Guru Nanak

Numerous Planets and Numerous Stars

On his return from Egypt, Guru Nanak sat down to spend the night in an open place outside the city of Baghdad. When the people came to know that Guru Nanak, who had revealed spiritual power at Mecca, was sitting outside the city, they went to Qazi (Islamic Magistrate) of the city in a big group. The Qazi reckoned that stoning such an infidel Hindu to death would be a very pious deed. He took some of his disciples and went to kill Guru Nanak.

Going ahead they found that Guru Nanak was singing hymn. Singing was in conflict with their prophet’s teachings. However the melody of the hymns made them powerless to hit Guru Nanak with stones. They were stunned and began to look at each other’s faces and the stones fell from their hands. Guru Nanak made them understand, “Music for singing praises of the lord is not bad but that music is bad, which forces the mind to behave like a devil. “They asked for forgiveness and took Guru Nanak with them to the city.

The next morning, after taking bath, Guru Nanak recited Japji Sahib-one of the morning prayers. As he passed by Jalal Din, the Pir (Spiritual Leader) of Baghdad heard the words: “There are numerous skies and neither regions.” He was filled with wonder on hearing it.

At the end of the recital, he said: "O holy man, you said that there are numerous skies and numerous nether regions but our prophet has told us that there are seven skies and seven worlds below. You are telling a lie."

Guru Nanak said to Pir Jalal Din: "Your prophet is not wrong. He saw seven skies and seven worlds below. So he said that there are seven but I see an unlimited number of these so I speak accordingly."

Pir Jalal Din said: “As long as you do not show me, How can I believe you?” 

Guru Nanak said: "Send anybody with me whom you can trust, I shall show him all these and then you will believe me.”

As asked by Guru Nanak, Pir Jalal Din got his son Jul Jalal ready to accompany Guru Nanak. When the people of the city came to know that Guru Nanak was to take the Pir’s son to show him numerous skies and numerous nether regions, they assembled in a large number at his house. 

People wanted to see all this with their own eyes. Guru Nanak said to Jul Jalal, "Close your eyes.” When he closed his eyes, Guru Nanak and Jul Jalal vanished out of the crowd. After some time they returned.

Guru nanak brought him back after showing him numerous planets and stars. Jul Jalal had in his hand, a wooden bowl full of semolina pudding.

He said: "I have been convinced of there being numerous skies and the worlds below. I have been putting in this bowl, small bits of semolina pudding from every place. When I got tired seeing the places, I requested Guru Nanak to return. I opened my eyes at the word of this Hindu Pir and found that I was standing among this gathering with the bowl of pudding in my hand. The pudding is still hot."

Truth, the Universal Cure

On his journey to Assam, one day Guru Nanak reached a village of Dhaka. A well-known landlord named Bhoomiya lived in that village. His work consisted of robbing wayfarers in the day and breaking into other people’s houses at night. He ran a free kitchen in his house for travellers, in which meals were available all day long and the travellers could spend the night in the inn specially built for them. He had ordered everyone in the village, “Send the traveller who comes to the village straight to my house. I will rob the house of the person who tries to disobey me.” Obeying his orders, the villagers sent Guru Nanak to his house.

That day Bhoomiya was at home. He prepared the meal and brought it to Guru Nanak and Bhai Mardana. Before starting to eat the meal, Guru Nanak asked, “Brother , how do you earn your living?” In his opinion, it was great benefaction to steal and give charity. Bhoomiya thought this to be a service to mankind. He had the belief that stolen wealth becomes legitimate by blessing of others. He told Guru Nanak the truth about what he was doing.

Guru Nanak said, “We cannot eat your meals unless you give us a promise to give up this evil work.”

He said, “Stealing is my family profession. I cannot give it up."

Guru Nanak said, “Do not leave stealing if you wish but agree to these three things.

1) Do not rob the poor. 2) Always speak the truth 3) Do not deceive or steal from the person of whose salt you have tasted. On his agreeing to these conditions Guru Nanak accepted his meals. 

In accordance with the word given to Guru Nanak, Bhoomiya gave up breaking into the houses of poor and stopped robbing the poor. One night dressing himself elegantly and riding a horse, he went to the King’s palace to steal. The doorkeeper asked, “Who are you?”

Bhoomiya spoke the truth, “Thief.”

The watchman took it as a joke and allowed him to move on thinking that he would be our King's friend. Bhoomiya went inside the palace and collected precious things. When he was ready to move,he saw a golden plate containing something. While lifting the plate, he tasted what it contained. That was salt. Leaving everything there Bhoomiya returned home.

The next day the King observed that someone had tried to commit a theft. To find out the thief, he began beating up people. When Bhoomiya saw poor innocent people being beaten, he presented himself before the King and said I am your thief. Please punish me and leave the poor people alone. The King asked why did u not take anything away? Bhoomiya narrated how Guru Nanak had made him believe that all his sins would be pardoned by acting upon his advice.

The King said I am very pleased with you for speaking the truth. I have pardoned your sins. I am ready to keep a truthful person like you as my minister.

A truthful person is pardoned of his sins. 

The Temple of Jagannath

The temple of Jagannath, the Lord of the East, was one of the four most revered temples of the hindus - the other three being located around India. It is said that Jagannath's idol was sculpted by the architect of the gods and it was installed at the temple by Lord Brahma himself. It was the anniversary of installation of the idol when Guru Nanak reached the temple. The Guru visited the temple not to adore their Lord but to teach the people that the worship of God was superior to the worship of the deity.

One evening, he entered the temple reciting the Lord's name. On the very entrance to the temple, he was suddenly charged with divine ecstasy. He originally believed in the formless worship of the Lord. But the symbolic image of Lord Jagannath was neither of any "Akar" nor was it "Nirakar". Seeing this "Kimakar" (of which form?) image of the Lord, he was simply astonished and was overwhelmed with deep reverence for the Lord. He understood the universalism of the Lord and believed in the symbolic cult of Jagannath. He started the 'Namakirtan' of the Lord in his own way.

Basically, Nanak believed in the formless worship of 'Nirakar' Brahma and his motto was 'Ek Omkar Satnam'. It means that he believed in 'Omkar' or 'Pranava Brahma' which has no form and stressed on the 'Satnam' or the true Namakirtan of the Lord. So, in his teachings, there is a blending of Vedic thoughts with the idea of the Namakirtan of personal God.

But, after seeing Jagannath for the first time, he could not reject him on the ground that he was incompatible with his philosophy. The 'essence of the Vedas', as He is called, appeared to Guru Nanak in the Pranava form and he could only start the Namakirtan. Just at that time, the Arati ceremony had started. All devotees stood up and gazed at the Lord with great devotion. But Nanak was so charged with ecstasy that he could not mark these reactions of the people. With great pleasure, he was seated in his previous posture and tears were rolling down his eyes.

A section of the priests marked this indifference of Nanak. They whispered to themselves as to his credibility and devotion to the Lord. When the Aarti was over, they met with Nanak and asked him why he did not stand during the Aarti. They further opined that mere rosaries and a garb don't make a monk. In their view, his actions had amounted to disrespect for the Lord.

Guru Nanak had by that time understood the real potentialities of Lord Jagannath. He had seen the touch of universalism and Vedic symbolism manifest in the wonderful image of Lord Jagannath. So he replied to the priests: "Dear brothers ! Does our Jagannath only exist here and in this stone image? Is He not dazzling in the aura of His own greatness, inside all of all creation."

While uttering these words, he became highly emotional and looking at the Lord, he started to sing a few stanzas from a Sikh composition. The meaning of the stanza reveals that he had a broader view of the Lord and that he considered Jagannath as the manifestation of the Divine Power.

The English translation of the stanza follows:

"Oh Jagannath, the Lord of the universe, the entire sky is the cosmic plate or bowl,

the Sun and Moon are two lamps, which are burning there, the stars are the flame dazzling with sparks,

the Sandalwood fragrance caused due to Malaya wind is your Dhupa, 

the wind bearing its fragrance is flaming your fans,

Oh Lord of Light, the trees are offering flowers for your Aarti, oh Lord the liberator, this Aarti of yours is indescribable.

The bells of this Aarti are only sounded through the Anahata Dhwani (relentless sound)."

The Sadhus, the priests and the general public were stunned to hear such devotional songs of the Lord from Guru Nanak. This instance points out Nanak's analysis of Jagannath from a broader and universal outlook. It further signifies that Nanak had established Jagannath in the inner chamber of his heart.

Guru Nanak and the Two Villages

Guru Nanak travelled far and wide. He taught the people the right ways of living. Once he was travelling through Bengal in India. Bhai Bala, who was a Hindu and Bhai Mardana, who was a Muslim were also with the Guru. They walked from village to village on foot. On this day, they had travelled far and were very hungry and tired. They wanted some food and rest. They were exhausted and could go no further. So they went towards the nearest village to stay for the night. Near the village they met some people.

Guru Nanak stopped and said, "Dear sir, we are travellers. We have been walking for a long time. Now we are hungry and tired. Can you give us some food to eat and a room to sleep for the night?"

"Go away. We don't care for travellers here," replied the people very rudely. They asked many other people but everybody in the village was rude and unkind to them. They had to spend the night outside as no one would let them stay with them. They also went to sleep hungry and exhausted.

They got up early in the morning and sang hymns called Shabds. They prayed to God in a prayer called an Ardas.

After the prayer Guru Nanak said, "May these people stay comfortably here in this village forever." 

The party of three then set out on their journey once again. Bhai Mardana was very upset. He was very angry with the people of the village. He did not like the Guru's blessing for such bad people. But he did not say anything.

Towards the evening, they came to another village. The people of that village were very good. They welcomed everyone who came to their village. They were very kind to Guru Nanak and his friends. They served them good food with loving care. They gave them nice beds to sleep in for the night.

Next morning when they got up Guru Nanak said to his friends, "Let us pray." So they prayed to God for the good of all. 

After the prayer Guru Nanak said, "May the people of this village scatter everywhere."

Mardana felt very upset once again. He said to the Guru, "Master, I cannot understand your wish. You wish the good to scatter away and the unkind to stay happily in one place. You curse the good but you bless the bad."

Guru Nanak said: Listen to me, my dear Mardana. I have not cursed the good people. I wish these good people to scatter and flourish in other parts of the world. Wherever they go, they will make the people there good. If there are more good people, the world will be happier. The bad people of the other village are good-for-nothing. They will make other people rude and unkind wherever they go. So I have ask God to live comfortably in their village. It is therefore better if they just stay in their own village. 

Mardana was not upset now. He was happy. The Guru's wish was clear to him. Let us be kind and gentle to other people and please our Lord.

"If I had a hundred thousand tongues instead of one, And the hundred thousand multiplied twenty-fold, A hundred thousand times, would I say, and say again, The Lord of all the people is ONE." 

Guru Nanak gifts a Needle

Once, he was traveling by foot, walking from village to village, offering his teachings to people. He was not one of those all-the-time smiling, gentle saints. He knew when to be hard and when to be soft.

One day, he happened to be a guest in the home of a very rich man in the area. This man was very proud and arrogant and boasted of everything he had in his huge house. As he was very rich he had all the expensive worldly things in his possession.

After a few days as a guest, as Guru Nanak was leaving, he gave this man a sewing needle and said: "Keep this with you. Sometime later when you see me, you can give it back to me."

After Guru Nanak had left, the man told his wife about the incident. The wife immediately scolded the man: "You fool, why you took a needle from a Guru? He is an old man. Suppose he dies and you don’t get to give back this needle, what will you do? Offering him something is fine but you should not receive anything from a man like him. If he dies, you will be in debt forever. You will be unable to wash out that one karma, and this may mean another thousand lifetimes for you. This is not a good thing. Somehow try to find him and return it to him immediately."

So the man started trekking behind Guru Nanak. Slowly, after a couple of months, the man caught up with him and said: "Guruji, I don’t want to carry this needle with me. You are an old man. In case you die, I cannot carry this needle to heaven and return it to you there. I will be in debt forever."

Guru Nanak replied: "So you know that you cannot carry this needle to heaven, right?” The man said, “Yes.” “When you know you cannot carry a needle, what about all those other things you are accumulating? You will not be able to carry any of that either."

The man got the message. He fell at Guru Nanak’s feet. He went back home, just kept what was needed for his family, and went about building whatever was needed for the wellbeing of people around.

Guru Nanak tests his disciples

A Yogi went to visit Guru Nanak to congratulate him on the large number of followers he had. The Guru said that he had very few true Sikhs. To test his disciples, he sent out a call for all true believers to meet together early the next morning.

The day dawned dark and cloudy. When the Guru appeared, he seemed to be someone other than their kind master, for he wore dirty clothes and a hunting knife and had a fierce dog with him. Several of his followers were terrified and ran away.

The rest followed the Guru down a road through the forest. After they had walked for a short while, they found the road covered with copper coins. Some of the Sikhs stuffed the coins in their pockets and ran away.

The rest of the group continued on down the road. Further along, they found the road covered with silver coins. More of the Sikhs grabbed the coins and ran away.

Few Sikhs remained with the Guru and the Yogi. The small band continued travelling and soon found the road covered with gold coins. The other Sikhs grabbed the coins and fled until only two Sikhs, the Yogi, and the Guru's sevadar Lahena, remained.

They came into a clearing where they saw a corpse wrapped up in a white sheet next to a pile of wood. There was a terrible smell in the air. The Guru said to his Sikhs:

"Let whoever wants to be a true Sikh of mine eat this with me”.

The other two Sikhs turned white and drew back in horror, but Lahena kneeled next to the corpse and said:

"Master, should I start at the head or the feet?"

The Guru told him to start at the waist. As Lahena lifted the sheet to begin eating, the corpse turned into a feast of delicious sacred food.

Lahena offered the food to the Guru first and said he would have what was left over. Guru Nanak was delighted, and said: "You have obtained this sacred food because you desired to share it with others. You now know my secret; you are in my own image. I will share with you the secret which will bring you happiness now and forever."

The Guru then taught Lahena the Mool Mantra, the beginning of Japji. The Yogi saw that the light in Nanak was the same as in Lahena.

He said, "O Nanak, he shall be your Guru who comes from your body - Ang."

Upon this, the Guru hugged Lahena, named him Angad, and promised that he would be the next Guru.

Guru Nanak's talk with the Yogis

When Guru Nanak went out to the world he began spreading his message. He went to many spiritual centers and everywhere he went he helped people and enlightened their minds. Many times he confronted the priests in charge and talked them out of blind rituals in favor of an honest true longing for the Creator.

Taking Bhai Mardana along, Guru Nanak reached the high peaks of the Shivalik mountains where Saints and Yogis were passing their lives after renouncing the world.

Those Saints and Yogis had a belief that the love for worldly objects will cease if one lives in an uninhabited area. By overcoming the desire to possess worldly material, one can overcome reincarnation. They called themselves celibate and did not get married. They also believed that after marriage, the wife entangles the husband in the net of worldly objects and his escape from it is impossible.

Recognizing his spiritual light many yogis came to see who this young new comer was. First they tested him. As he and Mardana were approaching a lake in the mountains, they started to hear strange sounds. Soon ghoulish figures appeared and tried to frighten them. Guru Nanak paid them no head. Soon the Yogis started to emerge from the forest and caves.

Charpat the Yogi said, "Well son have you come to join us?".

The Guru said, "Join what? A group of people running away from the world?"

The Yogi said, "You seem like a true spiritual aspirant, if you want to complete your spiritual journey you have to renounce the world. Renounce your desires and join us."

The Guru said, "You have not renounced the world, you have run away from it. The world is on fire. You have the knowledge of how to put it out. What kind of spirituality is this that leaves humanity to suffer?"

Charpat gently said, "Look here son, take this urn and fill it with water from the lake." So Nanak took the urn and went to the lake. When he got there, there wasn't any water. The lake was full of rubies, diamonds, gems, silver and gold. He came back to the Yogi with an empty urn. "Well boy." Said Charpat, "Did you bring back water from the lake?"

The Guru replied, "I couldn't. There wasn't any water in the lake." Charpat was actually tricking the Guru and he passed the test. He wasn't afraid of the scary figures and he wasn't tempted with the gold and wealth. One of the Sadhu's said, "You really are great, why don't you join us here. This is the way to true spirituality."

The Guru said, "Let me ask you Sadhu....you know how to levitate in the air, you know how to manifest material, you have many spiritual abilities.... has this brought you closer to God?" Everyone was silent.

You live here and serve yourselves, but what about those who suffer because you refuse to help them?"

"You hide here. You live in fear of the world. You've not renounced it, you have retreated from it.

Do you know the Name of God? Do you recite His Name? Is all your time here, all your sacrifice, only to gain power? Or did you come here to know God, to know your soul? Yoga is union yet your union is not with God, but with your ego. You know meditation and can help people to be free from their fear and superstitions. Why do you turn your back on those who pray for help?"

Guru Nanak continued to reprimand the Sadhu's and Yogis for leaving behind humanity. He fearlessly spoke to them in a way that no one had before. He told them, "Renounce the world while being in it, that is what is intended for us by our Creator. We must live householders lives and help other people."

They would have a teaching to counter him every time, they would tell him that he must be a renunciant like them. Every time he spoke a simple and common sense truth. Many considered him an enemy. They even threw rocks at him. Some hearts were moved and some expanded their views. Guru Nanak left the mountains after confronting the Yogis and took the next step of his journey. Shining a great light on to the world he continued to spreading his message of universality. 

Guru Nanak saw that the impurity of ego had not left the minds of the Yogis though they had renounced the world and were tolerating the pains and hardships of the hills far away from Human. How could Yogis see the light of Truth away from the creation when god resides in it?

Merger with God

When Guru Nanak was seventy, he thought it is important to continue the task of showing people the way out of darkness. For this service, Guru Nanak tested some of his Sikhs, including his sons, so that his followers would not feel that they had been deceived. Out of his followers Guru Nanak considered Bhai Lehna to be most suitable. Guru Nanak renamed him Angad - part of his own body and handed over to him the leadership of Sikhs.

On the seventh September 1539 A.D, Guru Nanak told the congregation that the time had come for him to merge in God. All Sikhs should consider Guru Angad as his successor. “There is no difference between me and Guru Angad.” Giving this message to the congregation, Guru Nanak lay down and covered himself with a sheet.

The news that Guru Nanak had merged with God, spread all over the Kartarpur. His house was filled with Sikhs. Guru Nanak’s Sikhs were not only Hindus but also Muslims. For Guru Nanak, no one was a Hindu or a Muslim. All were the creation of one God.

As such it was essential for all to consider him a guide who showed the true path. A debate started among them for the dead body of Guru Nanak. Hindus said, “We shall cremate the body of Guru Nanak.” On other hand Muslims said, “Guru Nanak was our spiritual guide. We shall bury his body according to our custom and construct a tomb over it.”

 So when Guru Nanak passed away, there arose a conflict of very type which he had devoted his life to ending. Neither party had come to any conclusion.

A saint was present in the crowd, he advised those who were quarrelling, “Please first check below this sheet whether Guru Nanak’s body is present or not. You are fighting within yourselves without even checking it.”

Listening to the advice of the saint, they lifted the sheet and found some flowers lying there. Those who were quarrelling fell silent on seeing the flowers.

The Body of Guru Nanak had merged with the five elements from which it had been created.

 The quarrelling Hindus and Muslims divided the flowers in halves and tore the sheet that Guru Nanak had covered himself with in two pieces.

To carry on the traditions and customs of their respective faiths, the Hindus cremated the flowers and the sheet. They also constructed a monumental stone over it to worship.

The Muslims buried the flowers and the sheet and erected a tomb on the bank of river Ravi near the Hindu monumental stone.

Both began to worship the stones, a practice which Guru Nanak had urged them to abandon. God did not want it that way. The water of Ravi washed both these away. All traces of the monument and the tomb have disappeared.

 

Story of black magic and witchcraft

On many an occasion, a hungry Mardana would ask Guru Nanak if he could go in search of food, and ultimately land himself in trouble. And each time Guru Nanak would turn that into an explanation of his beliefs. On one such occasion, travelling through Assam or Kamrup as it was called then, Mardana went in search of food.

Do you remember reading about the ‘Beauty and the Beast’ where a prince had been turned into a beast or of the ‘Sleeping Beauty’ who slept for years due to a curse? All these stories had an element of magic which was sometimes good and many a time not. Witchcraft and black magic appear to be responsible for all those curses and spells. Similarly, even in medieval India, there were many areas where witchcraft and black magic were believed to be practiced. Poor Mardana fell a victim to it in Assam.

Despite being warned by Guru Nanak to be careful of strange women, Mardana was unfortunately enticed by a beautiful stranger. A smitten Mardana forgot all about Guru Nanak and his hunger and followed her, only to be turned into a goat like many other fools before him. He had no idea she was an enchantress. When he did not return, Guru Nanak went in search and soon found a goat tied up at the gate. With one look he was able to spot the black magic and break the spell. A shamefaced Mardana soon materialized before him. An equally lovely queen of the sorceresses also appeared. Her name was Nur Shah. She was known to be a sorceress who cast her spell on unwary travellers and ensnared them. Now this queen of sorcery was not prepared to let Guru Nanak get away that easily. She and her companions tried every spell in the book to enslave him. They even tried alluring him with music, gold, silver and precious gems. But Guru Nanak sat through it all, relentless, singing about the creator and how women should be virtuous and true. Finally, the queen accepted defeat and gave in. He then spoke to her about the ills of black magic and witchcraft and asked her to give it all up. ‘Lead a normal life and become a good human being,’ he told her and her companions. Overwhelmed by the power of his words, she did exactly that and fell at his feet. She and her wicked companions promised to become model human beings.

And what does this episode about Mardana and Nur tell us? It shows us that his unwavering faith in God helped Guru Nanak withstand all kinds of temptations. His strong sense of spirituality protected him from being ensnared, unlike others like Mardana, who realized the folly of his actions. 

His message: No black magic and witchcraft can affect you if you believe in the power of God. Also, do not succumb to unnecessary temptations.