Gems in the River

I gazed at her in awe. Her breathtaking beauty mesmerized me. I whispered inwardly, “She is beautiful”. Nay, to describe her merely as beautiful would be to do her disservice, for I beheld actual beauty itself incarnate.

Her raiment appeared as a bluish garment of sparkling light. Her face radiated a peace and composure I had yet to experience. She stood beside a river. The rising sun shimmering on its surface reflected the dawn in all its glory. Entranced I observed the rapture of day unfolding before me.

She held a bulky bag heavy with stones. Only when she reached to pull out one of the stones did I realized it was nothing ordinary. No, a gem surpassing the brilliance and elegance of any jewel I had ever previously seen glittered in the morning rays of sunlight, nearly blinding me.

Then she did a rather peculiar thing.

She threw the gem into the river. Before I could say anything she repeated her action. Over and over again she tossed unimaginably flawless gems into the streams current. I couldn't’t fathom why she would do such a thing or how such beautiful gems could be so easily discarded by her. Couldn't she see how precious, how valuable these gems were?

Once in a while, she would inspect a particular jewel holding it out to reflect the light. After caressing it fondly she would put the gem into her pocket. But then she would go right back to dropping beautiful gems, one after another, into the river.

Finally I broke out of my spell and asked, "Who are you"?

She looked at me and her eyes sparkling with life and mirth, said, "I am you".

It completely shocked me to think that I could be that beautiful. "But", I stumbled, "I am ugly and dirty, you are so pure and...?"

I could feel her laughter inside. "I am your soul."

Like a flash of lightening, I completely understood her. I saw her and me as one. My dirt and ugliness reflected the false and fleeting me. She embodied the true me.

Like a jewel wrapped in rags, I had hidden her from the world. Nay, I had hidden her from me.

I pointed to the gems in the river - she smiled and explained,
"The bag of stones actually represents our lifetime in the human body and the celestial beauty is indeed our soul. She is standing by the ever flowing river of time, spending the treasure of precious but limited number of breaths that the body is blessed with. Each breath spent in meditating on the Beloved is a priceless gem that she will carry with her as her spiritual treasure when the body breathes its last. Each breath spent on useless, materialistic pursuit is a gem wasted, never to be found again."

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Above reply by me-ever-radiant-and-lovely-wife, Gurpreet Kaur Singh.

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Other notable explanations sent in by readers:

Sukhmandir Kaur

How can one remember Thee, unless first we meet
Oh, but the nearness of Thee taste divinely sweet
Please bless and fill me with Thy Grace
Granting this unworthy one a glimpse of Thy Face
Blind me with thy Blinding Light
Empty me of weakness, and fill me with Thy Might
Once met,
How could one forget
Waheguru waheguru waheguru wahegur

Amrit Singh Sangha
That gem is your life breath being washed away with the strong current of the river.

I do not understand O my beautiful soul.

You have been given this human life to remember the One Lord’s Name with every breath. Each breath that passes without the remembrance of the One Lord’s Name, that gem is thrown into the river never to return again.

I felt a chill down the back of my spine and the hair on my neck stand.

She said all is not lost, that Gem is safe, which goes in my pocket. That Gem and only that Gem which is in service of the One Lord’s Name is safe.

I gasped and said "O my beautiful soul my breath of life is a priceless Gem that is being wasted away in thoughts other than the One Lord’s Name."

She looked at me, smiled with a gaze that pierced my mind and said now go meditate on the One Lord's Name. I do not know how many Gems I have left in this bag and my pocket feels Light weighted.

With these words she disappeared.

Sonu Kapoor
The gems were priceless moments/memories of life, good or bad they were all beautiful ... the soul was simply carefully selecting the ones it would keep with it and cherish forever, while letting go of the rest that did not mean much.

Gems made out of naam, simran and love for god were kept in the pocket , while the memories of friends family and loved ones were all discarded back into the river of maya. (depending on a person's beliefs, this can be vice versa).

Please see the comments too.