[salok] Bhagath Kabeer Jeeo Kae

[lowest of the low singhni]

vaheguru ji ka khalsa vaheguru ji ki fateh

kbIr AweI muJih pih Aink kry kir Bys ]

kabeer aa-ee mujheh peh anik karay kar bhays

Kabeer, she came to me in various forms and disguises.

hm rwKy gur Awpny auin kIno Awdysu ]8]

ham raakhay gur aapnay un keeno aadays

My Guru saved me, and now she bows humbly to me.

"aa-ee" = she

"mujheh" = me

"peh" = came to

"anik" = various

"kar" = assuming, taking

"bhays" = garbs, forms

"rakhay" = saved

"aadays" = obeisance, bowing

IMHO Bhagat Kabeer Ji is talking about the attributes of Maya and their influence on us in this Salok. It attacks our minds constantly, is thousands of forms. Maya is anything which takes our minds away from Maharaj - and ego is probably one of the most obvious yet most subtle.

It is difficult to know when a person is afflicted by Maya, because most people will reckon that it makes them happy. Maya can come in the form of things like family, friends, or the internet ( ).

There are three types of Maya; Rajo, Tamo and Sato.

Tamo:

Bad deeds - like murder, slander, thieving, rape etc. Obviously anti-gurmat.

Rajo:

Ambition - the thing which drives us to work harder for promotions, or to earn more and more money. Someone under the influence of this Gunn can easily lapse back into Tamo Gunn because usually ambition will end up in desperation, which may lead to sins being committed in order to achieve higher status.

Sato:

Good Stuff :wub: - like giving to charity, being compassionate. Under this Gunn there is not much aspiration for worldly or materialistic things. Most of the religions of the world will fall under this Gunn, teaching people how to live decent, moral lives. Gurmat is probably one of the only ones which talks about a higher level.

Gursikhi involves parts of these three attributes of Maya. Sato - obviously we need to be good people and help those in need, treating everyone with respect and kindness. But to an extent we need Rajo as well - in order to inspire us to earn an honest living, and to get us up in the morning for Amritvela...instilling the desire to attain a higher spiritual level.

The stage above these three is called Turi Avastha. This is when a person is living according to Gursikhi, and does good actions, but always selflessly. It is actually quite hard for people to imagine doing a "selfless" good deed. Deep down we always feel good in the end about doing it, and this can lead to ego. I cannot explain this stage very well because i've had no experience of it, so maybe someone can help me out here :wub: .

Anyway, back to the Salok.

Maharaj is the only one who can help us to control our minds, so that they are not being continually attacked and invaded by Maya. Once we beging to meditate on Maharaj for every second with love, ego won't afflict us anymore. Then we're pretty much sorted. Instead of us bowing down to Maya, Maya bows down to us. Then our minds will be in a complete state of equipoise and serenity.

:D:

~l~

vaheguru ji ka khalsa vaheguru ji ki fateh