valli singh

Anurag Sagar is not in Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji, it is a seperate text written by Kabir as a dialogue between him and his top disciple Dharam Das in which Kabir ji answers in great detail very specific questions about the nature of Akal Purukh, Sachkhand, the origin of the soul, Dharam Raj and various aspects of walking the path of bhakti, as it is in the form of an in-depth discussion which really answers some very difficult questions I have found it really helpful in illuminating many aspects of Gurbani that would otherwise be difficult to decipher, the text is hard to come by, it is usually in Hindi, there might be some partial english translations, I think one was posted on sikhawareness a while back. Guru's Grace

Very insightful question, I suggest you read Kabir Sahib's Anurag Sagar for a full history of the soul's descent from Sach Khand. Based on Kabir Sahib's discourses therein, in the begining, billions and billions of souls emerged from God in Sach Khand, for 60 yugas they remained there in perfect bliss for millions of years, When the lower creation was manifested below Sach Khand, millions and millions of these jivas lost faith in Akal Purakh and left Sach Khand to go into the lower creation, (thus the 'original sin' or begining of karma and seperation from the Lord) These jivas descended lower and lower until they reached earthly incarnation, now their karma in that first life would have been based on their interactions in the spheres above earth i.e the causal world etc, not to mention the 'original sin' of leaving Sach Khand to enter the lower creation my personal feeling is that since these would have been the first humans they undoutably would have been very primitive and having a low level of mental development, they also would have likely progressed through other lower forms of life on earth to reach that stage, now from that first life which was based on their 'fall' from Sach Khand and their incarnations in the regions above this physical universe--the ball of karma would logically start rolling in the spectrum of predestination, also, even those beings very fall from Sach Khand was said by Kabir Sahib himself to have been Akal Purukh's Hukam (i.e it was predestined in the mind of God), thus even the very first lives of the first souls to enter the material world can be said to be predetermined. The basis is that the notion of predestination is a bitter pill to swallow for many people as they don't like to think that they are not in control of their lives, from a metaphysical/Gurbani-based standpoint--we do not have freewill and everything is predestined, Gurbani says that God's Hukam created the world, that is his will or predestined order, this is only a philosophical concept however, as I stated earlier, in this life and on our level we seem to have freewill, we can even believe that we have complete freewill to act as we please, but from a Gurbani-based or philosophical standpoint that freewill is illusory as only God posesses true freewill. Guru's Grace

jivan sakhi english

Well as Sikhs we believe that all of life is Maya, thus our actions are performed with the illusion of freewill, see the mind believes that the world is real and acts accordingly as in a dream, in a sense you can say it has fanciful freewill but what is freewill in a dream which is not in itself real? the mind thus performs good or bad deeds through the illusory body because it is attached to the dream ego--the soul suffers the consequences therefrom as is Dharam Raj's rule. it is better to think of life as a continuum (something that extends over many lives rather than just one) because we are the product of many past births, so the seeds of past births sprout in this body and we reap them, if we repeatedly plant the same bad seeds we continually reap the same ill fruit when we are judged. freewill is a mental capacity, if the state of one's mind at present is the cause of past tendencies then even the nature of that very capacity can be seen to be predetermined. thus our present tendencies and predispositions towards vice and virtue are the effects of causes from earlier incarnations so to answer your question, you could ay that we are judged for misusing the illusory freewill we falsely believe we possess, to state it more simply, a thief steals and is punished, if we are talking about freewill we want to know why he was punished if the world itself is not real and there is no freewill, the reason is that because of past lives of low thinking the thief has become a thief, thus he steals because he is now covetuous by nature, to go even deeper we could say that he has falsely identified himself with this false identity and ego (that is his real 'original sin' from which all his other sorrows come), what's more, ignoring religion he thinks that the world and it's goods are real, thus he steals them, now if you kill someone in a dream you won't be punished, but the world is a stage that is like a dream from the perspective of God, yet it is more real than a dream, it is a stage that people think is real, the freewill to steal that the thief thinks he has is really the product of his past lives of low thinking, to him it is real because he is a limited being--would it be just to excuse him from punishment for not knowing this? Hope that Helps, Guru's Grace

Sikhism says that everything under the sun is subject to Hukam or God's will thus God has foreknowledge of everything and evrything is predetermined and freewill is an illusion as we are too limited to percieve what is destined but really on our level it doesn't matter that things are predetermined because we still don't know what will happen, so we continue to act as though we have freewill, but as I stated above, when even our mental capacities and tendencies are predetermined then the actions resulting therefrom can be seen to be subtely predestined as well, for instance, if due to past negative actions/tendencies one is born in a family and abused, and has a low materialistic way of thinking, and that person innately harbors resentment and lashes out in violence can we really say that he has acted 'freely' when the hidden cause is the ingrained tendencies of past lives? Only if we do not believe in past lives can we so readily accept freewill. Guru's Grace

not sure...could be a Singh from Bopari Taksal (Sampardai Bhindran).

Your very welcome Brother, I'm sure there will be many more such videos on JathaNihangSingh's Youtube channel to come.

In regards to my comments above on Fate Karmas please consider the following sakhi regarding Guru Nanak: In Guru Nanak's time there were two neighbors, one was a sevadar of Guru Nanak and one was a sinner who visited prostitutes daily, everyday the two would see each other leaving and go about their seperate ways, one day the sevadar of Guru Nanak was walking home from satsang and he stepped on a really sharp thorn and his foot was bleeding, he limped with difficulty home to find the sinner rejoicing, the sevadar asked the sinner why are you so happy, the sinner said that while walking home from the den of sins he found a handful of gold coins, the sinner asked the sevadar why he was limping, the sevadar said because I stepped on a sharp thorn, the sinner then said that this makes no sense, I am a sinner and visit sinful places and I find gold coins and you go to satsang of a holy man and you get pain, the two then decided to visit Guru Nanak the next day and ask him to explain these events, the next day the sevadar and the sinner asked Guruji how the preveious events could have occured, Guru Nanak replied to the savadar: "according to your fate you were destined to be impaled on a giant spike going through your chest, but because you come to satsang it was reduced to a thorn-prick, this sinner was destined to find a treasure chest of gold and jewels but because he sins so much he only found a few gold coins" after this the sinner joined the sangat of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji.

There are three kinds of karma: 1) Stored Karmas-These are the accumulated karmas, good and bad from multitudes of past lives that constitute our 'debt' with Kal or Dharam Raj which must be cleared for us to attain liberation. 2) Fate Karmas-Are the portion of the Stored Karmas that are 'ripe for reaping' that is, they are ready to bear there good or bad fruits in the present life, thus ones intelligence, tendencies,station, position, caste, creed, level of success, major illnesses, time of death etc are all shaped from this mass of karmas, Fate Karmas cannot be changed, however, through meditation, doing bani, seva, they can be reduced, it is also said that through the intervention of a highly developed soul like a brahmgiani--these karmas can be greatly reduced though not completely nullified i.e, you are suppossed to get into a car accident but instead you dream of being in one. 3) Still-Accruing Karmas-these are the karmas being formed in this very life that will be worked out in future lives, as they are formed through our present actions they accumulate in the Stored Karmas cauldron to make future Fate Karmas. You will find many Sikhs who do not believe in even reincarnation and predestination, these are very intrinsic apsects of Sikhism, though many Sikhs believe in freewill, Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji preaches predestination--everything is already known to God thus it is predetermined, everything that happens to us in this life is predetermined by our past karmas which have given us our present tendencies and the inherent probaility that we will be more inclined to do certain acts, so even our Still-Accruing Karmas can be seen to be subtley predetermined. Guru's Grace

the 'Creation' section of Anurag Sagar by Kabir explains it quite well. Basically the individual soul is an emanation from God, so the soul can be seen as being the image of God, these monads of individual consciousness came under the sway of mayavic illusion and willfully parted from their source. While some of these souls stayed in the region of God as seperate entities. Upon liberation the soul can merge into God and 'feel what God feels', it can also withdraw itself from God an traverse other planes of being while still remaining absorbed in that same bliss, this is all possible when one forsakes duality by merging in the Shabd of God which will transport him to the region of the Lord. Guru's Grace

Baba Joginder Singh ji attending kirtan at Kotkapoora

Completely agree KZ.

how can anyone argue with someone who can quote Hamlet so readily?

If you read their scripture the 'Hagikure' you'll find that some Samurai Masters are purported to have fought without their heads.

Exactly, truth is the eternal reality, it is imperishable, only that which is without change can be true as truth is permant, all else is momentary and fleeting.

Truth is Unchanging, it is the everlasting reality, it is one and contains no duality thus God is the ultimate reality (truth), the pure supreme truth in the begining, past and future so He is eternal truth or unchanging clarity truth is one, it is an expression of absoluteness that cannot be reduced, God is not legal truth but spiritual truth or spiritual perfection. truth in this context can also be seen to mean the ultimate or absolute existence, truth is timeless, it is the essence of all goodness and positivity.

Yes, you are absolutely right in all you have said, the only way to get there is to begin by avoiding the maya-triggers that affect us like t.v etc and fill the mind only with positive images with that goes constant simran throughout the day whether walking, sitting, lying down during all activities then the mind begins to become absorbded within and it's outward wanderings naturally diminish, then one gets the peaceful realization that this world is just a dream.

Your very welcome, The above is a very high state that is usually only reachd in a lifetime of meditation, we should strive for it, but, even by meditating for a few hours daily, and constantly reciting Shabd in our minds, while walking, moving around etc, we can attain a measure of peace and detachment which will lead us to feel closer to one-pointed concentration on God and farther away from dulaity. Guru's Grace

Your very welcome, rajo means the universal quality of activity, satto of balance, tamo of ignorance the vision of God's light is a mystical vision where one passes beyond the above qualities and dreaming, sleeping and waking in meditation to see God in a higher state of consciousness this is a very difficult level to reach and it takes many, many years of practise.

Sorry, Thank you Sister! For the info, I really appreciate it

Gurbani Recitation Cures All Ills "In the times of Baba Nand Singh ji, the Maharaja of Patiala renounced Sikhism also in favor of Tantric practices, he began to eat meat, drink wine, use intoxicants and commit debauchery, after living such a sinful life he became very ill, as his condition painfully worsened, his court's people got worried and they asked Baba Nand Singh ji who was meditating near by if he could save the Raja, Baba Nand Singh ji refused and said "the Maharaja had peace when the Guru Granth Sahib was in his palace and hymns were recited therefrom--but since he has removed it his health has declined" When he was again requested by the Ranis to divinely intervene, Baba Nand Singh ji finally agreed to help, but he said "it is not I who can save the Raja, Akal Purukh will not restore him to health--he is destined to suffer in hell, but through the continued recitation of Gurbani he shall be healed, Under Baba Nand Singh ji's supervision 101 Sampat Akhand Paaths were started and through the holy influence of those recitations alone--the Raja was liberated from his evil karmas--such is the power of Gurbani".

In Sikhi I generally take duality to mean 'second love' i.e love for the world via the mind and desires rather than single-pointed love for the Guru and God, Maya is in fact duality personified because it creates the illusion of duality it creates the illusion that there is anything other than God, the three gunas (rajo, satto and tamo) are the reason we percieve duality in this world, when one reaches turya state and becomes a brahmgiani they don't percieve duality in the world, only One God everywhere. So to get rid of duality, first we have to realize that it exists and that it is an illusion, then by doing nam, bani we advance ourselves spiritually, but only when we have the vision of God's light will we truely be rid of duality, for then there is nothing to see but Him. we have to be beyond the waking, sleeping and dreaming states to be beyond duality that is called turiya or brahmgian pad. Guru's Grace

On the Power of Gurbani: Sant Darbara Singh of Lopon Wale: "By having the divine darshan of Adi Guru Granth Sahib ji and the holy hearing of it's hymns--the sins of millions of past lives are obliterated" "by reading and listening to the amar bachans or immortal praises of Gurbani and by enshrining then in one's heart--the mortal man becomes immortal" "make a rosary of praises strung upon the light of Gurbani and meditate on it so that the sun of enlightenment effaces all of your pains" Sant Jagjit Singh (Lopon Wale) Once a Sikh and Sant Jagjit Singh ji had the following discussion on religious merit: A Sikh asked Sant ji "Babaji why do pilgrims go to the Kumbh Mela? What merit do they obtain by so going?" Sant ji said "Bhai, by attending they have twelve years of past sins destroyed" The Sikh questioned further saying "Babaji, I cannot attend, but I would also like to have twelve years of sins removed, what else could I similarly do?" Sant Jagjit Singh ji replied "you can bathe in the Ganges or at other places of pilgrimage and the sins will be similarly washed away" The Sikh continued to ask "Babaji, those places are very far, you seem to be hiding something great, what can I do to gain greater religious merit than these simple acts?" Sant Jagjit Singh responded by saying "Yes, Bhai, there is something far greater you can do that will remove many more sins than bathing in the Ganges--simply have an Akhand Paath done, and place a vessel of water next to Guru Granth Sahib ji for the whole duration of the recitation, then after it is finished drink that water--it will have been transformed into the most purest nectar by having the holy stream of Gurbani pouring it's spiritual influence into it--this is the true pilgrimage and holy bath that destroys all sins" Guru's Grace

Bhai Randhir Singh ji "During the horrowing tortures of the heros from the Lahore Conspiracy Case in which True Patriots like Bhai Randhir Singh bore burdens of torment and long incarceration in the dingy dungeons of British Imperialism's worst prisons Gurbani was the Singhs only source of comfort. It so happened that Bhai Randhir Singh from his very arrival in the Multan prison in solitary confinement, could be found reciting hymns from Gurbani, many of the other prisoners were illiterate and had never even been to a Gurdwara, yet slowly but surely they began to read Gutkha Sahibs and recite the hymns like Japji Sahib and Sukhmani Sahib, in fact one of the Sepoys, Sadhu Radha Singh became an ardent Sikh and was praised for his melodious recitations of Sukhmani Sahib which gave strength to his tortured comrades. Over time many of the prisoners had memorized as many as thirty hymns from Guru Granth Sahib like Attar Singh, and when the British tried to punish them by handling the Gutkhas with unclean hands and eventually depriving the Singhs of them, it was to no avail because as the Singhs had memorized the hymns they now began to shout them louder than ever. When Bhai Randhir Singh ji was tortured by being shackled in the South Indian heatwave in a dingy cell for days without food or water, he and his comrades maintained strength by reciting Japji Sahib over and over, in fact Bhai Sahib ji said that their weight and health were restored and maintained by the holy word of Gurbani alone and not by any nutrition or physical stimulus. When some prisoners of this sangat escaped in a daring operation they recited Chandi di // at the top of their lungs, 50 British guards fled for their lives and the 8 Singhs ran to freedom, Bhai Sahib ji who remained in prison continually recited Sukhmani Sahib for their health and freedom. In fact throughout his darkest hours, Bhai Sahib ji relied only on Gurbani to give him strength, and even when the Judges and Authorities questioned and punished him he would only respond with verses of Gurbani to show that God alone can judge the soul and all is his sweet Will whether it brings pain or pleasure." Guru's Grace "Bhai Harbans Lal, president of the Guru Granth Sahib Academy of America has translated the whole of that Sacred Scripture into Shahmukhi, Persian and Arabic scripts for the benefit of many Pakistani, Iraqi, Iranian and Afghanistani Sikhs and religious scholars and readers alike. Similarly, Jaspal Kaur of Thailand has translated the Guru Granth Sahib into Thai and a Hukamnama is taken every morning in the head Gurdwara in Bangkok in Thai. Gurbani has also recently been translated into many other foriegn languages such as French, German, Hebrew, Spanish, Bengali, Gujrati and ten other Indian languages--thus spreading the holy hymns of the Guru's worldwide and in as many tongues as mediums." Power of Money~~~ 1. Most of us think that money has a lot of power. 2. We believe that money can give us ever-lasting happiness. 3. That is why through out our life, we struggle to earn money. 4. But can money really give us ever-lasting happiness? Gurbani reminds us that: Sukh Naahi Bohte Dhan Khaate (SGGS: 1147) 1. This means that even if we have lot of money, we can not get ever-lasting happiness. 2. Money can give us temporary happiness, but it can not give us permanent happiness. 3. We may not believe in this line of Gurbani. 4. So, let us look at the rich people in this world, and ask these questions: ~ Is every rich person happy? ~ Is every rich person healthy? ~ Is every rich person without tensions? ~ Is every rich person wise and intelligent? ~ Did our Gurus collect wealth for their personal use? ~ If money cannot give us ever-lasting happiness, then how do we get ever-lasting happiness? Gurbani gives us the answer: Sarb Sukhaa Har Har Gun Gaaye (SGGS: 1147) ~ Ever-lasting happiness is obtained only by Praising God (Naam Simran). ~ Naam Simran protects us - everywhere and every time. ~ Though Money can be stolen from us, Naam Simran cannot be stolen. ~ We spend a lot of time to collect Money; similarly, we can try and spend sufficient time to collect Naam Simran or Naam Dhan. Gurbani shows us this method to get ever-lasting happiness. Contributed with the Grace of Waheguru by: Satnam Kaur Guru's Grace