Spiritualism - Eternal Voice

Our weakness is that we are easily overcome with whateverbefalls us - sickness, ill luck, too much wealth, too little wealthor becoming victims of violence or accidents. Anotherweakness is that after we have done our bit, (kindness to a littledeserving person - who later forgets the good deed and bitesthe kind hand), when the result is failure, we see our worst fearsfulfilled, despite our best efforts. We see ourselves and our livesas failures and give up on doing further good.Our Karmas in this life have to be worthy, yet sometimes the badthings will happen in our lives. We have to give account of ourpast Karmas. We do not remember our past actions, but we aretold that good action in this life can reduce the karmic 'Sooli to amere thorn'.There is the story of the two friends who daily went theirdifferent ways - one to Guru's Sangat, the other to an evening ofliquor and immoral deeds. One day the person going to Gurujeestubbed his toe on a big thorn, and limped his way to meet hisfriend. The friend returning from an evening of ill deedsstumbled against a pot which contained a gold coin. Afterexchanging their news both decided to ask Guruji why thesethings had happened. Guru jee heard the story and told themthat the man, who was pricked by a thorn, was to have diedviolently on a Sooli because of his past Karmas, but his goodKarmas in this life had reduced painful death to a mere thorn.The other man was to have received a pot full of gold coinsbecause of his good past life Karmas but had squandered it alldue to his bad actions in this life. He still received one coinbecause he kept company with the man of good deeds.We need to remember that we are Waheguru's Banda and like agood soldier, to be on duty, toil hard honestly and earn our dailybread.Wand Chhako: Sharing what we earn - is the second importanttenet of Sikhism. If we learn to share what we have - be it asmall Roti to share with one, who is without food, or largessefrom our earnings if they are large - sharing needs to be donewith the right attitude. We should share - not with a sense ofhow wonderful we are in our generosity, but rather with arecognition that when Waheguru gave us more than our need itwas so, because we could learn to share. We were given thatone Roti, precisely because the person next to us had none andthat a Gursikh would know that his earning must be shared. It isas if each of us is earning not only for ourselves but also forothers. We may not be able to see the wider picture of life, butoften we all are just a media to provide others (a Zariya forwhich we can take no credit as the earning was in any case byHis Grace).I think the most important learning we can have is to let go ofour expectation of the reward or the outcome of our positiveefforts. Obviously that is easier said than done. After all ahuman being believes that we must aspire to the top, and if,after sincere effort, there is failure, how to stop feeling a deepsense of let down – to see our worst fears coming true?According to the guidance given to us in Guru Granth Sahib, allCreation and everything that exists in this world is His Creation.Gurbani teaches us that everything, our birth and death, all ourachievements as well as our sorrows and sufferings, in factevery thing that 'was', 'is' as well as all that 'will' happen, isbecause of His divine Hukam (Will).Gurbani teaches us to do our best but leave the results toWaheguru. Actually, if we look back - there is the need torecognize that the results were never in our hands. We aregiven the right to action, to choose what we want to do. Butonce we have done that, since the Karta is Waheguru, thenobviously the outcome is in His hands. It never was in ourhands. Once this truth is accepted and understood, it is easy tolet go. That is the key – let go the ego, let go the arrogance.It is not 'I' who performed - I was merely an instrument inWaheguru's scheme of things. Once you know the doer isWaheguru, fear of failure simply falls away.It is easy when we are gifted or talented or have excelled in anyfield, for the ego to preen with pride and a sense that we haveachieved so much. For example we think we have learnt to singGod's praise and are very proud of our skill and gift. However,the day we sit down to sing his praises; we are so full of ego - soconscious of how wonderful we are going to sound, that our tripup, our voice is awful, we sing off-tune, the hall echoes with aweak warble. And then we realize - that even the learning wasHis gift. How arrogant to think we were the one - how arrogantto forget that it was His Grace in the first place that allowed usto learn. We should remember that and re-orient our thoughtsand ask for His Grace. And then the music flows - from HisGurbani - in His praise - there is only He and we are envelopedin His Grace.We worry and fret and fear that our child will not get a goodmatrimonial match, or not get a great job appropriate to herlearning and intelligence. What if she chooses wrong? What ifshe decides to be a career woman and keeps saying 'not yet' tomarriage. We try hard to convince her, scour the matrimonypages, speak with friends and relatives, and find that we are nocloser to our goal than we were a year ago. We fear we have letour child down. We fear our child's future will be ruined.We fear we are a bad parent.But one day, when our ego is looking the other way, a thoughtpenetrates our mind - why are we making this huge effort? Whoare we in this equation? Waheguru created our child and has awhole life mapped out for her. We realize that all we have to do islet go our ego's stranglehold on this need for us to make ithappen. We stand before Him, humbly and with great faith, andpray to Him – we say “Dear God, this is your child. I know youhave a wonderful future for her. You know best, but as a parent,my prayer is for the best to happen - whatever is best for mychild.” We 'Let Go' and pray hard, our head at His feet. And oneday, totally without any announcement, things fall into place. It isonly when we understand that we are not the one, who can claimthe achievement that the best happens. So long as our ego tussleswith all the powers, we are in fact in actual conflict with the lawsof Nature and are being an obstacle to achieving results.There are many reminders of the primacy of Waheguru inGurbani. To quote from Sukhmani Sahab:jb lgu jwnY muJ qy kCu hoie ]qb ies kau suKu nwhI koie ]jb ieh jwnY mY ikCu krqw ]qb lgu grB join mih iPrqw ] (278)Jabb lagg(u) jaan-ei mujh t-ai kachh(u) hoeTabb iss kao(u) sukh(u) naahee koeJabb eh jaan-ei m-ei kichh(u) kartaaTabb lagg(u) garabh jon(i) meh phirtaa.(As long as someone thinks that he is the one who acts, he shall haveno peace. As long as this mortal thinks that he is the one who doesthings, he shall wander in reincarnation through the womb.)Naam Japo: The third tenet of Sikhism is Naam Japo, i.e.,meditate on the Divine Naam. Remember that He is the onlyOne, who is the Truth.Guru Nanak sees the world and its Creator as One. In the midstof measuring grain at his father's shop, he gets lost at 13 - or'Teraan' - meaning 'yours'. For the Guru, his love of Godpervades his daily life in the world. He sees God through Hiscreations.Osho writing on Guru Nanak in The True Name says:- That for Guru Nanak, God the creator is fearless, because fearis when the other is. Osho asks:What is fear?And provides the answers:“Fear always involves the other: if someone can take somethingaway from you, it destroys your security. Then there is deathand there is illness - both are the 'other'. Hell is beingsurrounded by the 'other'; hell is the 'other'.But how can you escape the 'other'? Should you run away to theHimalayas, you will still not be alone. Sit under a tree; a crow'sdropping falls on your head, and you are filled with angertowards the crow. There are the rains and the sun - irritationseverywhere. How will you escape the 'other', who is presenteverywhere?Eternal Voice Nov, 2010 - Jan, 201172 73