SACRAMENTO, CA: The 1993 Inter faith Service Bureau Basher Dinner was held at Sacramento Sikh Temple on Sept.27. Nearly 150 representatives from different religi ons attended the function. The lecture and discussion session lasted foroveriwo hours and the audience enjoyed the function, Speaking on behalf of the Sikh Temple Giani Wadhawa Singh delivered a discourse on spiritual attainment in this life.
It is heartening to know that an ordinary human being, engrossed in the daily routine of worldly duties and responsibilities, can become Godlike while living. We can be His true representatives, reflecting God in all His attributes. We have examples of this in the Gurus and Prophets of the world and it is also written in Holy Scriptures:
“He, who in his hean dwelleth upon God is an Emancipated Soul.
Between him and the Lord therc is not distinction whatsoever.
Accept thou this as truth, O Nanak.” [Guru Granth Sahib P.1428] and again:
“He who loveth from his soul the Lord’s will Attaineth Deliverance while yet alive.” (Guru Granth Sahib P.275]
The Holy Bible says:
“Be ye therefore perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect.” [Matthew 5:48] and again:
“Let man understand that it is not the Father’s will that they should perish, but that they should have abundant life.”
{Matthew 18:14, John 10:10)
Thus, if we achieve this highest Spiritual position, we will be Godlike, immersed in the etemal Bliss of God’s Presence, and shall be above pain, grief, sorrow and mental worries, while yet living in this worldly lifespan. When we are perfected Until the Holy Spirit manifests itself in a person, that person cannot be considered as Perfect. The Holy Spirit of God is recognizable. Absolute God is manifest through His own Spirit only, it is this Spirit that creates, sustains and governs the Universe. It is present in everything and every human being. When it is manifest in the Soul, God’s Divine Light will be visible to the Consciousness, and His Presence will be perceived by the Soul. These are the (woo main features of the Spirit of God, Sikh Gurus have called this Holy Spirit: “Name of God.”
“Name” here means the “Person” or “Self of God. Hence, in the Holy Scripture of the Sikhs, it is written:
“The fortunate and blessed are brides, who meet with God, the King, through the Guru.
The Divine Light shines within them and they merge in His Name,” {Guru Granth Sahib P.142)
The Holy Bible speaks of His presence:
“Tam” the Name of God given to Moses:”l Am That i Am.” {Exodus 3:1315} and about Light and Creation, it says: “In the Great forever, in the beginningness of all things God saw Light and He was Light.
Out of this Light went forth the Beauty of living purpose and in Him was no darkness at all nor could there be darkness there.” (John 1:5]
Gap between God and Man The gap is that of Ego, the sense of “I am ness.”
Whereas God in His Godhead of the Holy Spirit is Universal Consciousness (an animate life principle), a human being, man or woman, has individual, limited consciousness, pertaining to his physical self, God has only one nature, i.e. spiritual, while Man has a double nature: one pernatining to his body, mind and intellect, and the other to his Soul and Spirit of God. He is epoistic in the first case, and in the second case he becomes as humble as a child and ultimately loses his own individual consciousness in the Universal Consciousness. When he is epoistic, his thoughts consist of Lust, Anger, Greed, Attachment and Pride; but in the other case, he thinks of the Love of God and His people and of good deeds only, In order to be perfect and become Godlike, he has to extend the dimension of the consciousness from the individual to the Universal.
Surrender to the Will of the Guru or Prophet and God This ego, the sense of I am ness of human beings, cannot vanish by. Their own efforts. They must accept the help of someone who is a realized Perfect Soul. This is the Spiritual Law of God’s Will, and there cannot be any better person than the Guru or Prophet because God has filled him with the Holy Spirit and has made him perfect like Himself. He has entrusted him with the work of awakening the people 10 enable them to live above pain, grief and sorrow, and to bestow eternal happiness upon them.
Godward Journey Surrender starts with Baptism (taking Amrit). At that ceremony, we promise to start compliance with the Will of the Guru or Prophet. Since the Guru or Prophet has no will of their own, but only God’s will working through them, the Godward journey siarts from the very beginning. The joumey is a long one, and on the way, one must change the means of transportation in serving and worshiping God, i.e. from body to mind, from mind 10 soul, and from soul to Universal Consciousness. The fear of arousing Guru’s displeasure will help us in leading a life of restraint and good deeds on the worldly plane. At the same time, we will be making efforts to manifest God’s Holy Spirit in our soul:(i) by repeating His Name to put Him back in our memory or consciousness; (ii) by Singing the praises of God through recitation of the Holy Scripture to inculcate love for Him and His values; and (iii) by serving humanity at large. wherein God resides. Resurrection.
As we surrender, and comply with the Will of the Guru or Prophet, our Godward journey takes us from the old life of Ego to New Life in the Spirit; it is called a newbirth in the House of the Guru or Prophet. If we stick to the journey steadfastly and earnestly, we will not have to face Death. We will surely enter eternal life in the Spirit and this will be our resurrection, the life of the Spirit within us will make us Perfect, as God has desired, and this is all possible through the grace of the Guru or Prophet and God.
Remarks; at the end, I want to remind all that this Godward journey will have to be performed by each of us. If we do not help ourselves, God will not help us, as He only helps those who help themselves. Moreover, We must Start this journey immediately and should not lose lime in making up our minds, as it is undoubtedly best for us, individuals and best for society too, as it will’ surely eradicate hatred, violence and crime from it, and best for the whole world, as it will bring. peace and harmony to it.
Questions Answers:
Mr.Kanas Wagner from the audience asked some questions regarding bigamy, sexual behavior and drugs wanting to know the Sikh view point on these issues, Giani Wadhawa Singh’s answers reproduced below:
The Sikh Religion believes in normal married household life and advocates one husband to have one wife only (Monogamy).
“To have one wife is to lead a life of ascetic. He should ‘consider other’s wife as his daughter and sister.” [Bhai Gurdas] fornication Any deviation from this rule is to be discouraged.
I.” The man of lust is satiated not with any number of women and breaketh into others’ homes. Day after day he commits adultery and regrets, In woe and greed he withers away,” [Guru:Granth Sahib P.472]
ii, “Others’ wealth, others’ women and slander of others: Forsake thou thy craving for these,”
{Guru Granth Sahib p.379] ii. “If the bride embellisheth herSelf without her groom, she is considered vile and of low conduct and is wasted away.” {Guru Granth Sahibp.1277]
iv.”As is the companionship of a venomous snake, so is the ravishing of another’s woman.”
[Guru Granth Sahib p.403}
So much so, a person who commits adultery ceases to be a pure Sikh and needs to be baptized again. Moreover, homosexuality and other like perversions of lust are unnatural, immoral and sinful according to Sikh faith. Drugs i, Tobacco smoking Anyone who smokes tobacco ceases to be a pure Sikh and needs to be baptized again. This is another “Don’t” in Sikh religion.
Wine and other drugs: They are also prohibited, “One man offereth and another poureth himself (the drink) And by drinking, intellect departs and madness enters the brain. Then one can distinguish not between one’s own and another ‘sand is cursed by God. Drinking it, one forsaketh one’s Masterandis punished at the Lord’s court. {Gunu Granth Sahib p.554] ii. “They who wasted away their life chewing the betel leaf and biting the nuts And cherish not the Lord, are driven off by Yama (myrmidon of death) at the end.” (Gum Granth Sahib ~ p.627] Violence The Sikhs, by faith, are very peace-loving and see God in every human being, and as such respect and love everyone without any discrimination of religion, creed, sex, etc. i. Now | am jealous of no one; Now that I have attained unto the Society of the Saints Yea, lam estranged with no one: nor is anyone a stranger unto me. Indeed, 1 am the friend of all. [1] All that the God doeth, with that I am pleased; this is the wisdom | have received from the Saints. [2] Yea, the One God pervadeth all: and seeing Him, | am wholly in bloom.” [Guru Granth Sahib < p.1299] Again:,
- “He is the naked hermit who has compassion and eximines his inner self.
He slays his own self (Ego) and slays not others,”
iii.” Why Cursest thou the others when thou reaipest only what thou sowest?”
But according to Sikh faith, force can be used for self-defense and for the protection of the weak ones, and that too within limits, so that you may not become cruel at any stage: “When all peaceful means fail to bring round the aggressor, it is right to resort to the sword.” {10th Gunu) Association with Bad Persons.
Generally, it is company of a person that makes him good or bad. State Holy Scripture of the Sikhs,
i.” The Lord’s servant keepeth not company with the worshipper of Power. For one is lured by Vice, the other by the love of the Lord,” {Guru Granth Sahib pg.l98} ii,”Kabir, associate only with the Saint, which lasts with thee 10 the end and emaneipates. Yeu, associate not with the wor Shipper of Power (materialist) through which thou shalt be Tuned [Guru Granth Sahib =p,1368).
Article extracted from this publication >> October 8, 1993
