In order to achieve salvation, a devotee needs to have firm faith in his Spiritual Master. Only the true Master shows the path of salvation to his disciples and it is essential to put his words into action in one's life. In the Bhagavad Gita Lord Krishna instructs Arjuna, “He who remembers Me with his last breath comes to Me.”
Now, we should understand that we remember at the time of death what we do throughout our life. People hide cash to meet their expenses during bad times. If they forget where it is, then they will not be benefited from that hidden money. So they will remember every day where they have buried it and they will be remembering this same thing at their time of death. Saints said that we are reborn in a body to fulfill what we remembered at our time of death in previous birth. If we remember Holy Name and meditate regularly every day, then we will be able to remember this Name at the time of death. What will happen if you do this? You will get salvation and go to the highest abode of God. So Guru Nanak Ji said very authoritatively, “Ap jape auron ko japawe, Nanak nishchay mukti pawe.”
He says that those who remember God themselves and inspire others also to meditate and remember Holy Name, definitely get salvation. We shall have such inner inspiration only if we have positive thinking. If we nurture negative thoughts we cannot achieve such a state of positive thinking. Guru Nanak Ji wrote in the Guru Granth Sahib, “ Nam Jap, nam jap, Kalu ayo, Kalu ayo” . “It is Kaliyuga, so remember Holy Name.”
St. Tulsidas Ji wrote in the Shri Ramcharitmanasa , “ Nahin Kali Karma na bhagati viveku, Ram Nam abalamban eku .” In Kaliyuga (the present Age) the Holy Name is the only support as neither true action nor devotion is possible. There is a devotional song which says “ Tera sat chit anand roop, koi koi jane re.” Only a very rare person knows God as Truth, Consciousness and Bliss.
So the point is to ‘know'. Otherwise, all of us believe and say that God is omnipresent. We repeat what we read in scriptures. St. Tulsidas glorified the Name and said, “ Nam prabhav jani ganrau, pratham poojiyat Nam prabhau.”
He wrote that Lord Ganesh knew the glory of the Name and thus is worshipped before any other god.
St. Tulsidas further wrote, “Sumari pawantsut pawan namu, apne wash kari rakheu ramu.” Hanuman remembered the Name and so captivated even Lord Rama. So it is essential to remember Holy Name constantly once you receive the Knowledge, because this is the only way to be freed from all sorrow.
Who would have thought a few years ago that the telephone could become mobile, that the phone would ring in your pocket and you could talk to the caller from wherever you are. It means that the mobile phone has become in a way omnipresent. Similarly God is omnipresent. Lord Shiva said, “Hari vyapak sarvatra samana. Prem se pragat hot mai jana. ”
“God is omnipresent but is manifested through Love”. Today, anyone anywhere can have a mobile phone. There are phone towers from place to place. Your mobile phone first hooks up to the waves from a particular tower then is able to establish contact with anyone in the world. Similarly, when the meditator gets hooked up to the Holy Name, he experiences that God is omnipresent. Spiritual Knowledge is like a mobile phone. You can dial the Name from anywhere and talk to omnipresent God. For that you don't need to sit in any particular place. This is the glory of that Knowledge.
Sometimes it happens that someone has served for a long time and then begins to feel proud that he has served a lot and that he is a very old devotee. There is a story that the five Pandavas wanted to hold an elaborate sacrifice called ‘ Rajsooya Yagya '. Lord Krishna appointed their cousin Duryodhana as treasurer. The Pandavas objected to this and said, “Lord, he will empty the treasury.” Lord Krishna said, “Don't worry, if he spends a lot, then it's your name that will be glorified. You are spending lavishly to hold this yagya, but you are doing it with love. Let Duryodhana distribute it, for he has such lines in his palm that indicate that twice what he spends will come back to him.” This satisfied the Pandavas and Duryodhana got the job of cashier. He spent lavishly and the Pandavas' name was glorified. Think a little about the service Lord Krishna chose during the Rajsooya Yagya. He was the one who picked up the dirty dishes after the feast was over. He did not do higher profile service such as receiving the important guests. But in so doing he showed his greatness. Service is never great or small. Whatever we do in service is great.
The Pandavas fed everyone during this Rajsooya Yagya but because the bell indicating success did not ring, it meant someone was yet to be fed. After a lot of searching they discovered a saint in the forest who had not attended the yagya. The Pandavas begged him to come and he accepted the invitation on the condition that he would get the rewards of thousands of such yagyas. The Pandavas were puzzled and asked themselves, “We have not been able to complete even one Rajsooya Yagya, so how can we give him the rewards of thousands?” But Draupadi understood. She walked barefoot to that saint to humbly invite him. She said, “Maharaj, saints said that ‘ Sant milan ko chaliye, taj maya abhiman. Jyon jyon pag age dhare, kotin yagya saman'. ( If one goes to meet a saint, putting aside his illusory pride and ego, then each step he takes accrues the rewards of millions of yagyas). So by coming to meet you I have earned the rewards of millions of these yagyas. Please take as much merit as you like and return the rest to me.”
The saint then accepted the invitation. Service in the Court of the Master is such that even the poorest person, not only the rich, can do it. However the feeling of service should be pious and true.
Once an old woman dropped her needle on the floor of her cottage, but she could not see as the wind had blown out the flame of her candle. So she went outside and started searching for the needle under the street lights. A passerby asked her what she was looking for. She replied that her needle had been lost. The passerby then asked where it had been lost. She said that she had lost it in her cottage but, since it was dark inside she was searching for it outside. But of course you have to search where the thing has been lost. You should search for peace where it is. You should eradicate problems where they start. Since the agitation is within, you should search for peace within. So a saint has said, “ Apun ko aphi men payo. Sabda hi sabda bhayo ujiyaro, Sadguru
bhed batayo .”
(I found myself within myself. From the Holy Name all became Light. The Spiritual Master revealed the mystery to me). But this is possible only if we do what the Master says.
This Knowledge needs to spread all over the world. When the sun rises and shines brightly, the chlorophyll in green leaves converts carbon dioxide into oxygen. In the presence of sunlight even stale air becomes pure. Similarly, the Light of Knowledge eradicates the darkness of ignorance. So kindle the Light within. It is written in our scriptures, “Tamso ma jyotirgamay, asatoma sadgamay, mrityorma amritam gamay.” “Lead me from darkness to light, from untruth to Truth. Take me from death to immortality and let me achieve salvation.”
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