प्रीतम छबि नैनन बसी, Preetam Chhabi Nainan Basee

                   प्रीतम छबि नैनन बसी, पर-छबि कहां समाय।
                  भरी सराय ‘रहीम’ लखि, पथिक आप फिर जाय॥
                                                     ~  अब्दुल रहीम  खानखाना  ~ 

शब्दार्थ : 
जिन आँखों में प्रियतम की सुन्दर छवि बस गयी, वहां किसी दूसरी छवि को कैसे जगह मिल सकती है? 
भरी हुई सराय को देखकर पथिक स्वयं ही वहां से लौट जाता है। 

अर्थात - जिसने अपने  मन-मन्दिर में प्रभु को पूरी तरह बसा लिया
वहां से मोहिनी माया, अपने रहने की जगह न पाकर, उल्टे पांव लौट जाती है।

                Preetam chhabi nainan basee, Par chhabi kahaan samaaye
                Bharee saraaye 'Raheem' lakhi,  pathik aap phir jaaye 

Meaning:
In the eyes, where the beautiful image of Lord has been completely filled
How can any other image settle in?
Seeing the inn completely filled, the wanderer himself returns from there.

In other words - 
The one who has completely filled the temple of his heart with the image of the Almighty Lord -
The Maya - not being able to find any place for itself - goes away from there on its own - 
Without any effort from the Bhakt.

Parmaarth is not like...

" Brahm Gyan - Parmaarth is not like a one-day match. 
               It’s a lifelong process. 

You can't pull the plants and make them grow tall. 
             They take their own time to flourish.

Gyan cannot be passed on like "Copy and Paste" 
             Everyone has to walk their own path after receiving it. 

Parmaarth (Param Arth) = The most important or ultimate achievement or purpose of life -
                                            to achieve Moksha through Brahm-Gyan

Nature of the True Guru - Tea vs Cup

A Question came on the previous article “The nature of the True Guru’:

“If the Guru is Gyana then, does it mean that being with the Guru physically is not important? 
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------

As the say: “There are two sides to every coin”.
In fact, there are two sides to everything.
Usually we tend to look at one side only and we get confused as it may not make complete sense. 
Same can be true in this case also.

As Guru Nanak said:
           “Nanak meru sareer ka, ik Rath ik Rathvaahu
            Jug Jug pher vataayieh Giani bujheh taahi”    
                                                                       (page 470)

“Nanak says that the physical existence or body has a chariot and a charioteer. 
They keep changing; age after age, only a Gyani or wise understands it.”
Just like everyone has a body; the chariot and soul; the charioteer, 
the Guru is also consisted of two parts; Shabad or Gyana is the charioteer and his body is the chariot.
Just as a car and driver, both are needed. Driver needs a vehicle and a vehicle needs a driver. 
We cannot do with one without the other.
Undoubtedly the Shabad or Gyana is the true Guru but it cannot be delivered or understood without the body.
Transaction of Gyana is a process between the consciousnesses, not the bodies. 
It is received by one consciousness from another higher consciousness. Therefore, neither Guru nor the disciple is a body.
               “Sahbad Guru, Surti Dhuni Chaila” 
                                   (Guru Nanak, Page 943)
“Shabad or Gyana is the Guru, and its contemplation (by the consciousness) is the disciple.”
Though, neither Guru nor the disciple is body, but they both have to be in the physical form to complete the process.

I remember an incidence that happened many years ago. After taking Gyana, Sayed Mazahar Hussain, a learned scholar from Bhopal, came to visit Baba Gurubachan Singh ji in Delhi. During their conversation over a cup of tea, Mr. Hussain asked, “Baba ji. I have taken the Gyana. I understood it and have truly accepted it in my heart. It re-confirms my faith in Formless God as taught in Islam. But according to our religious traditions, it is hard for me to accept any human being as Guru or a godly being as most other people here do. I like your mission’s philosophy and I want to be part of it but accepting you or any other human being as my savior or mentor contradicts my religious beliefs. What should I do?”
Baba ji pointed his finger towards the cup of tea placed on the table in front of them and asked “Are you going to drink the tea or the cup? As you can see, we are actually offering you the tea but how can it be served without a cup or a vessel? And you are only going to drink the tea, but to be able to drink it; you need to use the cup. Similarly, what you need is the Gyana, and I (Guru) am just a vessel. So you see, there is no conflict since what you have received is the Gyana, the God-knowledge through a vessel, not the vessel itself.”
But to achieve the goal, both, the chariot and the charioteer, driver and the vehicle, tea and the cup, are needed together. 
Now, one may ask: since what we really want is ‘what is in it’, why do we need to respect the vessel?
My most revered and highest mentor, Bhapa Ram Chand ji of Kapurthala often narrated this analogy: an elderly lady in a village used to pay utmost attention to an old small wooden box in her home. She was always worried about its security and took great care of it. People wondered why she was so attached to that small wooden box that seemingly did not have much value at all.
The reason was that she had kept her gold and diamond jewelry in that box. That simple ordinary box also became very important and valuable for her because of what was in it. 
As Shri Guru Ramdas ji said:
            “Kanchan Kaaya kot gadh, vich Hari Hari sidhaa”
“In the body, the fort of gold, the Lord Hari resides himself”

Though the Guru may not look any different than any ordinary person, but in the eyes of a disciple, that body also becomes very important, valuable and respectable through which the Gyana is revealed.
To be in the company of one’s spiritual master plays an important role to progress in spirituality. Being with the Guru physically can elevate the level of our consciousness. But at the same time, we must remember to connect, not with just Guru’s body, but also with the ‘Real Guru’. Not taking him as a celebrity, a popular leader or a person of power, but as the spiritual guide. It’s very easy to get distracted and lose the real purpose during the celebrations and joyful festivities. But remember:
Don’t forget to ‘drink the tea while holding and admiring the cup’.
                               ‘Rajan Sachdeva’

Note: On someone's request Re-posting this old article that was published on June 13, 2015

Mouse Story with a Moral -- Our lives are woven together

Mouse Story with a Moral


A mouse looked through the crack
in the wall to see the farmer and
his wife open a package.

What food might this contain ?'
The mouse wondered - - -

he was devastated to discover it
was a mousetrap.




Retreating to the farmyard,
the mouse proclaimed the warning:



There is a mousetrap in the house!

There is a mousetrap in the house!'

The chicken clucked and scratched, 
raised her head and said,
'Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, 
but it is of no consequence to me.



I cannot be bothered by it.'


The mouse turned to the pig and told him,

'There is a mousetrap in the house!

There is a mousetrap in the house!'

The pig sympathized, but said, I am
so very sorry, Mr. mouse, but there
is nothing I can do about it but pray.
Be assured you are in my prayers.'



The mouse turned to the goat and said
'There is a mousetrap in the house!

There is a mousetrap in the house!'

The goat said, 'Wow, Mr. Mouse.

I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose

So, the mouse returned to the house, 
head down and dejected, 
to face the farmer's mousetrap . . .
alone.


That very night a sound was heard
throughout the house -- 
like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey.
The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. 
In the darkness,
she did not see it was a venomous snake 
whose tail the trap had caught.
The snake bit the farmer's wife.
The farmer rushed her to the hospital,



and she returned home with a fever.



Doctor said you can treat the fever with 
fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took 
his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's 
main ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued,
so friends and neighbors came to
sit with her around the clock.

To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.




The farmer's wife did not get well;
she died.



So many people came for her funeral, 
the farmer had the goat
slaughtered to provide enough meat 
for all of them.

The mouse looked upon it all from his 
crack in the wall with great sadness.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, the next time you hear someone 
is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember ----

when one of us is threatened, we are all at risk.



We are all involved in this journey called life.

We must keep an eye out for one another 
and make an extra effort to help one another.



REMEMBER. . . . .

EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD
IN ANOTHER PERSON'S TAPESTRY;

OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER FOR A REASON.



One of the best things to hold onto in this world
                                  is a FRIEND.


                                     (Taken From the Web)

Three Things Cannot Be Hidden

Three things cannot be long hidden:

The sun, the moon, and the truth.

~ Buddha ~

Life is a Combination of ....

                        What is Life

It’s a combination of days and nights
Some love and some fights
Some wrongs and some rights
Some good times & some tights

Some bits and some bites
Some trenches and some heights
Some dark and scary nights
Sometimes full of lights

It’s not one or the other
But both, a combination
No warranty whatsoever
Nor any expectation

And how we handle it, is our ability
To accept it with regrets or Serenity

I Like Nonsense

I like nonsense - it wakes up the brain cells. 

Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living. 

It's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope -

Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities.
                                      - Dr. Seuss -​

Nothing is forever - The Pain will Pass

Wait and be patient......
Do not despair​​, ​do​ ​​not lose faith.

If you see all dark around you 
and believe that the light will never shine again...
Do not fear -  you just have to wait.

After the storm, comes the calm 
Water recedes after the flood

Day light shines after the night
And even in the dark, you may see a light.

So, Wait - Do not give up. 
      Waiting is prudent. 

           Wait and be patient.

Everything is fleeting - nothing ever lasts
Nothing is forever - the pain will pass 

Khalil Gibran: On Marriage and Relationships

Regarding the attachment to one's near and dear ones, 

Khalil Gibran has some eloquent words of advice in his book 'The Prophet'. 

On being asked about marriage, he says:

'You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when white wings of death scatter your days.
Aye, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness
And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.
Love one another but make not a bond of love
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with​ the same music.
Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together, yet not too near together
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.'

ये ज़हमत कौन करता है? Yeh zehmat kaun kartaa hai?

हक़ीक़त जान कर ऐसी हिमाक़त कौन करता है ?
भला बे-फ़ैज़ - लोगों से मोहब्बत कौन करता है ?

बताओ - जिस तिजारत में ख़सारा ही ख़सारा हो 
बिना सोचे  ख़सारे की तिजारत कौन करता है ?

हमें ही ग़लत फ़हमी थी किसी के वास्ते वरना 
ज़माने के रिवाज़ों से बग़ावत कौन करता है ?

ख़ुदा  ने सबर करने की  मुझे तौफ़ीक़ बख़्शी है 
अरे जी भर के तड़पाओ शिक़ायत कौन करता है ?

किसी के दिल के ज़ख़्मों पर मरहम रखना ज़रूरी है 
मगर इस दौर में 'मोहसिन' ये ज़हमत कौन करता है ?
                                            "मोहसिन" 


Haqeeqat jaan kar aisi himaaqat kaun kartaa hai?
Bhalaa be-faiz, logon se mohabbat kaun kartaa hai?

Bataao jis tijaarat main khasaara hee khaasara ho
Binaa sochay khasaaray kee tijaarat kaun kartaa hai?

Hamain hee ghalat fehami thi kisi kay waastay, warnaa
Zamaanay ke riwaajon se baghaawat kaun kartaa hai?

Khudaa ne sabar karnay ki mujhe taufeeq bakhshi hai
Aray jee bhar ke tadpaao shikaayat kaun kartaa hai?

Kisi kay dil kay zakhmon par marham rakhnaa zaroori hai
Magar is daur main “Mohsin” yeh zehmat kaun kartaa hai?
                                             "Mohsin"


Haqeeqat      हक़ीक़त            Truth                          
Himaaqat     हिमाक़त             Foolishness
Be-Faiz          बे-फ़ैज़              Without any benefit
Tijaarat         तिजारत             Business
Khasara        ख़सारा               Loss
Baghaawat   बग़ावत              Rebellious
Taufeeq        तौफ़ीक़              Capacity, luck, God given talent etc. 
Zehmat         ज़हमत               Trouble, Strain, Stress
  

कौन मुश्किल में किसी के काम आता है Kaun mushkil me kisi kay kaam aata hai

कौन मुश्किल में किसी के काम आता है 
शाम  को  साया भी साथ छोड़ जाता है 
रौशनी  बेइंतहा  सूरज में  है  लेकिन 
रात में 'राजन ' दीया ही काम आता है 

Kaun mushkil me kisi kay kaam aata hai 

Shaam ko saaya bhi saath chhod jaata hai 

Raushni be-intehaa sooraj me hai lekin 

Raat me 'Rajan' - diya hi kaam aata hai 

                          "Rajan Sachdeva"

کون مشکل مے کسی کے کام آتا ہے 
شام کو سایہ بھی ساتھ چھوڈ جاتا ہے 
روشنی بے انتہا سورج مے ہے لیکن 
رات مے  راجن  دیا ہی کام آتا ہے 


Be-intehaa ..... Excessive, Unlimited
Diya ................ Small clay lamp or candle

Thank God For.....

A rich man looked through his window and saw a poor man picking something from his trashcan ... 
and said, Thank God I'm not poor.

The poor man looked around and saw a naked man misbehaving on the street ... 

He said, Thank God I'm not mad.

And the naked mad man saw an ambulance carrying a patient ... 
He said, Thank God am not sick.

And the sick person saw a van taking a dead body to the mortuary ... 

He said, Thank God I'm not dead.

And the dead person saw......

Well, the dead cannot see or evaluate anything anymore.
The dead cannot thank anyone.  
Only a living person can be grateful.
Only a living person can thank God.

So, why don't we thank God today for all our blessings and for the gift of life ...
For another beautiful day.

Tortoise and the Hare : Old Story with new versions and lessons for today

                             Tortoise and the Hare : The old Story
Once upon a time a tortoise and a hare had an argument about who was faster. They decided to settle the argument with a race. They agreed on a route and started off the race. The hare shot ahead and ran briskly for some time. Then seeing that he was far ahead of the tortoise, he thought he’d sit under a tree for some time and relax before continuing the race. 
He sat under the tree and soon fell asleep. The tortoise plodding on overtook him and soon finished the race, emerging as the undisputed champ. 
The hare woke up and realized that he’d lost the race. 
The moral- “Slow and steady wins the race. 
This is the version of the story that we’ve all grown up with.” 

                          THE STORY DOESN’T END HERE 
  
There are few more interesting things.....it continues as follows..... . 

The hare was disappointed at losing the race and he did some soul-searching. 
He realized that he’d lost the race only because he had been overconfident, careless and lax. 
If he had not taken things for granted, there’s no way the tortoise could have beaten him. 
So he challenged the tortoise to another race. 
The tortoise agreed. This time, the hare went all out and ran without stopping from start to finish. 
He won by several miles. 
The moral - “ Fast and consistent will always beat the slow and steady. It’s good to be slow and steady; 
but it’s better to be fast and reliable.” 

                      THE STORY DOESN’T END HERE EITHER
  
The tortoise did some thinking this time, and realized that there’s no way it can beat the hare in a race the way it was currently formatted. It thought for a while, and then challenged the hare to another race, but on a slightly different route. The hare agreed. They started off. In keeping with his self-made commitment to be consistently fast, the hare took off and ran at top speed until he came to a broad river. The finishing line was a couple of kilometers on the other side of the river. The hare sat there wondering what to do. In the meantime the tortoise trundled along, got into the river, swam to the opposite bank, continued walking and finished the race.  
The moral - “First identify your core competency and then change the playing field to suit your core competency.” 

                              THE STORY STILL HASN’T ENDED
  
The hare and the tortoise, by this time, had become pretty good friends and they did some thinking together. Both realized that the last race could have been run much better, so they decided to do the last race again, but to run as a team this time. They started off, and this time the hare carried the tortoise till the riverbank. There, the tortoise took over and swam across with the hare on his back. On the opposite bank, the hare again carried the tortoise and they reached the finishing line together. They both felt a greater sense of satisfaction than they’d felt earlier. 

The moral - “It’s good to be individually brilliant and to have strong core competencies; but unless you’re able to work in a team and harness each other’s core competencies, you’ll always perform below par because there will always be situations at which you’ll do poorly and someone else does well... 

Teamwork is mainly about situational leadership, letting the person with the relevant core competency for a situation take leadership. Note that neither the hare nor the tortoise gave up after failures. The hare decided to work harder and put in more effort after his failure. The tortoise changed his strategy because he was already working as hard as he could.” 
 In life, when faced with failure, sometimes it is appropriate to work harder and put in more effort. And sometimes it is appropriate to do both. The hare and the tortoise also learnt another vital lesson. When we stop competing against a rival and instead start competing against the situation, we perform far better..

To sum up - the story of the hare and tortoise has much to say: 
Chief among them are that: -
Fast and consistent will always beat slow and steady
Never give up when faced with failure
Change your strategy; Work to your competencies.
Pooling resources and working as a team will always beat individual performers
& Finally:
Compete against the situation - not against a rival.

                 (Taken from the web : Author - Unknown)

The Older I Get

The older I get
                         The longer I pray
I don't know why 
    I guess that I Got more to say 
And the older I get
              the more thankful I feel
for the life I've had -
and all the life I am living still
                           By - lan Jackson 

It’s Never Too Late

Whenever we feel that a change is required, 
we often say -"It’s already too late"
We talk about the past being glorious - that how beautiful it was - that we have deviated 
from the original path so much that it is impossible to go back on the right track again - that 
we have lost everything, and it is not possible to regain what we had.
But it's not too late. 
Nothing is ever too late.
At any time, things can change if we really want them to.
But first and most important thing is to recognize the problem. 
Denying the problem is not a solution. 
Until and unless we see and admit that there is a problem, no solution can be found. 
History can be a great teacher. We can learn a great deal from it to understand why our 
ancestors were successful - how they achieved what they wanted to achieve. 
It can also teach us what mistakes they made, if any, for the failure of their future generations. 
We can find ways to correct those shortcomings and make sure not to make the same mistakes again. 
We can also learn from the history of others - by exploring, and examining the reasons of their rise 
and fall - and we can learn what mistakes we made - where we went wrong and try to find the 
ways to fix them and get back on the right track. 
However, denying, hiding or trying to justify the previous mistakes can create more problems. 
Therefore, transparency of our actions is extremely important. If we honestly put our sincere efforts 
to elevate our life and the lives of others - if we really want to bring the old glory back -
then it's never too late.

                       'Rajan Sachdeva'

Ideology Separates People

Ideology Separates People. 
That is why most Religions have been fighting with each other.
The difference in their ideologies keeps them apart and brings animosity among them.
Even within the organized religions, when the difference in ideology arises among its top leaders, 
it creates problems. It gives birth to small sects within the organization and creates complications 
- which gradually lead to an internal clash. Eventually, when the clash grows and becomes quite 
obvious to the followers, a split within the organization becomes inevitable. 
A new religion gets born – with a mixed feeling of - a little sense of belonging to the original religion 
and at the same time, some animosity towards it. Eventually the animosity prevails and overpowers 
the sense of belonging – and unfortunately, the Religion loses its real aim. 

Instead of bringing people together, it ends up pushing them away from each other. 
More divisions, more sects and new religions come in existence and we see more animosity, more 
hatred and more fighting in the world.

Therefore, the sole responsibility lies on the leaders of the organizations. If they really want to bring 
people together and keep them together – then they must forget their differences and stay together, 
and work unitedly to face any adverse situation – to achieve their goal – which is -

                   'Oneness and Peace in the world.'

                                         "Rajan Sachdeva"

Ideology separates us

Ideology separates us. 

                 Tragedy brings us together.

One Cannot Serve Two Masters.

Bhagavad Geeta does not say to renounce the world. 
But it certainly says to move slowly towards that moment when one will have to renounce 
the world and take refuse in the Self or Brahm - God.
        Sarvay dharmaan prityajaya - Maamekam sharanam braj
"Renounce all Dharmas: beliefs, rituals, and duties etc. and take refuse in Me".
Eventually, one has to renounce the world - not by leaving the world and going to forests 
or on mountains - but by abandoning all worldly desires and moving towards the goal by 
thinking beyond the body. 
Jesus also said that one cannot serve two masters.
We have to let go of one in order to serve the other.
                                ‘Rajan Sachdeva’

ग़ुरूर कहाँ जाता है Gharoor kahaan jaata hai

क़ब्र की मिट्टी हाथ में लिए सोच रहा हूँ
लोग मरते हैं तो ग़ुरूर कहाँ जाता है

Qabar ki mitti haath may liye soch rahaa hoon
Log martay hain to ghuroor kahaan jaata hai 

                                (Writer Unknown)

We must learn to find new solutions

“No problem can be solved from the 
  same consciousness that created it. 
  We must learn to see the world anew.” 
                           ~Albert Einstein~

विना दैन्येन जीवनम् Vinaa-Dainyena Jeevanam

Last two days, I had been running back and forth to the local hospital. 
While sitting in the ER waiting room and seeing some of the patients there, two very strong thoughts took over my mind. 
Being healthy and independent are the two best things in everyone's life - the best gifts one could ask or pray for. Suddenly, I remembered a wonderful shloka; a prayer that we used to recite every morning in my childhood – at home and at the temple:

अनायासेन मरणं विना दैन्येन जीवनम् ।
देहान्ते तव सायुज्यं देहि मे परमेश्वरम ॥ 

Anaayaasena maranam, Vinaa-dainyena jeevanam 
Dehaantay tava saayujyam dehi may Parmeshvaram

Meaning:
Death without exertion; Life without affliction; 
Thy proximity (Attainment of thy abode) upon leaving the body - grant me these O' Lord. 

I had seen Bhapa Ram Chand ji Kapurthala and Bhagat Ram ji Barnala repeating a phrase in Urdu several times a day, and always finishing their Sumiran with: “Hey Ghareeb-nawaaz, kisi da mohtaaz na kareen” – “Paatshah mainu Be-mohtaaz rakhin”. 
I had also seen many elderly Muslim friends in Jammu, Rajouri and Poonchh repeating the same Duaa – which means O’ Lord – Please grant me independence – Do not make me become dependent on any one. 
Therefore, 
First: Not becoming dependent - being able to function and take care of oneself is the best thing one could ask for.  

And second – seeing the family members and friends of those patients helping their loved ones made me realize that if something like this does happen and you really need some help from others - then it’s really the family and the close friends who are there to support and take care of you.

Philosophically – “Makhlooq saari hai kunbaa Khuda ka” - 
The whole humanity is one family – family of one God.
But practically – no one can possibly help and take care of billions of people living on the planet.
One needs his or her ‘immediate’ family and friends who will immediately come forward to help in time of need.  

                               ‘Rajan Sachdeva’

कौन देता है उमर भर का सहारा Kaun deta hai umar bhar ka sahaara

कौन देता है उमर भर का सहारा  'फ़राज़ '
लोग जनाज़े में भी  कंधे  बदलते रहते हैं 
                    ~ फ़राज़ अहमद फ़राज़  ~ 

Kaun deta hai umar bhar ka sahaara 'Faraaz'
Log janaazaay men bhi kandhay badaltey rehtay hain
                                 'Faraaz Ahmad Faraaz'