The Merchant was a devout Sikh and he loved to recite and explain gurbani (Guru's writings) to the not-so-spiritual-ship-captains like me and even-less-spiritual-sailors like my crewmen. He had hired me along with my Ship and my men a few weeks ago and we had become good friends because of his warm and generous nature. Slowly I had developed a taste for this spiritual truths; the hours spent with the Merchant discussing Guru's words had fast become my favorite pastime.
We had had fair weather throughout the day and my cabin was gently rocking when we sat for dinner when unexpectedly a strong wave slammed into our Ship, throwing us off our seats and onto the floor.
We stumbled up to the deck. I had seen never such a sudden storm. Wave after wave washed over our Ship, beating and hammering it relentlessly, making it roll wildly and groan as though it would split at the seams. The frightened voices of my men could be heard above the howling winds, calling to each other as they struggled to lower the sails. We could see large dark menacing rocks looming along the jagged coastline waiting to break and smash our ship to bits.
Soon, tipping at a crazy angle the ship began taking in water. Before long I stood up to my knees in water - the end seemed inevitable. The morale of the men completely dropped and slowly they all stopped their activity and as if the Merchant could save us all, they started quietly looking towards the him.
He looked back helplessly at us and shrugged; then a sudden inspiration hit him and he knelt down. His lower body submerged, he raised his clasped hands and he prayed, "O Guru Nanak, light that shines in every heart, please have compassion and mercy on us. Please deliver us, for without thee we perish. Please give us the shelter of thy Embrace. Please make it possible for me to return to the Guru a small part of what was given by the Guru. If it is your will that I live, I vow that as soon as I set foot safely on shore, I will come and present to thee 500 gold bars personally. Our safety lies in thy hand, O beloved Architect of destiny, please uplift us and carry us across this dreadful sea. We are surely lost without thee. Thou are the True captain, thy gurbani the True life boat."
And lo and behold, almost immediately, the fury of the storm subsided. A great heave cleaved the waters. Our sinking ship righted and set afloat. The men collapsed in relief (and in awe of the power of prayer). The men looked at the Merchant with even more reverence; and I decided I would visit the Merchant's guru at the first chance I got.
As soon as we made landfall, the Merchant and I set out in search of Guru Sahib. We soon learnt though that Guru Har Krishan, the Sikh's eighth Guru, had recently left the earthly abode. His final words had been "Baba Bakale," indicating the Guruship would be passed to one residing in Bakala.
We made haste for Bakala, but upon reaching there discovered that there were not one, not two, but 22 people claiming to be the true guru. The Merchant came up with a plan saying he couldn't live with the debt of 500 gold bars on his conscience. He decided to give each of the "gurus" 2 bars to see what would happen.
I, on my part, felt extremely disappointed that I couldn't see the Guru right away. I had become thirstier and thirstier for the Guru's sight. I had been reading Jap Ji quite regularly by that time and it's ever-deeper-meanings had been a source for comfort and delight for me. I silently did a prayer in my mind asking that the Guru answer my question "When did the Creator create this World?" with the answer of "Only the Creator knows" (Jap Ji pauree 21, sggs 4). That was my naive plan but that's the best I could come up with (we sailors are not known for sophisticated ideas).
We started our search. The first "guru" (actually rugu, for "ru" means light and "gu" means darkness and these adepts led away from light and into darkness!) we went to was a piece of art! We noticed right off how he sat with his back towards the men and his one wide eye fully on the women and the other on the money in front of him. He would remark, "Oh, that's a wonderful suit you are wearing," to the young pretty women in the congregation, "It fits your slender supple body perfectly!" The Merchant didn't even bother giving this one any gold bars.
I have to say, we did not make a good start. But it did get a little better. One of the tricks we noticed was that when we got close to the rugu's place, the resident rugu would send his agents to meet us and check us out. Seeing the Merchant's royal clothing they would make inquiries attempting to get information. Then they would sneak back and tell whatever they had learned about us. Once we entered the place, the clever rugu would say things like "So how your trip from the sea?" hoping to impress us with his "divine" knowledge.
We caught on quickly and fed the agents ridiculous knowledge about ourselves; one of the rugus, after closing his eyes and then dramatically opening them and looking at the Merchant exclaimed, "You should go ahead and marry Pipia - she really does love you - she will make a great wife and bear you many strong children!" That seemed like pretty good advice, except for small fact that Pipia was my pretty Parrot!
To be fair, some rugus were pretty serious and even had some bona-fide spiritual aura about them. But none could answer my answer correctly; each of them had their pet theories about creation but none of them matched up with what I had read in Jap Ji. Finally we ran out of prospects having interviewed each of the 22 rugus. We returned to our rooms at the Inn, disappointed and feeling quite lost.
~~~~~
The next morning we had breakfast on the terrace and discussed what we should do. The merchant had decided that he would give away the rest of the gold bars to the poor of the city and be done with it. All our humor had abandoned us. In a foul mood we just sat there silently watching people milling about.
Then… we saw a tall man making his way through the crowd. There was nothing extraordinary about him; but there was nothing ordinary about him either. Yet it seemed as though a spotlight shone on him. He walked with a carefree gait that reminded me of Merchant's rich friends, yet he was dressed quite modestly.
The Merchant asked, "Do you see him?" I nodded and kept watching. He turned the corner and disappeared from our sight. That shook us out of our stupor and the Merchant shouted to the bellboy below, "Stop that man!" The bellboy, without looking at the merchant's pointing finger, ran towards the corner where the man had turned. We ran and caught up with him.
He turned to us. His eyes and face were brilliantly lit up. He might have been a disguised King, or a fantastic blissed-out artist of some sort. "How can I help you gentlemen?" he asked in a wholesome voice. We caught our breath. The merchant requested that he join us for breakfast so we could talk. He declined politely saying that he was already late for a meeting. So the Merchant quickly explained that we, "for personal reasons", were looking for the Sikh Guru.
"Oh, there are plenty of those!" he laughed indifferently. Then he narrowed his eyes scrutinizing us intently for a moment. His aloof attitude gave way to interest. He accepted the invitation to join us for breakfast.
He divulged to us that there was one other Guru by the name of Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib. But warned us the Guru does not host guests preferring instead to remain in meditation. It was this guru he was on his way to meet when we had seen him. Indeed as it was per his daily routine, he would go to Guru before starting his day spending blissful moments in his company. His countenance shone divinely while recounting these details so that we readily believed him.
We begged him to take us along. He kept quiet for a little while, before speaking very deliberately. "I am getting a message inside that I should take you to the Guru!" He looked at our delighted faces and added, "Indeed I felt the same when we were talking earlier but I thought perhaps I had misread the message. But ... I don't wish to sell you anything that you don't want to buy. I will gladly take you to the Guru's house. I will also gladly ask the Guru if you can visit him. But if he says no, that will be the end of our acquaintance. Because it is possible that I am misreading the message from within – I have done so before."
We eagerly agreed and followed him to the Guru's abode. He told us to wait outside on the porch. He entered the door and paused; he looked at me and winked, "The answer to your question is "Only the Creator knows!""
Needless to say, we were overjoyed and waited with abated breath.
He came out a few minutes later, very excited, "The Guru has agreed! This is the first time in years that he has said "Yes" to anyone!" He held our hands and said, "I have been waiting for this for a long time!" We looked at each other; excited and a little apprehensive. We knew this was it. If this turned out not to be the real thing, a misinterpretation had been made of the 8th Guru's final words. A moment later, upon entering, all our doubts left us.
This was indeed the real One!
The tranquility in that place seeped even into an old Sailor like me. Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib sat alone, eyes closed, quietly absorbed. I had set my eyes on a great many awesome sights in my travels - ocean sunsets, mountain sunrises, exotic waterfalls, glorious Islands, but these paled in comparison to what they now beheld. The Guru was beauty itself! A stunningly overpowering magnetic radiance surrounded him. We stood there for a long time, just drinking the Guru's aura blissfully.
After what seemed an eternity, the merchant moved close to the Guru and bowed respectfully; placing an offering of two gold bars in front of him (the merchant later told me that he already knew this to be the True Guru, but offered 2 bars out of sheer habit). The Guru opened his naam-filled eyes and with a voice that resembled the freshness of an early morning, he mirthfully expounded, "That leaves 498 mohars still owed to Guru Nanak's house!"
Prostrating himself, the merchant grasped Guru Sahibs feet with both hands. Overcome, he wept wordlessly. When finally he could speak, his voice trembled; thanking Guru Sahib profusely for protecting and saving him along with the ship and it's men. "Guru Sahib jee, words are inadequate to express the depths of my most sincere heartfelt gratitude..." he attempted helplessly.
Gathering his composure, the merchant withdrew the five hundred gold mohars tied at his waist. In deep gratitude and undying love, he placed them at Guru Sahib's feet. He spoke reverently saying, "My wonderful, compassionate, kind, generous life-giving Guru, I have been searching so long and have found you at last. Guru Sahib jee, please accept my humble offering. Please accept what is already yours, what rightfully belongs to you. I offer you my all; these are the five hundred gold bars I promised you. They have not been touched. They are for you only, no other!"
I just stood mouth agape in complete admiration as I observed the scene unfolding before me. The merchant straightened up joyfully. He looked in to Guru's Radiance confirming aloud, "I am yours and you are mine!"
Determinedly grabbing me by my arm, he took me up to the rooftop of the house. Waving a flag, he shouted out declaring, "Gur Laadho Rae! Gur Laadho Rae! The Guru has been found! The Guru has been found! I have found Him at last, after searching, I found my TRUE GURU, Dhan Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib! He has been right here all along. Come Sikhs, come and join me in joyous celebration for I have found the TRUE GURU. Let us together beseech him to come forward now, and lead us to the True One's abode!"
Hearing this, the Sikhs came running, and on evidence of the Merchant's tale and seeing Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib's naam-drenched eyes, begged the Guru to claim his rightful seat, as their own One True Guru, on Guru Nanak's eternal throne.
We had had fair weather throughout the day and my cabin was gently rocking when we sat for dinner when unexpectedly a strong wave slammed into our Ship, throwing us off our seats and onto the floor.
We stumbled up to the deck. I had seen never such a sudden storm. Wave after wave washed over our Ship, beating and hammering it relentlessly, making it roll wildly and groan as though it would split at the seams. The frightened voices of my men could be heard above the howling winds, calling to each other as they struggled to lower the sails. We could see large dark menacing rocks looming along the jagged coastline waiting to break and smash our ship to bits.
Soon, tipping at a crazy angle the ship began taking in water. Before long I stood up to my knees in water - the end seemed inevitable. The morale of the men completely dropped and slowly they all stopped their activity and as if the Merchant could save us all, they started quietly looking towards the him.
He looked back helplessly at us and shrugged; then a sudden inspiration hit him and he knelt down. His lower body submerged, he raised his clasped hands and he prayed, "O Guru Nanak, light that shines in every heart, please have compassion and mercy on us. Please deliver us, for without thee we perish. Please give us the shelter of thy Embrace. Please make it possible for me to return to the Guru a small part of what was given by the Guru. If it is your will that I live, I vow that as soon as I set foot safely on shore, I will come and present to thee 500 gold bars personally. Our safety lies in thy hand, O beloved Architect of destiny, please uplift us and carry us across this dreadful sea. We are surely lost without thee. Thou are the True captain, thy gurbani the True life boat."
And lo and behold, almost immediately, the fury of the storm subsided. A great heave cleaved the waters. Our sinking ship righted and set afloat. The men collapsed in relief (and in awe of the power of prayer). The men looked at the Merchant with even more reverence; and I decided I would visit the Merchant's guru at the first chance I got.
~~~~~
We made haste for Bakala, but upon reaching there discovered that there were not one, not two, but 22 people claiming to be the true guru. The Merchant came up with a plan saying he couldn't live with the debt of 500 gold bars on his conscience. He decided to give each of the "gurus" 2 bars to see what would happen.
I, on my part, felt extremely disappointed that I couldn't see the Guru right away. I had become thirstier and thirstier for the Guru's sight. I had been reading Jap Ji quite regularly by that time and it's ever-deeper-meanings had been a source for comfort and delight for me. I silently did a prayer in my mind asking that the Guru answer my question "When did the Creator create this World?" with the answer of "Only the Creator knows" (Jap Ji pauree 21, sggs 4). That was my naive plan but that's the best I could come up with (we sailors are not known for sophisticated ideas).
We started our search. The first "guru" (actually rugu, for "ru" means light and "gu" means darkness and these adepts led away from light and into darkness!) we went to was a piece of art! We noticed right off how he sat with his back towards the men and his one wide eye fully on the women and the other on the money in front of him. He would remark, "Oh, that's a wonderful suit you are wearing," to the young pretty women in the congregation, "It fits your slender supple body perfectly!" The Merchant didn't even bother giving this one any gold bars.
I have to say, we did not make a good start. But it did get a little better. One of the tricks we noticed was that when we got close to the rugu's place, the resident rugu would send his agents to meet us and check us out. Seeing the Merchant's royal clothing they would make inquiries attempting to get information. Then they would sneak back and tell whatever they had learned about us. Once we entered the place, the clever rugu would say things like "So how your trip from the sea?" hoping to impress us with his "divine" knowledge.
We caught on quickly and fed the agents ridiculous knowledge about ourselves; one of the rugus, after closing his eyes and then dramatically opening them and looking at the Merchant exclaimed, "You should go ahead and marry Pipia - she really does love you - she will make a great wife and bear you many strong children!" That seemed like pretty good advice, except for small fact that Pipia was my pretty Parrot!
To be fair, some rugus were pretty serious and even had some bona-fide spiritual aura about them. But none could answer my answer correctly; each of them had their pet theories about creation but none of them matched up with what I had read in Jap Ji. Finally we ran out of prospects having interviewed each of the 22 rugus. We returned to our rooms at the Inn, disappointed and feeling quite lost.
~~~~~
The next morning we had breakfast on the terrace and discussed what we should do. The merchant had decided that he would give away the rest of the gold bars to the poor of the city and be done with it. All our humor had abandoned us. In a foul mood we just sat there silently watching people milling about.
Then… we saw a tall man making his way through the crowd. There was nothing extraordinary about him; but there was nothing ordinary about him either. Yet it seemed as though a spotlight shone on him. He walked with a carefree gait that reminded me of Merchant's rich friends, yet he was dressed quite modestly.
The Merchant asked, "Do you see him?" I nodded and kept watching. He turned the corner and disappeared from our sight. That shook us out of our stupor and the Merchant shouted to the bellboy below, "Stop that man!" The bellboy, without looking at the merchant's pointing finger, ran towards the corner where the man had turned. We ran and caught up with him.
He turned to us. His eyes and face were brilliantly lit up. He might have been a disguised King, or a fantastic blissed-out artist of some sort. "How can I help you gentlemen?" he asked in a wholesome voice. We caught our breath. The merchant requested that he join us for breakfast so we could talk. He declined politely saying that he was already late for a meeting. So the Merchant quickly explained that we, "for personal reasons", were looking for the Sikh Guru.
"Oh, there are plenty of those!" he laughed indifferently. Then he narrowed his eyes scrutinizing us intently for a moment. His aloof attitude gave way to interest. He accepted the invitation to join us for breakfast.
He divulged to us that there was one other Guru by the name of Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib. But warned us the Guru does not host guests preferring instead to remain in meditation. It was this guru he was on his way to meet when we had seen him. Indeed as it was per his daily routine, he would go to Guru before starting his day spending blissful moments in his company. His countenance shone divinely while recounting these details so that we readily believed him.
We begged him to take us along. He kept quiet for a little while, before speaking very deliberately. "I am getting a message inside that I should take you to the Guru!" He looked at our delighted faces and added, "Indeed I felt the same when we were talking earlier but I thought perhaps I had misread the message. But ... I don't wish to sell you anything that you don't want to buy. I will gladly take you to the Guru's house. I will also gladly ask the Guru if you can visit him. But if he says no, that will be the end of our acquaintance. Because it is possible that I am misreading the message from within – I have done so before."
We eagerly agreed and followed him to the Guru's abode. He told us to wait outside on the porch. He entered the door and paused; he looked at me and winked, "The answer to your question is "Only the Creator knows!""
Needless to say, we were overjoyed and waited with abated breath.
He came out a few minutes later, very excited, "The Guru has agreed! This is the first time in years that he has said "Yes" to anyone!" He held our hands and said, "I have been waiting for this for a long time!" We looked at each other; excited and a little apprehensive. We knew this was it. If this turned out not to be the real thing, a misinterpretation had been made of the 8th Guru's final words. A moment later, upon entering, all our doubts left us.
This was indeed the real One!
The tranquility in that place seeped even into an old Sailor like me. Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib sat alone, eyes closed, quietly absorbed. I had set my eyes on a great many awesome sights in my travels - ocean sunsets, mountain sunrises, exotic waterfalls, glorious Islands, but these paled in comparison to what they now beheld. The Guru was beauty itself! A stunningly overpowering magnetic radiance surrounded him. We stood there for a long time, just drinking the Guru's aura blissfully.
After what seemed an eternity, the merchant moved close to the Guru and bowed respectfully; placing an offering of two gold bars in front of him (the merchant later told me that he already knew this to be the True Guru, but offered 2 bars out of sheer habit). The Guru opened his naam-filled eyes and with a voice that resembled the freshness of an early morning, he mirthfully expounded, "That leaves 498 mohars still owed to Guru Nanak's house!"
Prostrating himself, the merchant grasped Guru Sahibs feet with both hands. Overcome, he wept wordlessly. When finally he could speak, his voice trembled; thanking Guru Sahib profusely for protecting and saving him along with the ship and it's men. "Guru Sahib jee, words are inadequate to express the depths of my most sincere heartfelt gratitude..." he attempted helplessly.
Gathering his composure, the merchant withdrew the five hundred gold mohars tied at his waist. In deep gratitude and undying love, he placed them at Guru Sahib's feet. He spoke reverently saying, "My wonderful, compassionate, kind, generous life-giving Guru, I have been searching so long and have found you at last. Guru Sahib jee, please accept my humble offering. Please accept what is already yours, what rightfully belongs to you. I offer you my all; these are the five hundred gold bars I promised you. They have not been touched. They are for you only, no other!"
I just stood mouth agape in complete admiration as I observed the scene unfolding before me. The merchant straightened up joyfully. He looked in to Guru's Radiance confirming aloud, "I am yours and you are mine!"
Determinedly grabbing me by my arm, he took me up to the rooftop of the house. Waving a flag, he shouted out declaring, "Gur Laadho Rae! Gur Laadho Rae! The Guru has been found! The Guru has been found! I have found Him at last, after searching, I found my TRUE GURU, Dhan Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib! He has been right here all along. Come Sikhs, come and join me in joyous celebration for I have found the TRUE GURU. Let us together beseech him to come forward now, and lead us to the True One's abode!"
Hearing this, the Sikhs came running, and on evidence of the Merchant's tale and seeing Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib's naam-drenched eyes, begged the Guru to claim his rightful seat, as their own One True Guru, on Guru Nanak's eternal throne.
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