and his extended visit to Punjab carried his fame far beyond the borders of Maharashtra. Namdev’s hymns or sabdas share the common characteristic of lauding the One Supreme God distinct from his earlier verse which carries traces of idolatry. In the course of his spiritual quest, Namdev evolved from being a worshipper of the Divine in idols, to being a devotee of the attributeless (nirguna) Absolute, formless one God.
Namdev’s religious and social views are very much like those of Kabir. He unambiguously denies all the four fundamentals of Vaisnavism. Though in his devotional approach, he is clearly a monotheist, he makes many pantheistic statements too, e.g., every thing is God; there is nothing but God; consider the world and God to be one; the foam and the water are not different. Chaturvedi writes: "Saint Nam Dev seemed to believe both in transcendence and immanence, in pantheism and nondualism. His devotion was purely of the non-attributional absolute. He also considers God to be immanent, everywhere, in all hearts, and the Creator of everything. Like Kabir and the Sufis, Namdev is very otherworldly. He says, "The strength of contempt of the world should be in the body an unchanging companion. One should lay aside differences between oneself and others, and feel no anxiety for things of the world. "Ranade also writes: "He (Nam Dev) tells us that it is impossible that the pursuit of God can be coupled with a life of Samsara, in which one believes that the material world was a place fragmented and constantly changing; this is the changing aspect of the universe. If it had been possible for a man to find God while he was pursuing Samsara, then Sanaka and others would not have grown mad after God. If it had been possible for him to see God while carrying on the duties of a householder, the great Suka would not have gone to the forest to seek God. Had it been possible for people to find God in their homes, they would not have left them to fond out. Nam Dev has left all these things, and is approaching God in utter submission (Abhg. 83).
Namdev's cosmogenic views are also orthodox. He says that God created maya and "maya is the name of the power that placeth man in the womb. "Indirectly, he is neither happy with the world, nor with the human birth. Him, shop, shopkeeper, men and everything are unreal excepting God. In this background he seeks release from the world and suggests renunciation: " Namdev gave up trade, and devoted himself exclusively to the worship of God.
The world being a play of maya and not being a worthwhile of spiritual endeavours, Namdev's made his goal to have union with God through devotion and singing. chanting, "I perform worship, sing God's praises and meditate on Him for eight pahar in a day i.e, round the clock. He stressed good conduct and purity of life. He taught that God created all men alike. Though he holds every person responsible for his acts, he clearly does not believe in a world rigidly governed by karma. Because he says: If everything were determined by karma, who created karma originally?
Namdev not only claims union with God, but, like Kabir, also states that more than once God miraculously intervened on his behalf to reveal Himself to him, or help him. Without doubt, Namdev's approach remains otherworldly both before and after his achievement. At one time, he even gave up work so as to remain absorbed in his worship and meditations. He never initiated any religious institution or movement. His was a solitary search for God, without creating any social or religious organization.
We find in his works arguments against Vaisnava doctrines, in his metaphysical ideas, methodology and goal, and more particularly in his otherworldly approach to the world and society, Namdev's views are quite identical with those of Kabir.
The legend about Bhagat Namdev is that at Gurdaspur Bhagat Namdev was asked by a king to show miracles which he refused as it meant intefering in God's way. Bhagat Namdev was thrown before a drunken elephant to be crushed to death. God saved His own saint. Namdev spent the last days of his life in village Ghuman.
mY AMDuly kI tyk qyrw nwmu KuMdkwrw ]
“I am blind; Your Name, O Lord, is my only support.”
What is blindness and what is the cure? It all depends on what is the cause of the blindness and if it is true blindness. No doctor will treat an illness without the patient’s permission. No one becomes a patient until he realizes something is wrong. No quack, doctor that has a fraudulent or careless reputation would be allowed to examine or treat anyone. The first step in healing involves being aware of the suffering. The second step is to use common sense and experience to administer first aid. The third step is to seek the advice of medical professionals. The forth step is to have a nervous breakdown on paying the bills. The blindness in this Shabad in not referring to physical blindness but ignorance. If a person does not have Guru Gian, then his third eye is blind or was never open. The first word in this shabad is mY, which means “I.” When we are ruled by our ego and five vices, then be become blind to the complete truth. We tend to go to extremes to find help. The purpose of our ego is to keep our desire to survive, so we don’t give up, so we preserve ourselves. But many times our ego causes us to be confused with reality, as our five vices are our animalistic instincts which act without thinking carefully. Our ego tells us we need support, success, and provisions, but our ego itself is not the support. Our ego triggers vibrations in our brains that we need something which source is beyond our selves.
mY grIb mY mskIn qyrw nwmu hY ADwrw ]1] rhwau ]
“I am poor, and I am meek. Your Name is my only support. ||1||Pause||”
What is poverty and what is wealth. What determines poor to rich, or rich to poor? Why do people want to be rich? The definition of poor is one who needs pity; "a victim of suffering", homeless having a shameful or sorrowful life, having little money or few possessions; having poor character, lacking in specific resources, qualities or substances.” The definition of wealthy is “affluent: having an abundant supply of money or possessions of value; "an affluent banker"; "a speculator flush with cash"; "not merely rich but loaded"; "moneyed aristocrats"; "wealthy corporations" Wealth usually refers to money and property. It is the abundance of objects of value and also the state of having them; possessing material wealth; having an abundant supply of desirable qualities or substances of natural resources); having artistic or cultural qualities of interest, of great worth or quality; fat: fruitfulness; fertile farmland; deep: strong; intense like rich red. great flavor "a great voice.” How to determine rich depends of the economic norm of society. If everyone only possessed five dollars, and a few possessed 50 dollars, and this is not a lot of money, then the few would be considered rich. People want to be rich because they want the guarantee that the will not be abandoned, alone, uncared for, as these are not evil reasons. Others want wealth to feed into their ego, pride, over-attachments, and greed. Although they think they are wealthy, they feel poor, empty, depressed, and fearful. They fear losing their so called “good friends” if they don’t own a huge house like the others do. The rich only associate with the rich, and look down on the poor, calling them stupid, crazy, lazy, or products of God’s punishment. Sikhism does not discriminate between poor and rich people. All are required to make an honest living. All are equally loved to God.
krImW rhImW Alwh qU gnI ] hwjrw hjUir dir pyis qUM mnI ]1]
“O beautiful Lord, benevolent and great God, You are so wealthy and generous. You are ever-present in every presence, within and before me. ||1||”
krImW God continually does great things for us by maintain the entire universe, providing us with oxygen, vegetation, water, sunlight, heat, coolness, ordering every molecule to operate, allowing us to grow and reproduce. rhImW The mercy of God is equally infinite. gnI Benevolent, compassion. He is just as real in all of us as He is everywhere else. He essence and grace sustain us constantly,yet we ask very little from Him. Here is what Guru Arjan Dev Ji says about God: imhrvwnu swihb imvrvwn ] swihb myrw imhrvwn ] “Merciful, the Lord Master is Merciful. My Lord Master is Merciful.” jIA sgl kau dyie dwnu ] rhwau ] “He gives His gifts to all beings. ||Pause||” qU kwhy folih pRwxIAw quDu rwKYgw isrjxhwru ] “Why do you waver, O mortal being? The Creator Lord Himself shall protect you.” ijin pYdwieis qU kIAw soeI dyie AwDwru ]1] “He who created you, will also give you nourishment. ||1||” ijin aupweI mydnI soeI krdw swr ] “The One who created the world, takes care of it.” Git Git mwlku idlw kw scw prvdgwru ]2] “In each and every heart and mind, the Lord is the True Cherisher. ||2||” kudriq kIm n jwxIAY vfw vyprvwhu ] “His creative potency and His value cannot be known; He is the Great and “carefree Lord. kir bMdy qU bMdgI ijcru Gt mih swhu ]3] “O human being, meditate on the Lord, as long as there is breath in your body.“||3|| qU smrQu AkQu Agocru jIau ipMfu qyrI rwis ] “O God, You are all-powerful, inexpressible and imperceptible; my soul and body are Your capital.” rhm qyrI suKu pwieAw sdw nwnk kI Ardwis ]4]3] “By Your Mercy, may I find peace; this is Nanak's lasting prayer. ||4||3||”
drIAwau qU idhMd qU ibsIAwr qU DnI ] dyih lyih eyku qUM idgr ko nhI ]2]
“You are the river of life, You are the Giver of all; You are so very wealthy.
You alone give, and You alone take away; there is no other at all. ||2||”
How can a life be compared to a river? The power of a running river carves solid rock over the years. The chemical of water itself is in every living thing. Every cell is mostly composed of water. The river houses many species of life and contributes greatly to the ecological cycle of life. The river carries many sources of food. The river is used in transportation. There is more freedom and ease of movement, because water is not restricting by gravity. When there is a drought, the rushing of water is the blessing for survival. Like the tsunami waves, if anything stands in the way of the waves, it is quickly swept away. The power of the force of enormous, fast rushing water has more power than hundreds of nuclear bombs, because nothing stops the rushing water. Likewise, nothing stops the actions of God. His hukam is always stable and infinite. scw qyrw hukmu scw Purmwxu ] (463, Awsw, mhlw 1)“True is the Command of Your Will, True is Your Order.”
qUM dwnW qUM bInW mY bIcwru ikAw krI ] nwmy cy suAwmI bKsMd qUM hrI ]3]1]2]
“You are wise, You are the supreme seer; how could I make You an object of thought? O Lord and Master of Naam Dayv, You are the merciful Lord of forgiveness. ||3||1||2||”
God has the exact wisdom to judge, because He understands all. With His infinite insight and wisdom, He analyzes and foresees everything that will happen in the future. The human scientist only knows from learning and experimenting, but God never needed experimentation. He is all knowing. vfI vifAweI jwxY Awlwau ] (463-11, Awsw, mhlw 1) “Great is His greatness, as He knows our utterances.”
hly Xwrw hly Xwrw KuisKbrI ]
“Hello, my friend, hello my friend. what is the good news?”
Bhagat Namdev here is addressing God as his friend. This friend is one who looks out for the best interests of others, not greedy or conceited, but faithful to the end. Bhagat Namdev trusts in this friend, for God is the friend of all friends, inrvYYru having no enemies, He is the true lover of all. Two times Bhagat Namdev says hly Xwrw because God is our friend both in good times and in bad times. He is faithful our friend when we are manmuks and when we are gurmuks. He never lets us down, it is us who act disappointingly against Him. We mingle into foolish, inferior lifestyles, relying on falsehood when God has already offered His open hand to assist us. When we ignore Guru Gian, this is like saying “No thank you” to God. He knows that His way is the only way to success. If you were drowning in an ocean and the only floating thing around was in my hands, then I would throw you the life line. But if you refuse it in exchange for a small dead floating fish, then I would not be able to help you. All you needs is something big enough to support your weight or the knowledge and ability to swim long distances. But perhaps I could reach out to you with my own hand. What if I do not know how to swim either? We both would sink. What is I threw you a fake floating object. You would be deceived. Well, many people falsely claim and sell their rescue products, and they have no concern for your welfare. All they care about is your wealth in their hands. We are living in the age where false advertising is suckering many people only for their money. Lot’s of money is spent on announcing the news, but much of the news is only what the money sponsors demand. Where the money comes in determines which facts and lies the news reporter includes or omits. Why are people so interested in hearing the news? The purpose of listening to the news is to keep alert of your surroundings and events in order to protect one’s self from potential danger and to know where current resources are. Other reasons for listening to the news is to quench curiousity. The good thing about the news of the Guru Granth Sahib, the news of Amrit Bani is that Guru Ji never exaggerates the truth, never falsely entices people into inferior quality. Royal Amrit Bani is the highest quality, the number one best KuisKbrI everywhere. Bhagat Namdev Ji in this shabad is acting like a reporter on Eyewitness News. He is the eye witness of the glory and grace of God for all people. We are all equally given access to the wonderful news. People get very excited about the championship football games. People want to be the first one to announce who won. Others can’t wait to hear the results. Knowledge of the winner of a major competition does not help anyone else. It is only the curiosity that is relieved. What will these top athletes do for you. They don’t even know who you are and they don’t care. But God is the super hero who plays the major role in our competitions against our five vices. We fight the fight of living truthful, but we become weak by relying only on our animalistic greedy, and ignorant instincts. God is the champion that fights on our side. He is the defense guard, He is the goalie that protects the enemy from scoring against us, and He is the offensive scorer. Everyone is playing this game of survival, success, health, and happiness. Everyone wants to win, and God wants all of us to win. He has, is, and will be doing His part. He is also the coach and uses His master strategies to instruct us. We must not ignore Him. He is also the supporter and sponsor of your team. He books all of your matches against your experienced opponents, your five vices.
bil bil jWau hau bil bil jWau ]
“I am a sacrifice, a devoted sacrifice, a dedicated and devoted sacrifice, to You.”
Like Guru Nanak, Bhagat Namdev has also devoted his entire life as God’s eyewitness to give us the live update of the reality of news. So do stay tuned in to Gurbani. Bhagat Namdev has discovered how to compete against himself rather than against God. Because of this, he has become the victor with the grace of God. He is in bliss, and he wants all of us to know so that we can be victors, too.
nIkI qyrI ibgwrI Awly qyrw nwau ]1] rhwau ]
“Slavery to You is so sublime; Your Name is noble and exalted. ||1||Pause||”
If you play on a losers team of conceited team members that are ignorant and not have the developed skills for the competition, then the whole game will be full of frustration. Do you know what is it like having a stupid coach and manager to make a full out of your team? Team members become slaves the coach. The coach puts all the athletes on a rigorous slave camp training, punishing the body with endurance exercises, running, stretching, weight-lifting. But the players are willingly doing everything the coach demands for two reasons. The first is they want to be at there best before the competition, and they don’t want to go on the play field with no scheme and with out of shape. The second reason is if they don’t listen to the coach, they will be forced to sit on the bench or will be kicked off the team. God does not kick anyone off His team. People disassociated themselves from God, then end up kicking themselves of God’s team. They become fools on the playing field of life, they loose terribly. But they think they don’t need the disciplines of the mind and body for success. The ego inside of them eats them up. Their brain and soul begin to rot, because if you don’t use it you lose it, then you lose the game to.
kujw Awmd kujw rPqI kujw my rvI ]
“Where did you come from? Where have You been? And where are You going?”
When a championship team needs a coach, what is the first thing interviewers ask the candidates for the position of coach? First they ask where they come from. They want to know where they coached before, if they have any experience, and what they plan on doing in the future. Every job interview asks these three questions. The candidates must be ready to answer each question carefully. The better the team or the higher the job positions, the greater the skills and experiences needed, and the progress reports are equally in demand. The best teams and the biggest corporations are very picky who they will hire. You either have it or you don’t. Even members of a team are carefully examined and screened before acceptance on the team.
dÍwirkw ngrI rwis bugoeI ]1]
Tell me the truth, in the holy city of Dwaarikaa. ||1||
What is so special about the city of Dwarka? Dwarka is one of the seven most ancient cities in India. It has been know for it’s beauty and architecture. It had well organized six sectors, residential and commercial zones, wide roads, plazas, palaces and many public utilities. The city also boasted a good harbour. Now the dwellers of this city worked very hard to make it so great and successful and beautiful. They went to great extremes to find the best artists, planners, fundraisers, and leaders. A successful city has elections by the citizens themselves in issues of improvements and leaders. Who do you think Namdev is asking the question? Who is the candidate? What does the city Dwarka represent? We represent the residents of Dwarka and Dwarka represents each individual person. We have in us a city of rooms and doors and highways of blood circulation and oxygen. We have a main canal of the nervous system. Our brains are the control center, the headquarters for the governor to rule in command. This is the place that tells the entire body what to do and when to do things. The body by itself cannot operate without the wisdom in the brain. The better the wisdom, the more success. The brain carries and receives signals to and from every part of the body. Pain is warning of potential danger. When there is an injury, the brains commands the blood platelets and antibodies to attack bacterial and to stop the bleeding. Every cell in the body has a nuclear home command center to operate the entire cell. Our body is made up of a ruler who commands the lesser rulers what to do. The whole purpose is for the body to be happy, healthy, and successful to win. And this can be done with no cost. You save your money and you make more, because you become healthier, stronger, wiser, and more productive. You will be able to think more clearly at your job, in your home, in the streets, in the gurdwara. You will be able to sleep better and make clearer judgments over critical issues.
KUbu qyrI pgrI mITy qyry bol ]
“How handsome is your turban! And how sweet is your speech.”
During this interview, Namdev is impressed with the candidates, turban. The turban represents his education, experiences and skills. You could have the best resume, the best skills, and the best experience, but if you say the wrong words at an interview, you will never be hired. Even if you are hired and your words end up bitter, foul, lying, heartless, you will lose your job. Namdev here is showing his appreciation to the wisdom of Guru Ji. He has found God and is giving his own documentary presentation and interview for a large audience of the entire population of the world. He is interviewing God in the presence of all of us. He wants all of us to know that God is the best candidate to rule our minds. He wants us to place Guru Gian in our minds to help us stay in business, to win. God, Guru Gian has passed the interview, and Namdev is announcing to us they Guru Gian is the best candidate to fill the positions of Chief Exectuve Officer. Guru is our new faithful coach, and manager and provider. Namdev’s analogy of the beautiful turban on God teaches us the importance of the turban in Sikhism. It is the head covering of our unique identity, and of authority, self control over our five vices. It is the hat of royalty, we are the children of God, the students of Guru Granth Sahib, learners and doers of truth. It is also the head protection in combat and from getting dirty hair. Your whole body can be perfectly fit, well skilled and coordinated, but if you have no mind to use it in fighting, your body would be useless. When a Sikh takes the Amrit ceremony, he wears this turban along with the other four parts of the uniform at all times. A soldier in war is always prepared in battle to attack or defend himself. These four gifts kanga, kachera, keshkee, kara, and kirpan were practical in use for battle.
dÍwirkw ngrI kwhy ky mgol ]2]
“Why are there Moghals in the holy city of Dwaarikaa? ||2||”
At this point, we have accepted Guru Gian as our ruler. When a new boss is hired, the first thing he does is review the progress of the company. He wants to know why there are weakness and financial losses. He wants to see ways to improve the company. This is where his wisdom and skills come into play to make the company into a productive, cooperative team. The Moghals were unfaithful Moslems who acted against their own faith and tortured people to death to accept Islam, a religion that teaches peace and the will of one Supreme God. There have been many faithful Moslems, but the bad ones give the world a negative impression of Islam. Many of these bad Moghuls were thieves and deceivers. They tortured Guru Arjan Dev Ji, Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, and the sons of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. The corruption of the rule of the Moguls was a serious threath for all of India. Guru Ji instructed his Sikhs to be brave, fight back, and live truthful. The Gurusikhs had to clean up the corruption of the land for a successful nation of everyone living peacefully with equal rights. The city of Dwarka represents our body and soul, and the Moghus represent our five vices that have no mercy. Guru Gian is the wisdom and power of Gurbani to help our city of body and mind to be successful, to win.
cMdI hjwr Awlm eykl KwnW ]
“You alone are the Lord of so many thousands of worlds.”
There are many worlds of existences, and there are many worlds inside and outside of the human body. We need to recognize this, as this is the first step to success, to acknowledge the new leader and coach. We have a choice of following our own or some else’s stupidity, or the sound, stable advice of Sri Guru Granth Sahib. The cost is totally free. God is not asking for a salary.
hm icnI pwiqswh sWvly brnW ]3]
“You are my Lord King, like the dark-skinned Krishna. ||3||”
Krishna gave up his life to rescue a girl from an approaching poisonous snake. He got in the way and the snake bit him, so he died – oxygen left his body and his body turned dark blue. The shabad mentions dark Krishna because it is a comparison of the faithfulness of Krishna in this story – so is God always faithful to us. God is constantly self sacrificing to us. All of the Sikh Gurus and Bhagats were a sacrifice for our benefit, so that we may learn how to win.
Aspiq gjpiq nrh nirMd ]
“You are the Lord of the sun, Lord Indra and Lord Brahma, the King of men.”
In Hinduism, people pray to Gajput “Ganesh,” the humble elephant-faced god for blessings before they pray to higher gods. Ashput shows a horse that represents speed, sovereignty, and royalty. Bhagat Namdev here is informing us just as are Ashput and Gajput are famous throughout India, even more so is God, only one, formless, compassionate, supreme God in control of everything. God is king of all, the Chief Executive Officer, the main boss-the planner, the leader, the purchaser, and the protector.
nwmy ky sÍwmI mIr mukMd ]4]2]3]
“You are the Lord and Master of Namdev, the King, the Liberator of all. ||4||2||3||”
Bhagat Namdev realized that there was not separate Gods ruling the universe. He understood that there are separate aspects of the hukam of one God influencing each part of the universe, but the main control center is only on. God’s doings are countless, yet He is one and complete in essence. In the word sÍwmI, the small half vava is used instead of the full vava. There is a reason for this. The first reason is to balance the rhythm of the line and to minimize the length. The second is to indicate that although God knows He is the best and infinite, He is yet humble and faithful, making sure that all the needs of the universe are met.
In conclusion, Namdev has concluded in his bani his documentary, interview with God, with Guru Gian. He is giving us the good news of his discovery. He is announcing God and Guru Gian, the new, faithful controller of his life, and how God is a blessing for us to. Since God has proven Himself able and faithful, dedicated for all time, then why do people still ignore Him? I have chosen to take the same path as Bhagat Namdev ji for the benefit of all people. I ask your support to give me the opportunity to come to your home, your gurdwara, your families, so that I can share the love of God and the wisdom of Guru, of how to use the Guru Granth Sahib to be healthy, happy, and successful.
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