Using The Mirror

[Wicked Warrior]

I understand that God is within us - that we all have the Divine Light that we need to free.

Can we face a mirror and bow (not matha tek) - bowing not to the image but the God that resides in us all?

Difficult for me to explain.

[KhalistaniGunMan]

I understand that God is within us - that we all have the Divine Light that we need to free.

Can we face a mirror and bow (not matha tek) - bowing not to the image but the God that resides in us all?

Difficult for me to explain.

god is in a dog aswell..why not bow to him aswell bro?....we cant matha tek to everything even if god resides in everything..otherwise your whole day will be spent bowing down lol...worship the lord in your heart and chant the lords name..there is no need to matha tek into the mirror as your worship of the lord is internal..not done through prostration

[singh135]

god is in a dog aswell..why not bow to him aswell bro?....we cant matha tek to everything even if god resides in everything..otherwise your whole day will be spent bowing down lol...worship the lord in your heart and chant the lords name..there is no need to matha tek into the mirror as your worship of the lord is internal..not done through prostration

well said.

Matha tek to Siri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. The Bani is God.

[Mrkhalsa007]

Fateh!, My dad said to me if you live far away from a gurdwara you can look in the mirror and bow and greet yourself ( Vaheguru Ji Ka Khalsa Vaheguru Ji Ke Fateh), also if you are two gursikhs, if you do path with each other and greet each other its the same, If you live far away from the gurdwara. hope this helped Fateh!

[DustOfTheSaintsFeet]

I understand that God is within us - that we all have the Divine Light that we need to free.

Can we face a mirror and bow (not matha tek) - bowing not to the image but the God that resides in us all?

Difficult for me to explain.

Brilliant! Of course you can, you can bow to the devil if ever you see him, and to God in him-this is a reflection of Nirvair.

Bow in your heart to every being that comes your way, remain on the floor in your heart, and never get up- for Ego is not called for on this path- we are All One- and All is One.

There is a sakhi that states that a boy was hit by a man- and when the Guru asked what happened- the boy replied, Guruji, you hit me.

Guruji said great is the one that sees the gurus face in everyone.

No matter how much you're hit and hugged, its all just Him doing it to us...

[innergear]

Yep lyk nirankar - i think meens formlez etc so matta thk in ur heart 2 everythin . Hope this helpz read bani n u wil hav guru wit u

[SantLUCIFER]

If you bow to yourself that's self worship? you can become hakaria [pride] - I bow to the pictures of Dhan Gurdwaras I have or i bow in any direction because the Master is present everywhere at all times.

[Singhstah]

To use any false image created by maya, be that an image of oneself a moorti or anything else, to worship or bow to Vaheguru has no place in Gurmat. As for bowing, apart from Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, who we bow to out of satkaar as our living Gurdev, Gursikhs do not physically bow anywhere else, this is a clear hukam from the Panj Pyare when we take amrit. By the same token as the thoughts expressed in the original post, one could say why can't we worship or even jap the naam of anything in this creation. However this would be totally wrong.

The shabad below proves that whatever we worship (even if we worship God through something, then the 'form' which we worship God through) we will become. The Guru tells us we must go back to our true home which is Vaheguru. Mool Mantar tells us the following qualities of Vaheguru, among others, as being sat (truth/unchanging), naam and having a moorat beyond death/time, beyond birth, self reliant/self illuminating. If we worship Vaheguru through anything which is not these things we will not go back into Vaheguru, instead, as stated above and in the shabad below, we will become that which we worship God through. This is why the only perfect way of worshiping Vaheguru is to meditate on the Guru himself through Gurbani and Naam as only these possess such qualities as Bani (and naam) is Nirankaar himself, as stated in Gurbani.

The Guru has taught us the true way to bow to and worship Vaheguru and that is to attach ourselves to Guru Sahib's charan, i.e. become Guru valay by taking Khande Ki Pahul, following the rehat given to us by the Guru, doing jaap of naam suaas suaas and praising Vaheguru through Gurbani keertan. What is the use of other thoughts or actions?

(I have made some amendments to the English translation given by Sikhitothemax, using Professor Sahib Singh's teeka for the meanings instead)

ਗੋਂਡ ॥

Gond:

ਭੈਰਉ ਭੂਤ ਸੀਤਲਾ ਧਾਵੈ ॥

One who chases after i.e. worships, the god Bhairau,at most becomes just like him, a ghost, One who worships Seetla, the goddess of smallpox,

ਖਰ ਬਾਹਨੁ ਉਹੁ ਛਾਰੁ ਉਡਾਵੈ ॥੧॥

Is riding on a donkey, kicking up the dust.(just like Seetla) ||1||

ਹਉ ਤਉ ਏਕੁ ਰਮਈਆ ਲੈਹਉ ॥

I take only the Name of the One Lord.

ਆਨ ਦੇਵ ਬਦਲਾਵਨਿ ਦੈਹਉ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥

I have given away all other gods in exchange for Him. ||1||Pause||

ਸਿਵ ਸਿਵ ਕਰਤੇ ਜੋ ਨਰੁ ਧਿਆਵੈ ॥

That man who chants ""Shiva, Shiva"", and meditates on him,

ਬਰਦ ਚਢੇ ਡਉਰੂ ਢਮਕਾਵੈ ॥੨॥

(at most what he can obtain is) Is riding on a bull, shaking a tambourine i.e. takes Shiva's roop, get on his way of transport and shake the tambourine like him. ||2||

ਮਹਾ ਮਾਈ ਕੀ ਪੂਜਾ ਕਰੈ ॥

One who worships the Great Goddess Maya

ਨਰ ਸੈ ਨਾਰਿ ਹੋਇ ਅਉਤਰੈ ॥੩॥

Will be reincarnated as a woman, and not a man. (because the worshipper can only take on the roop/form of what he worships)||3||

ਤੂ ਕਹੀਅਤ ਹੀ ਆਦਿ ਭਵਾਨੀ ॥

(Addressing the goddess bhavani:) You are called the Primal Goddess.

ਮੁਕਤਿ ਕੀ ਬਰੀਆ ਕਹਾ ਛਪਾਨੀ ॥੪॥

At the time of giving liberation to your devotees, I don't know where you go hiding, i.e. Bhavani can not give liberation ||4||

ਗੁਰਮਤਿ ਰਾਮ ਨਾਮ ਗਹੁ ਮੀਤਾ ॥

Follow the Guru's Teachings, and hold tight to the Lord's Name, O friend.

ਪ੍ਰਣਵੈ ਨਾਮਾ ਇਉ ਕਹੈ ਗੀਤਾ ॥੫॥੨॥੬॥

Thus prays Naam Dayv, and so says the Gita as well. ||5||2||6||

(Ang 874)

[innergear]

U'll lyk this:-) cos maya iz creatd by akal den can u worship maya as sargun sarup . Ps you shud get a medal 4twistin bani to suit u view . R u seriosli sayin u beta dan prof singh? Ha ha

[Singhstah]

'll lyk this:-) cos maya iz creatd by akal den can u worship maya as sargun sarup . Ps you shud get a medal 4twistin bani to suit u view . R u seriosli sayin u beta dan prof singh? Ha haR u seriosli sayin u beta dan prof singh? Ha ha

I realise that my original sentence which was, 'Some amendments to the translation based on Professor Sahib Singh's teeka', gave the wrong impression of what I meant to say, I have edited my post now, I meant to say that I have made some amendments to the English translation given by Sikhitothemax, using Professor Sahib Singh's teeka for the meanings instead. The translation of the shabad given in my post above is based on Prof Sahib Singh's teeka, I hope you are not suggesting Prof Ji is twisting bani!