Essays on Sikh Values

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Essays on Sikh Values

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Attainments

Attainments by recitation of the name of God

Real attainment by remembering God is His Darshan - seeing Him: realization. A realized person surrenders to the will of the Lord, and peace prevails on him or her. He or she is no more agitated, irritated, angry, disappointed, dejected, abandoned, and stays detached from the worldly attachments. Besides this state of mind, all other attainments are supernatural. Even these come to a God-oriented person through Naam-Jaap (recitation of His name), although he may reject these. Such an evolved and saintly fellow is emancipated even when alive.

Attainments by doing the Naam-Jaap are the same for everyone, but there are individual variations and experiences. These are modified mostly by the faith (belief) one has in one or the other thing. It is not considered of a great merit to work to attain unusual powers intentionally. Depending on what you deserve, some of these will come automatically, but the adepts advise to refrain from displaying them. These can cause ego which is detrimental to the God realization.
The greatest miracle achieved is that the practitioner of the Naam attains peace, and becomes socially
oriented and ethical with love for the human beings, God, Guru, and Gurbani. He submits to the will of God and attains the peace of mind.

One should go into total contentment if one achieves mental peace, and attains surrender to God. No one should get disappointed that one did not meet God (see Him) even in spite of one�s intense Naam-Jaap. Seeing or meeting God is -

Realization that He is the Doer, is everywhere, and is in everything.
Staying constantly connected to God.
Seeing God in everything.
Absolute peace of mind, and total surrender to the will of God.
A firm belief that all the humans are equal, the same and extension of the Lord.
Development of the selfless love, and selfless service to everyone.
Becoming humble, compassionate, truthful, honest, and sincere.

All these go together and boil down to �God realization - seeing the Lord.� God has no visible form, and He is seen through third-eye: eye of knowledge - becoming aware of him (His realization).

The following are some supernatural attainments that we generally consider as the usual attainments by the Jaap of the Naam - recitation of the Name of God. In fact, a true seeker, does not care for such powers, and does not work to acquire them.

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Ridhi, Sidhi, Nau-Nidhi

Attainments by recitation of the name of God

The greatest miracle achieved is that the practitioner of the Naam attains peace, and becomes socially oriented and ethical with love for the human beings, God, Guru, and Gurbani. He submits to the will of God and attains the peace of mind.

Realization that He is the Doer, is everywhere, and is in everything.
Staying constantly connected to God.
Seeing God in everything.
Absolute peace of mind, and total surrender to the will of God.
A firm belief that all the humans are equal, the same and extension of the Lord.
Development of the selfless love, and selfless service to everyone.
Becoming humble, compassionate, truthful, honest, and sincere.

All these go together and boil down to �God realization - seeing the Lord.� God has no visible form, and He is seen through third-eye: eye of knowledge - becoming aware of him (His realization).

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SUPERNATURAL POWERS

1. Ridhi-Sidhi - These are supernatural powers, and include Ridhi, Sidhi, Nau-Nidhi, Budhi, and Mukti -

Ridhi

It is attainment, success, progress, and affluence. Literally, Ridhi also means cooked-food. The practitioner of the Naam becomes widely known (influential), and the people start bringing him or her all sorts of foods, eatables, gifts, and other commodities - one of his attainments.

Sidhi

Occult, i.e. supernatural powers. One can be present at more than one places at one and the same time, can make prophesies, become invisible, get power to fly, can make things happen, bless (and curse) others, produce things from nowhere, bring back life to the dead, and solve problems of the others. His or her Hamzad (astral-self) can separate from the gross body and visit places etc. Such powers come naturally as well.
Power to change his body with another on verge of the other�s death, can develop. Some may get the power to die at will, and even of automatic self-immolation of his or her dead body. The practitioner does not usually long or work for them. He is not supposed to display his or her prowess. Moreover, these are considered to be of no great merit, are interference in the Lord�s plans, and are a hindrance in the God realization. These do not lead to emancipation -
Ridh-e sidh-e sabhu mohu haae Naamu naa vassaae
Manne aa-ae
Supernatural powers are attachments,
These do not permit the Naam to get set in the mind.
5-593-18

Sidhis are 18. (Shabdarath, S,G,P.C., 1986, Page 10).

Major Sidhis
These are eight -

Anima - ability to become very small, minute.
Mahema - to become big, gain colossal size.
Garima - to become heavy, gain an excessive weight.
Laghima - to become light, subtle.
Praptee - to get success, achieve goals, and get fulfilled.
Prakamya - to read the minds of other people.
Eeshita (Isatva) - lordliness, and power to persuade others.
Vashita (Vasitva) - to control other�s mind. Self control - control over all senses.

Minor Sidhis
These are ten -

Door-Darshan - to see all, clairvoyance.
Door-Sarvan - to hear all, clairaudience.
Par-Kaya Parvesh - ability to enter other�s body. To rejuvenate, he may discard his own old body and enter that of a (dying) young person.
Annuram - freedom from hunger and thirst.
Kaamroop - adopt desired form, ability to change the form to that of another person.
Savichhatt-Mirtu - to die at will, to die the way one wants to.
Sankalap Sidhi - to get desires fulfilled, to have all that one wants.
Apprittehatt-Gatee - ability to go anywhere without any hindrance or obstruction.
Mano-Veg - to go anywhere at the speed of thought.
Sur-Kareer.a - to have enjoyment along with gods, to join them in enjoyments (merry making).

Nau-Nidhi
Nidhis are nine types of treasures - (Page 506, Gur Shabad Ratnakar, Kahn Singh, Bhasha Vibhag, 1960. Shabdarath, S,G,P.C., 1986, Page 10).

Padam-Nidhi - attainment of sons, grand sons, gold, silver, i.e. the precious metals.
Mahan-Padam - one gets diamonds, rubies and other gems and jewels (precious stones).
Kharab - riches of all kinds.
Kund - trading in gold.
Nil - trading in precious stones, jewels, and gems.
Sankh - delicious eatables (Procuring from nowhere).
Kachhap - clothes and food-grains in abundance, no shortage.
Mukund - mastery in arts, music, and poetry.
Makar - gives the art of using weapons and sovereignty on others.

Nidhis give property, products of land and sea, servants, health, wisdom, animals and conveyance etc. An adept gets accepted, respected, and honored by everyone. The people start giving him each and every thingimaginable.

Budhi
Wisdom. He becomes a Brahm-Giani: one with the knowledge about God - a realized person. This confirms the practitioner into -

Bharosa - faith. A deep faith and dependence on God. A firm faith in Waheguru (God) is the first and the foremost experience of the practitioner of the Naam-Jaap. He becomes a firm believer that God is one and there is none other like Him, He is the Creator, Doer, everywhere, Omnipotent and every thingis under His will.
Leenta - an absolute attachment (absorption) to God.
Santokh - contentment (on destiny).
Detachment - from the dear ones and the worldly possessions.
Hukam - acceptance of the will of God. It is total surrender to Him.
Sehj - equilibrium, equipoise.
Anand - perpetual delight, permanent joy.
Vismaad - ecstasy: Joy plus wonderment, forgetting the self.
Nadar - benevolence of God. He believes in the mercy of God as an instrument of his attainments, and that his own efforts mean nothing. This attitude keeps him free from ego. His efforts are needed to make him fit for the mercy of God.

2. Mukti or Moksh
Liberation from the worldly attachments, transmigration, and from the cycle of birth and death (reincarnation). These are the characteristics of a Mukat (emancipated, liberated person).

3. Char-Padarath - Four boons
These are - Dharam, Arath, Kaam, and Moksh. These four are the usual goals of life for everyone - an ethical discipline of life, assets to fulfill the needs, marriage and children, and in the end liberation.

Dharam - discipline. Understanding of his or her duties i.e. virtues (ethics).
Arath - assets. He or she has no dearth of money - precious metals, pearls, and stones. Gets all the wealth.
Kaam - desires. His or her all desires get fulfilled and it covers marriage and children.
Moksh - redemption (liberation). He or she attains emancipation.

4. Traaekaal-Drishti, Vaak-Sidhi -

Traaekaal Drishti - Triple-Vision (three-dimensional), all knowing. He can see (know) all that happened in the past, is going on now, and will come tomorrow (omniscient). The powers of intuition and prophecy develop, he will know things before these happen, can make predictions and foretell his own end.
These experiences should be taken as indicators of progress. Boasting about them creates an ego, which hinders further advancement of the practitioner. Commonly, the people think that these should be kept secret. Of course, one should share these only with the right persons. Such things motivate others to do the Naam-Jaap. The Guru advises to recite His name and to attach others to do so.
Vaak-Sidhi - Whatever he or she says, comes to pass (happens). It is generally advised that anyone practicing the Naam, should never let anything unwanted escape from his or her mouth.

5. Samm-Drishti, Turi-aa-Avastha

Samm-Drishti - No discrimination. Everyone is one and the same to him. He perceives God in every thingand everyone.
Turiyaa Avastha - Chautha-Padd (Fourth Dimension) - Going higher to the three states of Maya (mundane, the worldly things) i.e. ego, evil and virtue. The world is a play of these three dimensions. Turiaa Avastha means the Fourth State i.e. detachment from these three characteristics of the world, and transcending them (Transcendental Meditation).

6. Deh Abhav
One feels that one�s body is no more. The body-sense disappears. With the Naam-Jaap, one rises to such a level of absorption in God that one has no more to do with the body. When there is no body sense, there is no affliction or pain. He or she gets detached from the physical existence, and goes above the fear of disease and death. There is no disease or death for such a realized person. To keep him or her alive, others have to take his or her care. Return to the top of the page.

EXPERIENCES

More experiences -
1. Peace of Mind, Composure, Relaxation
Composure and relaxation bring the peace of mind. After attaining these, on sitting down to start the Naam-Jaap, when fully composed and deep in the Jaap, one may feel getting lighter and going down for a while, and then starting to rise up. One may perceive rising up right at the very start of the practice. The practitioner gets the peace of mind, calmness, and with these come the composure and relaxation. There may be individual variations of these experiences.

2. Composing Poems
Poems of the love of God. One has to be careful not to mix-up his poems and mess up Gurbani that is already committed to his memory. One should not try to be smart enough to coin and concoct quotations at the spot, and pass them on as Gurbani. In his light sleep, he may recite Gurbani, or his own Gurbani-like (mimicking Gurbani) compositions, or both may get mixed up. Its cure is to correctly remember (commit to memory) Gurbani.

3. Visions
Visions and dreams. The dreams of the Gurus, spiritual entities and the saints, during sleep, and their visions during the Jaap, may occur. In these, he or she may talk to them and they may even give him or her some advice or guidance. All the time he or she may feel the company of the Gurus. The light may manifest and the Guru emerges out of it.

4. Personality Changes
Changes in the inner, and outer personality take place.

Inner Personality.

The practitioner starts evolving and changing. Virtues develop and vices are eliminated. He or she becomes compassionate and sensitive. In deep faith and love of God on beholding His creation, boons and blessings, he or she may become ecstatic, sing and dance, may go into the mood of silence and self-absorption, or may easily become emotional, have welled up eyes and even cry -
rMig hsih rMig rovih cup BI kir jwih ]
prvwh nwhI iksY kyrI bwJu scy nwh ]
rMig hsih rMig rovih cup BI kir jwih ]
prvwh nwhI iksY kyrI bwJu scy nwh ]
Ran:ge hass-he ran:ge rovhe chupp bhee kar-e jaahe
Parvaah naahee kissaae keree baajhu Saachae Naah |
In his mood he laughs, and cries, or adopts silence.
He bothers for nothing except for the true Name.
1-473-17
Noble living based on Satsangat, Naam-Jaap and recitation of Gurbani leads to the spiritual experiences that may vary from person to person.

Outer Personality.

He becomes simple, humble, quiet (talks less), sweet spoken and absorbed in his own God-oriented thoughts.

5. Mental State. Mood and Attitude
With the lapse of time the practitioner gradually gets set for the Naam-Jaap, and becomes keen for doing it. A stage comes when the Naam starts pulling (Like gravity or magnet) him towards God, and he feels joy to be in the Naam Jaap all the time. He might be doing it constantly - even in his sleep. This happens frequently.

6. Indrian� - Control on Indrian (Senses)
Indrian� means senses. Due to control on these, he or she develops the peace of mind, contentment, equipoise, equality (non-discrimination), justice, forgiveness, tolerance, truthfulness, humility, sincerity etc. Feeling of the Grace of God enveloping his body, may come on him. It gives peace and joy.

7. Exceptional Experiences
A practitioner of the Naam may have other individual experiences -

Amrit-Dhaara - A trickle of Amrit, also, known as Amrit-Rass, Amrit or Rass. Its source is Tenth-Door (Dasam-Dwar) located at the top of head, under the site of the soft palate in children, or of tuft in Hindus, and is claimed to be the seat of God in the body. From there, it trickles on to the palate, tongue, and produces a sweet taste.

Anhad - This is the celestial sound. It means a sound arising on its own, without striking of anything. Practitioners of the Name claim to hear it while meditating. For a Gur-Sikh - one who follows the Guru, Anhad (Anhad-Shabad, Anhat, Anahat, Anhad-Nad, Nad etc.) is deep concentration on the mental or vocal recitation of the Naam, or recitation and listening to Gurbani or Kirtan with an absolute absorption.

The word �Anhad� comes in Gurbani very frequently. Sant Randhir Singh gives full assurance about it. Sant Iqbal Singh and other saints also confirm it. Gurbani has lot of quotations on this topic. For a usual seeker, it may not be quite easy to make a conclusion about it.

Anhad is also, the continuous Celestial-Sound in the universe and is represented by O-an� EN commonly called Om (Aum), and it denotes Waheguru - God. You may say out O-an� vocally or mentally, in a very long drawn way and enjoy it. Hindu saints practice Aum this way and for some, it is represented by the sound of a conch.

We are not concerned with hearing different sounds during the Naam-Jaap. If someone hears any, that's fine and these may be used to further help concentration. If you believe in Anhad, then you will very likely hear it. The sound may be like that of wind instruments, string-instruments, drum like, bell like, or Naad (Space - from the empty pot. Sound from the sea).

Anhad (Naad) is heard at the early stages of practicing the Naam-Jaap. Some concentrate on inhalation, exhalation, and try to hear subtle sound of breathing. In Anhad itself, there is nothing great. Prime thing is the name of God - �Waheguru.� To get lost into the Naam is Anhad -

nwmu lYq Anhd pUry nwd ]
nwmu lYq Anhd pUry nwd ]
Naamu laaet. anhad. poorae naad.
Recitation of the Name of God is the Anhad (celestial sound).
5-1144-8

Merging with the Creation - During Naam-Jaap, he or she may feel merged, or expand and then merge with the Brahmand (creation, universe). If focusing on Ik-Oankar < or Waheguru vwihgurU, these may start getting brighter, enlarge and spread to take the practitioner and whole of the creation into them. Real merging is to become one with the Almighty -

ijau jl mih jlu Awie Ktwnw ]
iqau joqI sMig joiq smwnw ]
ijau jl mih jlu Awie Ktwnw ]
iqau joqI sMig joiq smwnw ]
Jeou jall mahe jallu aa-ae khatana
Teou jot.ee sange jot.e smaanaa
Like water mixing with water,
One should merge with the Lord.
5-278-4

Every Hair doing the Naam-Jaap - While doing Naam-Jaap, the practitioner may experience every hair of his body doing the Jaap -

gurmuiK roim roim hir iDAwvY ]
gurmuiK roim roim hir iDAwvY ]
Gurmukhe rom-e rom-e Har-e dheaavaae
Every hair of the adept recites the Name of God.
1-941-5

Spiritual Awareness - One who practices the Naam, may get enlightened with the knowledge of God and His creation.
One may become aware of God on getting deeply impressed by visit to a holy place. Knowledge of the historical background and of the relation of the place to the spirituality (For which it is known) has its influence. Mental attitude is also important. You have to be tuned up by the Naam-Jaap and recitation of the Gurbani to have such an experience. One has to be in humility, accept what is available at the place visited, and avoid criticism. The mind should be kept in the attitude of supplication for His benevolence. One should stay calm and focused at the aim - His blessings from the visit to the holy place. These blessings come if one is attuned to the recitation of the Naam.

Vibrations - Fine, fast vibrations (Like high frequency electric currents) may start at the low back (sacral area), and spread all over his or her body in a centrifugal pattern (From within outwards). The adepts (Sidhas), attribute it to the awakening of the Kundalini (According to the Yogis, this is an energy center. It is at the level of the lower tip of the spine) - perineum. These vibrations (fine tremors) may appear at the tip of the toes and go up to the level of the lower back.

Sprinklings of the Saffron water - Saffron is a delicate flower of reddish yellow color. It gives out color when put into water. Sprinkling this water on someone or something is considered auspicious. The saffron water may get sprinkled from nowhere on and around the place where the Sadhak (practitioner) stays and practices Naam.

Kirtan - The practitioner may experiences (hearing from nowhere) the sounds like recitation of Gurbani, singing of Waheguru, Satte-Namu, Ik-Oankar, or of Shabad-Kirtan (devotional music).

Scent (Fragrance) - The Sadhak (practitioner) may smell the subtle scent without this being physically there.

Lights - glow or flashes are seen mentally with closed eyes, or in the room or outside with eyes open. These are not from some eye disease (e.g. a pull on retina), or due to some problem of the brain or mind.

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