Gurmukh Sikhya Part 1 - Naam is a gift

Naam is a bakhshish {gift or offering, given with love, out of pity for someones misery}

The naam, 'Vahiguroo', is the bakhshish of akaal purkh {timeless being, or the one who is free from death}. If you have been given this gift, you should never take it for granted i.e. always be thankful (even though most of us do take it for granted... its quite hard to realize what you have... the only way to realize its grandeur is to experiment with it and experience it) and if you have this gift then enjoy the pleasure that comes with it, the pleasure of akaal purkhs hazooree {to be ever present}. While doing this, do not forget your worldly responsibilities because our satguru's path is 'ਪਰਵਾਣੁ ਗਿਰਸਤ ਉਦਾਸ' (I don't know if I'm satisfied with the STTM translation of "is celebrated as a householder as well as a renunciate.". To me it makes more sense if, "Says Nanak, the person who offers himself to the true guru and becomes nirmoh {having no attachment to materialistic wealth} while living a normal householder's life, he/she is accepted and welcomed in the house of akaal purkh or it could be that it doesn't matter if the person is a renunciate or a householder as long as he/she offers himself/herself completely to the guru, gives up his/her own mutt {thinking or intellect}).

One should always pay attention to there health, at least 7 hours of sleep and no less. Strive for an active lifestyle.

The second guru (Sree Guru Angad Dev Jee) used to play with kids in the afternoon.

One's body is free from disease, mind is free from disease, and the consciousness is at peace when it remains attached to the remembrance of akaal purkh through naam.

Dehradoon, 26.5.1950

Babaneea Kahaneea Putt Saputt Karayn...

ਬਾਬਾਣੀਆ ਕਹਾਣੀਆ ਪੁਤ ਸਪੁਤ ਕਰੇਨਿ ॥
The stories of one's ancestors make the children good children.

This summer my grandfather visited us for the first time. When I used to be a kid, he was a catalyst for my curiosities, both intellectual and spiritual. He was the one that told me all the saakhees about Guru Sahibaan and other Gursikhs. I hadn't spent as much time with him since I was 12 years old. There was never enough time during my occasional visits to India, he hadn't fully shared his life experiences with me.

During his stay with us, I got to spend quite a bit of time with him, I don't remember most things that we talked about but there was one that stuck with me. He told me that sometimes we as Gursikhs look at Gurbaanee as something that is surreal and unattainable from an everyday perspective. Sometimes we only look at the "deep" meanings of it all and not how it applies to our everyday lives.

He told me the story of a Gursikh from a pind {village} who earned his living honestly and was devoted to his Gursikhi Jeevan. His routine was to get up at 2 am, take an isnaan {shower or bath} and do naam simran {remembrance of god by the repetition of his name given to one by the true guru}. Then he would do his nitname {a minimum of 5 collections of sacred writings from Sree Guru Granth Sahib Jee and Sree Dasam Granth} and set out on a journey through the fields to the pind's gurduara.

Another Gursikh who would get up early to work in his fields would see this Gursikh everyday and wonder where he goes everyday before sunrise. One day the man decided to stop the Gursikh and asked him, "Where are you going, the sun hasn't even risen yet?".

The Gursikh replied with a question, "What are you doing here so early?". The man answered proudly, "I am going to work on my farm so I can have the best crop when the harvesting season comes!".

The Gursikh said, "Well so am I..". Now the man was confused and a little agitated, thinking that this guy's trying to mock me. The Gursikh continued, "I'm just following Guru Arjan Dev Jees command:

I just repeated the guru's name with my tongue:
ਅੰਤਰਿ ਗੁਰੁ ਆਰਾਧਣਾ ਜਿਹਵਾ ਜਪਿ ਗੁਰ ਨਾਉ ॥

I am going to the gurduara to do darshan of the guru with my eyes and listen to baanee with my ears:
ਨੇਤ੍ਰੀ ਸਤਿਗੁਰੁ ਪੇਖਣਾ ਸ੍ਰਵਣੀ ਸੁਨਣਾ ਗੁਰ ਨਾਉ ॥

And by doing this, at the end of my days, I'll have the best crop possible:
ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਸੇਤੀ ਰਤਿਆ ਦਰਗਹ ਪਾਈਐ ਠਾਉ ॥

Shabad

The farmer was in tears and said "I read this everyday too, but it never occurred to me that I could do this everyday." He thanked the Gursikh and both said...

Vaheguroo Jee Ka Khalsaaa Vaheguroo Jee Kee Fatah(i)!!