Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I am speaking to you from Ruhani
Satsang,
Sawan Ashram, Delhi, on this auspicious day of the Birth Anniversary of
the Great Master Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj. I had the privilege of sitting
at His holy feet for over 24 years. Many people are said to have seen
Him.
But very few were there who really saw Him in His Pristine glory. Some
people saw Him from a physical point of view, working as an ideal
householder,
some as a good world citizen helping all high and low in their various
status of life by word and example, The others saw Him as an
intellectual
man, finding out the same Truth garbed in the holy scriptures of all
denomination
viz., Hindus, Sikhs, Mohammedans and others and laying the same before
the seekers after Truth. They saw Him from their different angles of
vision.
Very few were there who saw what He actually was. Just as one day Jesus
asked the disciples as to who the Son of man was. All present there did
not recognize Him. It was Simon who saw Him in His true self, and said
"Thou art Christ, the son of the living God." Christ said, "Blessed art
thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto
thee,
but my Father which is in Heaven. And I say to thee, Thou art Peter and
upon this rock I will build my Church and the gates of hell shall not
prevail
against it." (St. Matthew. XVI)
Further it is spoken of Philip that
he said to Jesus, "Lord, shew the Farther, and it sufficeth us." Jesus
grew indignant at his demand and said to him. "Have I been so long time
with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me
hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, shew us the father?
Believest
thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that
I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in
me, He doeth the works.
Believe me that I am in the Father
and the Father in me." (St. John XIV-8-11)
Guru Arjuna of the Sikhs also spoke
in the same terms. "I have the highest abode, and have innumerable
words
to live in. My rule reigns throughout the universe. All creation is
subject
to me. People sing my praises from home to home, and people owe their
loving
devotion to me in all the world over. My Father has appeared in me and
Father and the son both are working as one. O Nanak! Father was pleased
so much so that Father and the son have taken the same colour."
(Bhairon Mohalla 5)
One night I and Dr. Julian Johnson
both were sitting at the feet of Master Sawan Singh Ji. He was in a
gracious
mood. He said, "Whenever we come, we bring our working staff with us.
When
we have done our work allotted to us successfully at one tour, we are
sent
to the other fields." How beautifully He puts His coming to the world,
though in very sweet terms full of humility, giving an inkling that He
came with an authority from God. Kabir also said in the say way.
"We are the
knowers of the mystery of the Most High and have
brought
the orders of the God to be given to the world at large."
Master Sawan Singh was not a man of
the world, and was not bound to the bondage of the body. He used to
leave
the world and its environments and traverse to the higher planes at
Will
whenever He wanted. He gave eyes to the seekers coming up to Him so as
to see the Light of God and strength to enable them to rise into the
higher
planes. He was Word-Personified and dwelt amongst us. He was
Love-Personified.
He was an incarnation of Peace and Joy. Blessed were they who sat at
his
holy feet or whom He took under His care, and who sought Him and Him
alone.
The Great Master preached with a
clarion
voice that there are thousands of lovers in all denomination, seeking
the
same beloved God. Although, there are different religions, but they all
aim at the same common Goal before us. In fact there is one Truth
working
in all. The differences in religions are man made, due to the various
customs
and climatic conditions but their main purpose is the same. His aim was
to unite all humanity into one Whole. Unfortunately due to the bigotry
and narrow-mindedness brothers are being separated from brothers. The
Great
Master made a common ground for all high or low to sit together in His
holy presence, irrespective of any caste, creed or colour and work to
see
God. Thousands of people of all castes, creed and colours ran up to Him
from far and wide for spiritual satisfaction. I remember at one monthly
gathering I went to the common kitchen where all the visitors were
served
food free of charge, to find out as to what quantity of salt was spent
in preparation of the pulses in one day--and I found more than ten
maunds
(approximately
373 kgs. or 820 lbs.) of salt was spent that day. Just
imagine
how strong the gathering would have been!
He revived the Science of Surat
Shabd Yoga, which was lost sight of by even the present preachers
of
all religions. He taught practically self-analysis viz., to liberate
the
soul from the bondage of mind and matter and know oneself and know God,
by contacting the soul with the Divine link of Naam or the
Word
within every man which is the way back to God.
There is a search in every heart to
find out permanent peace and joy. He seeks it in objects of the senses
and he fails. There are some requirements for achieving the object of
life,
viz., contacting God within. The seeker should be desirous of seeing
God.
His heart has become dissatisfied with the worldly attachments which
are
temporary and turns to find things everlasting, not subject to decay.
For
this purpose a Living Teacher is needed. This aim cannot be achieved by
simply reading the holy scriptures. Those books give experience of what
the Masters, who came in the past, had on their way back to God. They
are
worth tons in gold no doubt, but this is a practical subject of
self-analysis
and rising into the Beyond, the practice of which can only be learnt
from
a Living Master. Mere devotion to the past Gurus and Teachers whom we
have
not seen in person cannot help us in that way. We might contact the
Great
Masters when we learn to transcend into the Beyond. When we meet such a
Living Master we must have full faith in His wisdom and competency as
faith
is the root-cause of all religions. We need not have blind faith. Try
to
grasp the theory first, as theory precedes practice. When you are
satisfied
with the theory, you may take up the way as an experimental measure.
When
you receive first-hand experience, however little it may be, from the
Living
Master, you will be confident to develop the same from day to day by
regular
devotion of time to the spiritual practices. The devotion of time to
the
spiritual practices with loving devotion and full faith in the Master
will
give you splendid progress from day to day. He has to develop love and
esteem of the Master by implicit obedience to His Commands--Jesus said,
"If ye love me keep my Commandments." In this way you will develop
receptivity
to receive the grace of the Master in abundance. Jesus pressed the need
of developing love of the Master so as to receive full benefit from the
Master. He said, "Abide in me and I in you. As the branch can not bear
fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no more can ye, except ye
abide In me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me,
and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit for without me ye can
do nothing." (John XV 4-5)
St. Paul states about his love of
the Master which gave him a sense of Oneness with Him. "I live now, not
I, but Christ lives in me." Hafiz a Mohammedan Saint spoke in the same
terms--"The Master has filled me so much so that I have forgotten the
existence
of my very self."
As you think so you become. The
Master
leaves the body at will and traverses to the high planes. By developing
intense love with the Master, your soul will begin to leave the body of
itself without any strenuous efforts on your part,
Master Sawan Singh Ji when shaking
off His mortal coil, ordered me to start a common ground on which all
seekers
after truth of all denominations should sit together. So to say to
start
a school or college of ethical life and spirituality wherein all can
find
a golden opportunity to develop spirituality while living in their
social
religions. That is what you find in Ruhani Satsangs now before you.
As Master Sawan Singh Ji loved me
I also have love for you. Abide in the love of the Master and you will
be amply rewarded in the spiritual way. My hearty love and best wishes
are ever with you.
July 21, 1954
Kirpal Singh
1955 Message on Birth
Anniversary
of the
Great Master Hazur Maharaj Baba Sawan Singh Ji
(transcription of recording made during 1955 world tour)
(source talk)
Dear Gentlemen and Ladies:
Today is the birth anniversary of one of the greatest saints who ever visited the earth; at who's feet I had the good luck to sit and enjoy. The birth anniversary of a great man means for us to tread the path of Truth as explained by Him …. to follow the teachings in their right perspective and digest them in our own life.
Once a man asked the follower of a great man, “Would you write the life history of your Master?” He said "yes” … he would do. After some time, they asked him whether he had written the life of his master. And he replied that he was writing very fast, very hard and he was writing in his practical life and there was still to be written. So my words mean to say that to celebrate the birth anniversary of a great saint truly lies in the fact that we tread in footsteps of the Great Master.
The teachings he gave, in a few words, were that all mankind is one. Rather they were theists or atheists. I've no time as yet to give you a long talk over his life but just in a nutshell to tell you that he loved the theists as he loved the atheists for he said that soul is within all and soul is the essence of the Almighty … a drop of the Ocean of Life. If the poor atheists do not know that they have got anything overhead, it is not their fault … it is their bad luck. So at least we do know that there is God overhead, the source of all creation and all souls. So he said that Mankind is one ... Love all and all things shall be added unto you. This is the outer way. The biggest religion of mankind to consider that we all are reading in one class to reach the ultimate goal. This is the highest social religion he preached.
In his attendence, there were sometimes thousands of people to attend ... of all creeds and colors and denominations. So much so, once I had an experience just to find out how much salt was spent in the kitchen to serve those attending the Satsang held by Him ... and in one day the salt spent ran up to 10 maunds (1 maund = approximately 82 pounds). Just consider how grand the gathering was there.
So whenever there is light the bees will hum over it. He was the source of gentleness. He was the source of all spirituality. He was the source of all ethical life. He was competant to raise man's soul from the bondage of mind and matter and give them firsthand experience into the Beyond. He raised man from the abyss of the indrias - mind and matter - brought them up to contact the Divine Link within and ultimately reach God. In a few words, he was the mouthpiece of God. He always said it is He who speaks in him at times. They will only give out this truth when they are left to their ownselves. So if you hear we do not know about the Saints, what they are … it is only by hearing their personal talks they do give at times, they refer to their origin … their cause of coming into the world and their mission that they carry into the world for the uplift for mankind. They come for all the humanity at large. To Him there was no difference - East and west both were dear to him - and those who sat at his feet they spoke very highly about him. The people that came from the west; Dr Johnson, Alexander, and many others… they also sat at his feet and drank deep into the nectar of Divine Name and rose into the higher realms.
Thanks for the great blessing of the Lord that He sends suchlike personalities into the world to guide the child humanity unto Him. And for the so many things he came in the past we had the pleasure only sitting at his feet. He was a grand personality. However, how can we define him … give His praises ? Once when I was reading in the school, I put the question to a missionary, I asked him why all other saints who are addressed by their followers, they all attach so many epithets to their names ... why Christ does not carry an epithet attached. And the missionary rightly replied “Are you giving any epithets to God?” I said “no.” The he said “the Sons of God, how can you define them?” It is only by praising that we bring them below to the divinity of a man but they are not men they are something Higher Power working at the pole of a man. And they are nobody else ... no other than the God Power overhead. Naturally we have not seen God. Guru precedes God, because in him He is refulgent …expressable. When we sit as His feet, we simply say we have sat at the feet of the Lord .. who is residing in Him. If you go into the shallow waters and have a bath, you say that you had a bath in the ocean. Similarly when you sit at the feet of such a Great Master you say you sat of the feet of the Lord overhead.
We had the good fortune to have seen Him in this physical life, moving on earth in all humility of saints … and humility personified … showering his blessings all around … to all who came to His feet. You exception (especially ?) to these blessing he showered on all. Thank you so much for all and the other gentlemen who are here who know me by name at least or by photo which have been sent to the … (cut off)
July 27, 1955
Kirpal Singh
1958 Message on the Centenary Celebrations of Hazur Baba Sawan Ji Maharaj
Dear Brothers, Sisters and Darlings,
May the grace of my Master be on you.
I am speaking to you on the auspicious
occasion
of Centenary of my Master Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj. First of
all
I have to tell you that such Personalities appear on the scene to guide
the child humanity back to the True Home of Their Father. They are
children of Light. When They come, They give Light to
all irrespective of the creeds and colours to which They belong. They
profess
that They have physical bodies made up of the five elements but they
speak
as inspired by God. They are, as it were, the mouthpiece of God
the unborn with no beginning and no end. They are not
subject to the Wheel of Birth and Death like all others, having
identified
themselves with God--the Son and the Father have both become 'partner
in
life' and become One--the Two in One. Christ also said, "I and my
Father are One". They come in the world, just as a
Health
Officer visits the prison, to look to the physical welfare of the
prisoners,
and he can send out sick prisoners out of jail to be served in
hospitals.
They work as redeemers and liberate the souls from the bondage of
mind and matter. They are not subject to the Wheel of
Birth and Death. They are sent with a Commission to set the humanity
free,
irrespective of any caste, creed or colour. I remember, one night, late
Doctor Johnson and I both were sitting by the side of Hazur Baba Sawan
Singh Ji Maharaj. He uttered of His own accord "When
we come, we bring our own staff to work with us, when we have
become
victorious in one place, we are sent to the other Side". These words
contain
the sum total of what He was, and the purpose of His Life and how such
Divines manage the work of Their Mission. This clearly shows, He was
sent
by God with a Commission, and it is not the first time He was sent
here,
and that He always succeeded in the Mission He was sent for, as also He
always brought with Him the staff to carry on His work. Blessed are
they
who had the good fortune of sitting at His holy feet and following His
wake--as also those who follow Him and His teachings -- the
Word-personified
as He was--will succeed in achieving the object of man's life to be
attuned
with God. Moreover those who are working for His noble cause are his
chosen
few to carry on the work. His work has not stopped, is going on and is
flourishing. He has sown the seeds, grown the plants and His 'Vineyard'
has been passed on to flourish from day to day, in the shape of Ruhani
Satsang, of which you are all members--labourers as it were in the
Vineyard
of God. Blessed are they who have devoted their lives, heart and soul
for
the propagation of His Noble Mission as well as those who are
co-operating
with them to bring forth fresh ones. Mind that a tree is known by
the fruit it bears. A Prophet is known by the followers who
have developed into his perfection. I appreciate the loving selfless
services
rendered by you all. Let me congratulate each one of you for the
work you are doing and wish you all, leaving all thought of
personalities
and egoistic self, to co-operate in promoting the Cause set by
Him.
The true celebration of a Master's Birthday is to live up to what His ideal is viz., an ethical and chaste life, love for God and love for all creation and rising into God-consciousness in life and write the same practically in own lives. Once one devoted follower was asked to write the life of his Master. Years rolled by and the people asked him when the writing of the life history entrusted to him was to be completed, to which he replied, "I am writing hard day and night to give the ideals of His life a practical shape in my own life." Of course, the telling or writing of the true life story of my Master Sawan Singh Ji lies in practically living up to what He laid before us. Pray God that I may be able to narrate and complete the true story of His life before my sojourn ends on the earth and would advise you to also follow the example being set up before you.
God-Master sees all and showers grace on all who do the Will of His Father.
My best wishes are always with you all.
July 12, 1958.
Kirpal Singh
Dear Children of Light,
I convey my love to you all and
speak
to you from the core of my heart on the auspicious birth anniversary of
my Master Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj.
Blessed indeed is the hour when the
Timeless comes into Time, the Formless assumes a Form and the Word-less
becomes the Word, and the Word puts on the mantle of flesh to dwell
amongst
us. Verily, ye are, essentially and potentially the Timeless, the
Formless,
and the Word-less. The Word is in you and you live in and by the Word,
though you may for the time being be living on the plane of senses and
unaware of your real identity.
A tree is known by the fruit it
bears.
Lectures, messages, statements and discourses of any kind spiritual or
otherwise imparted though utterances or writings is just idle talk,
when
not acted upon or lived up to.
Live up to the Divine Word which is
the word of words or manifestation of Truth. This Word is harkened by
the
soul. It is the Eternal Song which was sung ages ago and that Song
produced
the phenomena called the universe.
When that Song is heard, you will
have some glimpses of the Lord and the True Master. Some will have a
little,
some little more, and some still more. Souls embedded in the
Master-Power
will be lighted. The more receptive the souls to the Master-Power the
more
Light they will emit.
If you wish to love God truly in the
most practical way, it is love our fellow-beings; feel for others in
the
same way as we feel for our dear ones; instead of seeing faults in
others,
we look within ourselves; suffer in the sufferings of others and feel
happy
in the happiness of others, endure all what comes cheerfully accepting
as His Will, and do not hurt or harm any of His beings. To love God, we
must live for God and die for God.
I would like to sow the seed of Love
in your hearts, so that the feelings of love are brought about amongst
all the nations, creeds sects and castes of the world. All Saints
preached
the same. Love and all things shall be added unto you.
"Without love there is no peace here or hereafter." (Kabir)The main purpose of my Master was to awaken the mankind to the Truth taught and preached by all Saints who came in the past. His job was to awaken the Divinity in every heart and guide each to his or her Goal of life."Those who do not know love cannot know God." (Christ)
"Hear ye all, I tell you the Truth--God cannot be approached
without Love." (Guru Gobind Singh)
With fondest love to you all,
July 10, 1961
Kirpal Singh
-----------
1962 Message on Birth
Anniversary
of
the Great Master Hazur Maharaj Baba Sawan Singh Ji
Dear Ones,
On this Birthday Anniversary of My Master (Satguru Baba Sawan Singh Ji), I send you my best wishes for your spiritual progress. We are fortunate in that we have attained the highest rung of creation; viz., man body, which is the gateway to God.
Mind that you have not a soul, you are a soul—a drop of the Ocean of All-Consciousness—the Life Eternal. Regain your dignity. You are bound to mind and the outgoing faculties so much so that you are identified by the body and have forgotten your own self and the Overself. The body is the temple of God. The body must be kept pure and chaste in order that God may work through it for your own good as well as for the service of humanity.
To customs and creeds that were made for thy uplift, thou has let thyself become bound. You are enslaved to them, and worship them as the be-all and end-all of life. You must make the best use of them only to attain your purpose in life—which is—to join the Army of God.
How can your life be sublime ? Set up some ideal before you and work for that with heart and soul.
All Masters, to name some, Jesus, Buddha, Mahavira, Mohammed, Guru Nanak, Kabir, who came in the past, were great. We revere Them. The substantial question arises: Are they satisfied with us ? They can be if we live up to what they taught. They taught us to return to Nature and observe simplicity in all things. They taught us to have love of God first in all our affairs, but we made love of mammon first instead. They taught 'Love and all things shall be added unto you' for God is Love and Love is God and that God can be attained only through Love. Love God and Love all sentient beings. Love knows service and sacrifice. The secret of life, therefore lies in serving others, helping the poor, feeding the hungry narayanas (gods—souls), sending sympathy and love to those who stand in need of help and strength. By doing this your self will expand to all and you will give vent to thoughts of the past great Masters: —'Peace be unto all, under Thy Will, the world over, O Lord'.
Apropos—become attuned to the God-into-Expression Power and open your Inner Eye or the single eye to see the Light of God inherent in every form and open the Inner Ears to hear the Eternal Voice of God reverberating in all hearts. You will find that others are not apart from thee, but are a part of thee. They are yours and you are theirs, no separation between thyself and the whole creation. You will rise to cosmic Consciousness and see that all are brothers in God and all are children of the One Eternal who shines in all forms. The mystery of a beautiful life is the love that never dies.
I send you all my love and sympathy.
My Master always enjoined; "Not to think evil of others, even those who hate thee and despise thee. If they do not leave off their hateful habit, why should you leave off thy loving habit ? If you want to be happy, make others happy. If you want to be blessed, bless others. Those who injure others, are injured. Such is the Great Law."
With love,
Dear Ones,
A shepherd prayed in great love, "O
God; show me where Thou art that I may thy servant be and clean Thy
shoes
and comb Thy hair and stitch Thy cloths and fetch Thee milk." Moses,
passing
by, rebuked him as an 'idolator' and he fled. Then came a Voice from
Heaven:
"Moses, why hast thou driven away my servant? Thy office is to
reconcile
my people - not drive them away from me. I accept not the words which
are
spoken, but the heart that offers them."
All mankind is one, and the soul in
each is a conscious entity, a drop of the ocean of All-Consciousness.
We
are all brothers and sisters-in-God and the same Controlling Power is
controlling
us all. This vision of 'Spiritual Unity' of the 'One Humanity' was
before
all
Rishis of the old - Krishna, Buddha, Mahavira, Christ,
Prophet Mohammed, Nanak and present day Baba Sawan Singh which is
forgotten
in the present activities of life. We should arouse this vision of 'One
Light' in all religions and all nations, which is the only remedy for
all
the ills now besetting the world. We should keep the little 'Light of
Spirituality'
of the 'One Humanity' burning in each heart which will flare up true
love
in all hearts whether in the East or the West.
Love is the 'Light of Life.' This
love is developed. The more you pray from your heart and not lips, the
more you are in contact with the Light and Sound Principle of
God-in-Action
Power, the holy Naam or Word with which you have been given a
contact.
This course of life will develop
true
humility of the heart, which is the secret of growth in God, for the
lack
of which you are easily offended, become suspicious, upset when others
speak ill of you, have secret desire to be popular, become dictatorial
in your talk and conduct, irritable, artificial, ostentatious,
complicated
in your life and unkind to all those around you and below you.
The true 'superman' is the
great
man, who serves God with humble heart. He is humble, simple, straight
forward,
gentle, kind and reverent to all. When we forget this, we have
quarrels,
controversies in the name of the holy Cause we represent.
The great Sikh Gurus said,
"Child-like
simplicity and unattachment bring one nearer to God." So did Christ
say,
"Except ye be as little children, ye cannot enter the Kingdom of
Heaven."
I send you this Message of my
heart on the auspicious birth anniversary of my Master Baba Sawan Singh
Ji which will bring peace and harmony here and hereafter.
With all love to each one of you, dear ones,
July 8, 1966.
Dear Ones,
On the auspicious Birth
Anniversary (July 27) of my Master I congratulate you all, who
have
been put on the Way back to God and have been given a demonstration of
rising above body-consciousness, by which you have come to know that
you
are not bodies, but souls - embodied souls. Also your Single Eye has
been
opened to see the Light of God and your inner ear has been opened to
hear
the Music of the Spheres--the Voice of God. "For verily I say unto you
that many prophets and righteous men desired to see those things which
yee see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye
hear;
and have not heard them." (Matt. 13: 17). Moreover you have learnt to
die
while alive and have a new life--by entering into the Kingdom of God,
which
is with in you and cannot he had by observation.
My Master, like all Masters in the
past, revived the old, old Truth to know that body is the Temple of God
in which you reside and God is effulgent in all its glory, which we
have
forgotten. We are all members of the one family of God--all endowed
with
the same privileges. We are all children of God and as such brothers
and
sisters in God. We are all like so many limbs of the one body. If one
limb
is aching, the other limbs also suffer. So the
way to be happy is to make others happy. The most
beloved
unto God is the person who does good to God's family.
Religion has two aspects--one
outer and the other inner; Man is a social being, and must have a
society.
Masters do not come to destroy but to fulfill. The one aspect is all
right,
remain where you are, and the other is to know 'who am I' -- Know the
Self
and be free. The
highest aim is to know one's Self and Know God, and
have
loving regard for all others who are similarly situated by setting an
example
for others. An example is better than precept.
So we are:
To be
just,
and friendly to everyone.
To be
sincere
and to be true to one's Self.
To be good
and to do good to others.
To make
others
happy.
To comfort
the sick and the afflicted.
To serve the
poor and the needy.
To love God
and all His creation viz., man, animals,
birds, reptiles and also the least conscious.
They are all
members of the one family of God.
There is one
caste, one religion, and one God.
There is
only
one caste--The caste of humanity.
There is
only
one religion--the religion of love.
There is
only
one dharma--the dharma of Truthfulness.
There is one
God--The Omnipresent,
The
Omniscient,
The
Omnipotent.
There is one
language--the language of the heart.
My best wishes go to you all to know this and be a living embodiment thereof.
Yours affectionately,
