Thank you veer ji....SPN is most dear to my heart and i enjoy the company immensely...its hard to be away..but duty calls once in a while. Needless to say i do keep in touch and am glad to be back.
ਜੇ ਵਡਭਾਗ ਹੋਵਹਿ ਵਡ ਮੇਰੇ ਜਨ ਮਿਲਦਿਆਂ ਢਿਲ ਨ ਲਾਈਐ॥
ਹਰਿ ਜਨ ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤ ਕੁੰਟ ਸਰ ਨੀਕੇ ਵਡਭਾਗੀ ਤਿਤੁ ਨਵਾਈਐ॥
ਹਰਿ ਜਨ ਵਡੇ ਵਡੇ ਵਡ ਊਚੇ ਜੋ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਮਲਿ ਮਿਲਾਈਐ॥
ਸਤਗੁਰ ਜੇਵਡ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਕੋਈ ਮਿਲਿ ਸਤਗੁਰ ਪੁਰਖ ਧਿਆਈਐ॥
ਸਤਗੁਰ ਸਰਣਿ ਪਰੇ ਤਿਨ ਪਾਇਆ ਮੇਰੇ ਠਾਕੁਰ ਲਾਜ ਰਖਾਈਐ॥
ਇਕਿ ਆਪਣੈ ਸੁਆਇ ਆਇ ਬਹਹਿ ਗੁਰ ਆਗੈ, ਜਿਉ ਬਗੁਲ ਸਮਾਧਿ ਲਗਾਈਐ॥
ਬਗੁਲਾ ਕਾਗ ਨੀਚ ਕੀ ਸੰਗਤਿ ਜਾਇ ਕਰੰਗ ਬਿਖੂ ਮੱਖਿ ਲਾਈਐ॥
ਨਾਨਕ ਮੇਲਿ ਮੇਲਿ ਪ੍ਰਭ ਸੰਗਤਿ ਮਿਲਿ ਸੰਗਤਿ ਹੰਸੁ ਕਰਾਈਐ॥
ਰਾਮਦਾਸ ਸਰੋਵਰਿ ਨਾਤੇ॥ ਸਭਿ ਉਤਰੇ ਪਾਪ ਕਮਾਤੇ॥
ਨਿਰਮਲ ਹੋਏ ਕਰਿ ਇਸਨਾਨਾ॥ ਗੁਰਿ ਪੂਰੈ ਕੀਨੈ ਦਾਨਾ॥ ੧॥
ਸਭਿ ਕੁਸਲ ਖੇਮ ਪ੍ਰਭਿ ਧਾਰੇ॥
ਸਹੀ ਸਲਾਮਤਿ ਸਭਿ ਥੋਕ ਉਬਾਰੇ, ਗੁਰ ਕਾ ਸਬਦੁ ਵੀਚਾਰੇ॥ ਰਹਾਉ॥ ੧॥
ਸਾਧਸੰਗਿ ਮਲੁ ਲਾਥੀ॥ ਪਾਰਬ੍ਰਹਮੁ ਭਇਓ ਸਾਥੀ॥
ਨਾਨਕ ਨਾਮੁ ਧਿਆਇਆ॥ ਆਦਿ ਪੁਰਖ ਪ੍ਰਭੁ ਪਾਇਆ॥
ਸੋਰਠਿ ਮਹਲਾ ੫॥ ਪੰਨਾ ੬੨੫ --
Veer Ji, SHABAD ISHNAAN is cleansing of the AATMA..the Mann..our inner conscience. Body cleansing can be easily done with soap and water..or in the Sarovars that abound in our Gurdwaras...BUT only when we are in the SAADH SANGAT..in the presence of the Guru...imbibing the GYAN, Knowledge and Path set forward by Guru ji in Gurbani through VICHAAR..thoughtfully and consciously concentrating on what the SHABAD says..that our MANN is being washed (ishnaan)
Sadly even when we are in the Saadh Sangat..most of the time our mann is wondering miles away on different missions..and the Shabad just flows off our backs like water off a duck's back..we remain stones that never get wet inisde even after a million years immersed in water !! I have met Sikhs who have gone to Gurdawra daily...for Asa Di Vaar, Kirtan etc...and still as "dry" as the stones i mentioned above.
Based on our limited knowledge..we have even reduced the "shabd" to superficiality...like in one of the shabads above of Guru Arjun Ji..that says..RAAMDASS SAROVAR NAHTEH..sabh utreh paap kamateh. We have reduced this highly SPIRITUAL SHABAD to a "superficial dip in the sarovar".
Ramdass sarovar is NOT the "Sarovar built by Guru ramdass at Amritsar"..the word RAMDASS is the SAADH SANGAT....the DASS (plural) of RAAM (Waheguru)....thus while Guru Arjun Ji is asking us to Bathe the MANN in the SANGAT of the Dass of Raam ( and THAT will remove all our Paaps !!)..we have taken it to mean (erroneously) that merely dipping our body in the Harmandar sarovar will wash our MANN of all the Paaps !! The Sarovar water is just to clean our outer body...next step is entering the Harmandar darbar Sahib to LISTEN to the Kirtan....and Third Vital Step is of SHABAD ISHNAAN...contemplate on the True Message of the Shaabd Kirtan so that we can APPLY this to our Daily LIVES...and thus begin the process of cleaning our MIND of the Evils that reside within. We have failed to realise that ONLY the SHABAD that we FOLLOW and put to work in our life can CHANGE US from WITHIN ( make the stone wet from within).
Gyani jarnail Singh
