Sikhism: Part 5: INDIA AFTER NANAK

Sikhism

The Path of the Masters (Sant Mat) © 1987
By John of AllFaith

Part 5: INDIA AFTER NANAK

Hindus had always believed that, as the Srimad Bhagavad-Gita promised, "Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice ... and a predominant rise of irreligion, at that time I [Shree Krishna, God] descend Myself" (G 4:7). Therefore, as Prahlada Maharaja had once cried out for help against his evil ("asura") father Hiranyakashipu and received Vishnu's help (in the form of Nirsimhadeva), so too, they cried out to God for relief (SR 257, SB 2.7.14).

As Bhai Gurdas, a Sikh apostle, explained:

"Heaven at last heard the prayers of the people, Guru Nanak was sent to the world. The disciples met and drank the nectar of his lotus feet, and realized the Divine in this age of materialism (Kali-yuga). Guru Nanak reestablished Dharma. All castes he merged into one caste of man. The rich and the poor he brought on one level. From this Founder of Humanity a new race of love goes forth. In humility they bow down to each other. The Master and the disciple became one ... (SR 12,13).

Guru Nanak was born in 1469 (see note 22 below) at Rai Bhoeki Talwandi (now Nankana Sahib) located in Punjab province, West Pakistan (see note 23 below). From early childhood, it is said, the light of God shown brightly within him. 'He was born to deliver India from its oppressors even as, as stated above, Nirsimhadeva had liberated the righteous Pralada.' Nanak was unconcerned with worldly affairs. His sole desire was to know and reveal God, for "only He can produce true peace and justice."

At the age of seven Nanak was sent to school. As his instructor, Pundit Gopal Das, instructed the children on the alphabet, Nanak asked for the spiritual applications of it. Such significations are important in Hindu Dharma, but they are primarily known only to the scholars. The Pundit was unable to offer this knowledge, so Nanak proceeded to teach the inner significations of every letter, including their bija or seed meanings, along with their applications, to the class, including the astonished teacher. This first divine instruction ('gurmat') of Nanak so impressed Pundit Gopal Das that he took the seven year old back to his father and proclaimed, "Mehtaji (Nanak's father), your son is an Avatar (see note 24 below) and has come to redeem the victims of Kalyug (see note 25 below) (the age of falsehood). He is destined to be a world teacher, there is nothing that I can teach him" (SR 14).

According to the Detroit Sikh Missionary Center, non-Sikh commentators often say that Nanak studied extensively in the various schools of Indian thought. This, they say, would explain his amazing mastery of all forms of Indian philosophy. Sikhs reject this however, maintaining that Guru Nanak received all his knowledge and wisdom directly from God. He was, they believe, a vessel which God "filled to over-flowing with the Divine Light ('Jot')". His training, the little of it there seems to have been, had no bearing on his message (SR 15). The above exploit is intended to demonstrate that by the age of seven Guru Nanak possessed more knowledge than most of the teachers with whom he would have studied. That he did not learn his teachings from other humans was confirmed by his first teacher's proclamation. To truly master the alphabet would itself take a lifetime of learning. Guru Nanak was clearly God-taught. This is the Sikh teaching.

At nine years old Nanak refused to accept the sacred Brahminical thread, stating that he wanted only the eternal Thread of God: Such a thread, once worn will never break, nor get soiled, burnt or lost. The man who weareth such a thread is blessed (Asa di Var, Slok Mohalla, quoted in SR 17). In other words, the Brahminical thread was supposed to represent one's understanding and piety. Nanak preferred to receive that praise from God, not man. It is also significant that by rejecting the thread Nanak was rejecting the caste system as well.

For much of Guru Nanak's life he traveled extensively, preaching his message of love and devotion to the one God. One example of these teachings and travels will have to suffice for the present endeavor.

Guru Nanak once visited Jagannatha Puri (see note 26 below), one of Hinduism's four holiest mandirs (see note 27 below). As usual, he did not visit as a votary, but "to teach the people that the worship of God was superior to the worship of the deity" (SR 37, emphasis theirs). The high priest recognized Nanak and invited him to take part in the artik or ceremony. Nanak declined, which outraged the priests. He replied by raising his eyes to heaven and uttering a most beautiful Sabad (divine utterance). This Sabad reflects the Sikh view of God nicely:

The sun and moon, O Lord, are Thy lamps; the firmament
Thy salver; the orbs of the stars, the pearls encased in it.
The perfume of the sandal [tree] is Thine incense; the wind is Thy fan;
all the forests are Thy flowers, O Lord of light.
What worship is this, O Thou Destroyer of birth?
Unbeaten strains of ecstasy are the trumpets of Thy worship.
Thou hast a thousand eyes and yet not one eye;
Thou hast a thousand forms and yet not one form;
Thou hast a thousand pure feet and yet not one foot;
Thou hast a thousand organs of smell and yet not one organ
I am fascinated by this play of Thine.
The Light which is in everything is Thine, O Lord of Light.
From its brilliancy everything is brilliant;
By the Guru's teaching the light becometh manifest.
What pleaseth Thee is the real Arti.
O God, my mind is fascinated with Thy lotus feet as the
Bumble bee with the flower: night and day I thirst for them.
Give the water of Thy grace to the sarang (see note 28 below), Nanak, so that he may dwell in Thy name.
(Dhanasri Mohalla, quoted in SR 38).

Notes:

• Note 22: The Puritan Janamsakhi (biography) and Bhai Gurdas give the birth date as October 20 (Kartik) while others give it as April 15 (baisakh) in 1469 (SR 14).
• Note 23: About 55 miles north-west of Lahore.
• Note 24: Unlike the traditional Hindu definition of the term avatara, which is 'Incarnation of God,' Sikhs translate it as 'Prophet.' Again, Nanak is not accepted as an avatara in the Hindu sense.
• Note 25: Kalyug (Kali-Yuga) is the last of the four ages. It is a yuga of ignorance, hypocrisy, confusion and lack of Dharma. It lasts 432,000 years, of which roughly 5,000 have passed.
• Note 26: Lord Jagannatha, the 'Lord of the Universe' is a form of Lord Vishnu. Upon the death of Shree Krishna, a primary Incarnation of Lord Vishnu, his bones were collected and placed within Lord Jagannatha's murti(HM 129).
• Note 27: The others being Som-nath, Badri-nath and Vishwa-nath.
• Note 28: The sarang (chatrik or papiha) is a bird which drinks only when 'the moon is in the mansion of Arcturus.' The meaning is, when it is time to drink of God's water, Nanak is very thirsty and ready to do so because, as the bird awaits the proper time, so too does Nanak (SR 38).

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