Making
Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji Maharaj’s mortal frame a target of their bullets on April 20,
1980 at about 11.00 p.m. in Nirankari Colony, some fanatics thought that perhaps now the
Sant Nirankari Mission would be finished for ever, or that the message of Truth would be
silenced for all the times to come. At that
time, of course, the entire Nirankari world had plunged into darkness. The ‘silence’ of Baba Ji, seemed to be
hanging heavy upon the Nirankari world. Thousands
of Nirankari devotees had started rushing to the headquarters of the Mission in Delhi -
every heart in deep agony. Everybody appeared
to be worried about the very future of the Mission. Though all the devotees were firm in
their belief that ‘Satguru’ or the True Master does not ever die, yet they were
all eager to see him manifest and lead.
Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji had given a clear indication during the last days of his life that
‘Satguru’ would now manifest in the form of Baba Hardev Singh Ji Maharaj. He confirmed the same before he breathed his last. Even though this was known to every Nirankari
saint, yet everybody was still ascertaining as to how the young ‘devotee’ whom
they all knew as ‘Bhola Ji’ or ‘Seth Ji’ and who could always be seen
clicking his camera or rendering some other service during the Samagams but who had never
been witnessed speaking or uttering even a word in the congregations, would be able to
cast an impression on the hearts of millions of devotees.
Breaking his long silence, how would he be able to give the necessary
guidance and instructions. Would the
‘Silence’ break and show the way - this might have been the apprehension of
devotees, but there was not even an iota of doubt in any one’s heart that
‘Satguru’ had already manifested as Baba Hardev Singh Ji Maharaj. This divine personage was turning out to be a
source of inspiration for every devotee reaching Nirankari Bhawan, to surrender to the
will of God. Even at a time when everybody
else was wailing in pain, Gurudev Hardev remained unperturbed and calm.
The
saints had already witnessed His Holiness consoling Rajmata Kulwant Kaur Ji by stroking
her back in a patient manner, trying to relieve her of her profound grief and pain at the
loss of her husband. A son consoling his
mother in such a forbearing manner is generally not seen under similar tragic
circumstances. The saints were quick to
understand that ‘Bhola’ in Hardev had already been transformed into
‘Satguru’ - to function as a messenger of Eternal Truth.
The
mortal remains of Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji were cremated at the Electric Crematorium with
full honours on April 27, 1980. Thereafter,
thousands of Nirankari devotees started assembling in Avtar Park awaiting to be blessed by
the Satguru in his new physical form. The
formal announcement regarding the manifestation of ‘Satguru’ in the form of
Hardev Ji Maharaj was also to be made the same day.
Prior
to the open congregation, the representatives of the Nirankari Sangats - Pramukhs, Mukhis,
Pracharaks, office bearers of the Sewa Dal and other Saints connected with Management
assembled in the hall on the first floor of Nirankari Bhawan. His Holiness Baba Hardev Singh Ji Maharaj,
following holy mother Nirankari Rajmata Ji in an absolutely serene and unperturbed manner,
entered the hall and both of them took seats on the dais laid for them. At that very moment, all of a sudden his face
started radiating in such a divine manner that the hall started resounding with ‘Dhan
Nirankar’ from all sides. The hearts
that had been smothered with grief and the faces that were looking withered and dejected
started beaming with smiles quite spontaneously.
I
had been spending my life in Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji Maharaj’s service since years. For some time, I had also been given the
responsibility as the Personal Secretary of His Holiness.
Because of that, I had the good fortune of being in close proximity with
Baba Ji on a regular basis. Even during the
last moments of his life, I was with him at the spot.
As a result, I was well aware of his last command and was assigned the task
of announcing the same. The moment I said the
words, 'from today onwards, we make His Holiness Hardev Singh Ji sit at the throne of our
hearts, as the Satguru, as per the command of Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji Maharaj', the whole
atmosphere started resounding with greetings hailing him as the Satguru. Every face lit up.
The Mahapurashas started feeling secure and re-assured once again after
finding their Satguru. Despite such an
atmosphere, this ‘Divine Embodiment’ was still as serene and calm as earlier and
spreading divine radiance all around. On
behalf of the entire Nirankari Sangat, President of the Sant Nirankari Mandal, Rev. Dr.
Des Raj Ji put ‘Tilak’ on the forehead of Gurudev Hardev. Rev. Nirankari Rajmata Kulwant Kaur Ji 'coronated'
His Holiness by placing a crest on his forehead and bowing at his feet. She then requested His Holiness to show the way as
Satguru from that moment onwards. She also
requested His Holiness to give words to whatever he desired of everybody. At this everybody missed a heartbeat once again. Everybody was anxious to know if His Holiness
would break his ‘silence’ today.
However,
as the mike was placed in front of Gurudev Hardev, His Holiness started speaking in an
extremely spontaneous and natural manner:
"Saints, Dhan Nirankar. As all of you know, this humble being is devoid of
any merit for this great responsibility. Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji Maharaj was a repository of every virtue that one could think of. To follow his footsteps is going to be possible
only with your blessings. You are well aware
of the fact that I have neither any worldly qualification nor any specific scriptural
prowess. I have, of course, got the privilege
of your company which I availed all along as I grew up in your loving laps. Rev. Mata Ji always taught me to remain as the
dust of your holy feet.
I believe that the Formless
Almighty Himself bestows the individual with the requisite capacity to carry out the
assigned duty. I also trust that with your
good wishes, the blessings of Rev. Mata Ji and with the benignity of the Formless One, I
will be able to live up to the responsibility that I am entrusted with. Otherwise, I do
not consider myself worthy of the onus that has been put on me. I have heard that Baba
Buta Singh Ji, the founder of this Mission, remarked to Baba Avtar Singh Ji while handing
over the duty of taking the message of Truth to each and every corner of the world that
the garland put around his neck was not that of roses but of blades in fact. He should be
extremely cautious while walking lest he cuts his own throat. Saints, Baba Avtar Singh Ji was a great master. He discharged his duty in the best possible manner
and thus converted the garland of blades into that of roses. But I am a novice on this path. Only with your benevolence, will I be able to
serve you according to the wishes of the Formless. The
world is ablaze with the fire of hatred and animosity.
Only with the grace of the benevolent Formless, will I be able to douse this
dreadful fire with the message of peace and unity while treading the path of Truth."
Thus
the ‘silence’ of Gurudev Hardev did break that day. His soulful flow of humble and simple words
touched a deep chord within every body’s heart. Everyone
felt assured that the ‘silence’ conferred upon this divine personage so far by
the Formless was nothing but the preparation needed to give a new direction to the future. In his first discourse itself, His Holiness had
made all his disciples fully aware of their duties. In
an indirect manner, Gurudev had wanted his disciples to know that they should be ever
ready to accept and discharge whatever duty is assigned to them as the beneficence of God. They should also be humble and selfless while
rendering their services, always take the blessings of the saints and give due regard to
the elders.
While
on one hand, this programme was proceeding in the hall, on the other, a huge gathering of
thousands of people was anxiously waiting to hear a few words from Gurudev himself. The moment His Holiness reached Avtar Park, the
whole place started reverberating with the cheers of ‘Hail, Baba Hardev Singh Ji
Maharaj’. The discourse that His
Holiness gave that day would be written in golden letters on the pages of history. All the delegates whether religious, political or
social, who were present that day would have definitely concluded that the words of His
Holiness were clearly foretelling the advent of a spiritual revolution. The multitude of people was listening to the
discourse in a spell bound manner. The
‘Silence’ had definitely found eloquent expression. Speaking in an extremely natural manner, Gurudev
addressed the audience:
"Saints, today we have assembled here to
commemorate the great master who spent his whole life working and wishing for the welfare
of society. Today, it is being said that he
has been assassinated. It is not he who has
been killed; it is the thoughts and ideas of all those saints and Prophets, who said:
'With Thy grace let everybody be happy' (Tere Bhane Sarbat Ka Bhala), which have been
massacred. This is the slaughter of the
feelings of Bhai Kanhiya. Nobody can kill
Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji. Guru always
preaches the Truth in the world; those engulfed in the fire of hatred are provided cool
showers of love by him. Since ages, whenever
any great master proclaimed the Truth, people under the mire of ignorance, and those who
in their wilfulness were oblivious and are still oblivious of one Supreme Father - God,
did not spare him.
If somebody feels that only those ten or fifteen
people who paid tributes to Baba Ji today in this congregation, have benefited from his
teachings, it would be an error on his part. Each
and every child, youth as well as senior Mahapurushas sitting here today have the stamp of
Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji on their hearts, on every breath that they take. The grace and the benevolence that he showered
upon all of us can never be forgotten.
When I was asked to sit here today, I
implored that I was not worthy of this position as I have no special qualification
whatsoever. But when it was ordained by
the Sadh Sangat and the Satguru, then I prayed to the Almighty to bless me with the
strength to carry out my duty, to perpetuate the very message of humanism that Baba Ji had
instilled in every heart despite many odds. The
way he provided strength to his disciples is more than obvious from their unwavering faith
today.
From worldly point of view, Babaji was my father. I can never forget the lessons that he taught me. If I do not measure up to Baba Ji’s actions
as well as words, then I would feel that I was not able to perform my duty. Even Rev. Mata Ji gave this blessing a few moments
ago that we have to follow whatever Baba Ji taught us.
During the last two years especially, Baba Ji’s message has been to
wish for the welfare of all and cherish such lofty feelings for everyone in our hearts.
Saints, we have to maintain the same
noble feelings in our hearts and carry on attending the congregation on regular basis
without showing any laxity. The greatest
tribute that we can offer to Baba Ji would be to spread this message of Truth, for which
Baba Ji strived all his life, in the whole of mankind and to follow whatever he ordained.
Saints, many eminent leaders are present here today. We also have over here several members of the
Namdhari family. I appreciate their feelings
for Baba Ji as well as the Mahapurshas. May
God shower His blessings on them and everybody else in the world.
I grew up in the hands of the great
‘Sewadar’, Chacha Partap Singh Ji. He
showered a lot of love upon me since my childhood. His
eagerness to render his services was not limited to formal programmes only. He was ever-ready to act upon any call for
service. I remember an incident; I was
studying in Patiala at that time and was in Delhi for a week during the vacation. Because of a strike by the sanitation employees,
many drains in this colony were choked. Suddenly,
I noticed that a lot of people had gathered in a street.
As I wanted to inquire about the reason of the noise that was going on, I
saw someone wearing a ‘salwar’ and a ‘kameez’ and covering the face
with a scarf approaching. Since I failed to
recognize the person, I asked someone to tell me. I
was told that he was Chacha Ji and that he had been cleaning the houses; he had been
clearing whatever filth and garbage had been lying around.
Saints, such noble feelings can never take root in a human being till the
time God Himself blesses him. Similarly,
these volunteers of ‘Sewa Dal’ have such lofty feelings in their hearts all the
time to serve the Mission and the Mahapurushas. The
people of the world might mock at their appearance. But
these Mahapurushas spend their own money to get their uniforms stitched and meet other
expenses with the sole purpose of rendering service to the Sangat. They have imbibed such noble feelings only because
the True Master has taught them by the practical example of his own life.
Saints, let us pray to the Almighty to bless us all
and give us the required strength to never be enticed by evil. May we never harbour any ill-feeling towards
anyone. Let the love and shelter that Mata Ji
has been giving us for years together remain with us in the same manner. I am narrating an incident about Mata Ji for the
first time from the dais. Whenever I received
a letter from Mata Ji while I was studying in Patiala, she would always end her letter by
writing - ‘I am the dust of your feet.’ Sometimes
I used to feel extremely ashamed of myself because I felt that I was not able to give Mata
Ji the respect that she deserved. There were
times when I used to be wilful. Saints, we
should all become her support and keep on giving her the support. It is my humble appeal at your holy feet that we
should all lead the kind of life that Baba Ji himself led and ordained and thus create an
atmosphere of peace and happiness in the world."
I
had heard this discourse very attentively and thereafter read it also time and again from
the book ‘Dev-Darshan’. Every time
I read it, I got a fresh lesson for life. The
following words of Gurudev would keep on jolting the mankind forever:
"This is not an assassination of Baba Gurbachan
Singh Ji; rather the thoughts and feelings of all those saints and prophets, who said,
'with Thy grace let everybody be happy', have been massacred. This is the slaughter of the feelings of Bhai
Kanhiya. Nobody can kill Baba Gurbachan Singh
Ji."
These
words have clicked a vivid and a magnificent picture of solid reality. Our great Gurus have always uttered the same
words under all circumstances ‘Tere Bhane Sarbat Ka Bhala’ - 'with Thy grace let
everybody be happy'. ‘Sarve Bhavantu
Sukhin; Sarve Santu Niramay’ were the feelings behind the words of all the Gurus.
Bhai
Kanhiya’s legend of annihilating the misery of others would always keep on moving the
mankind. Bhai Kanhiya was a Sewadar soldier
of Guru Gobind Singh Ji whose job was to look after and render service to the wounded
soldiers of his army. He had truly imbibed
the teachings of his Gurudev to the core of his heart.
For him the discrimination between a friend and a foe had ended. So he used to give water to the soldiers of Mughal
army with the same love and attention as he used to quench the thirst of the loved ones of
his own master. When the matter was reported
to Guru Ji, Bhai Kanhiya presented himself before his master and explained, "O, True
Lord! It is you only who has blessed me with
the vision of God knowledge which makes me perceive your image in all; that is why I do
not find any difference between ‘this’ and ‘that’; I find everybody as
my own." Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji also
preached such compassion and large heartedness all his life.
As
far as the assassination of Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji is concerned, everyone’s body is
mortal. Whether a prophet or a demon, all
have to leave this mortal frame one day. But
the Truth which a prophet carries with him is ever-alive.
It has neither ever been destroyed nor can it ever be extinguished. Prophets stay alive through their ideals; till the
time their ideals live, they too live. Guru
is immortal and so is Guru’s fame. Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji is also immortal because his ideals are immortal. There is no question of his ever being
assassinated.
A
few facts that were highlighted by this discourse were that this saint would neither get
entrapped in the quicksand of narrow-mindedness and revenge himself, nor would he let his
devotees do the same. He would inspire his
devotees to follow the divine feelings of ‘Vasudhaiv Kutumbakam’ - Global family
and ‘Manurbhav’ - be humane.
After
listening to this discourse, none of the devotees could ever make the mistake of
cherishing the feeling of harming anyone in his heart.
The whole world was a witness to the fact that thousands of devotees, who
had gathered to pay their last homage to Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji, returned back to their
homes without giving vent to their feelings of resentment after the funeral procession. In the absence of Gurudev’s guidance, nobody
knows, what course of action would have been adopted by the Nirankari devotees in India as
well as abroad on account of the assassination of the Lord of their hearts. After getting a hint from His Holiness, Nirankari
devotees engaged themselves in the service of humanity, wishing for everyone’s
happiness and welfare. The people of the
world tried their best to provocate Nirankari devotees but failed miserably to shake them
from their path of love and welfare of all.
Every
Nirankari, be it a child, an elderly person or a hot-blooded youth humbly accepted the
instructions given by His Holiness. Everyone
got re-engaged once again with the missionary work in an undaunted manner. The credit for this peaceful environment and
self-surrender goes to His Holiness and the guidance provided by him. But to teach the lesson of humility and
graciousness to us, the disciples, His Holiness, while giving the full credit for all this
to his ‘Satguru’, once said,
"Saints! The force in Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji’s words is more than obvious to the world today. His empathy was so intense that in spite of
whatever happened to his own self, the power of his word made all the Mahapurushas
surrender to the sweet will of God Almighty, despite such an ugly happening. This is the force behind the voice of Truth. Only those who know the Truth can endure,
accepting everything as the sweet will of God even in the wake of such atrocities."
These
words by Gurudev Hardev that only those who know the Truth can endure and accept
everything as the sweet will of God despite such atrocities, enthrone human mind on the
lofty pedestal of a devoted disciple. A
devotee lives and dies within the perimeter of God’s will. A true devotee puts the wish of God above all; he
never imposes his will upon God’s will.
A
saint leads an exemplary life to give right direction to human mind. Gurudev Hardev realized that there were still some
disgruntled voices, complaining against the complacency and spinelessness of the
government to take any action against the real culprits.
Some were heard going to the extent of saying that some means must be
adopted to bring such people to book. Such
statements were definitely hinting towards answering violence with violence. The new direction which Gurudev gave to pacify the
human mind in such turbulent circumstances is rarely to be found anywhere. Showing the way to his disciples, His Holiness
once remarked:
"I had a two-fold relationship with Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji. He was my Satguru as
also my father. I should, therefore, be the
first to reckon some means to avenge the brutality meted out to him. But his teachings overpowered my personal
feelings. His compassion for others and the
purity of his heart won over."
Gurudev
further stated:
"This is all a play of the
Formless. The unenlightened ones feel that
this sacrifice would definitely bring about an aftermath.
They can only think to the extent that there would now be only bloodshed all
around. The Mahapurushas too say that this
sacrifice would definitely have an aftermath. They,
however, feel that it would not be blood which would spread all around but peace and
happiness. We have to enshrine such lofty and
noble feelings in our hearts and minds and thus carry the message of Truth even further. We should not have any fear or apprehension, so
that we can put this message across to the world that we can also live upto the teachings
of our Master."
History
is a witness to the fact that maximum violence was committed either in offences in the
name of or in defence of some religious faith or belief.
Had the Formless God not been benevolent enough to have gifted Nirankari
Mission with a torchbearer like Gurudev Hardev, millions of Nirankari devotees too would
have taken to similar means.
The
words of Gurudev Hardev that 'this sacrifice would
definitely bring about an aftermath', remind me of Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji’s
words that the dew drops on the grass early in the morning are interpreted differently by
different people. The ones who are happy from
within will exclaim with joy and call them pearls, whereas the ones who are sad and
miserable from within would equate them with teardrops.
Similarly, those who are endowed with love, peace and happiness in their
hearts, see the possibility of welfare of humanity even in such tragic incidents. But those who still have some amount of violence
left in some dark corners of their hearts, or those who have the feelings of envy and
animosity for somebody else, do not see anything beyond bloodshed and brutality in such
circumstances. These thoughts clearly
differentiate between the state of mind of the saints who are ever linked with the Eternal
Truth and the ordinary people ever engrossed in dualities like profit-loss, fame-infame,
life-death, etc.
The
Nirankari world was clearly understanding that their Lord Master definitely wanted their
way of life to be like that of saints and seers. As
a result, Nirankari devotees were saved from getting swept in the tide of emotional
fervour. The people, especially the religious
world got the message slowly and gradually that those who know God and then believe in
Him, start imbibing the virtue of extreme tolerance very naturally. They also started realizing that religion does not
teach one how to take but how to give life. The
lofty ideals of true religion and true saints started finding place in human heart once
again after a gap of ages. The world had to
agree that without adopting true religion, it would not only be difficult but simply
impossible to bring an era of peace and happiness.
Once,
under the influence of emotional excitement, some youth conveyed the feelings of
‘blood for blood’ across to Baba Ji. In
this context, addressing a mammoth gathering of thousands of people, Baba Ji tried to put
some sense into such youngsters though indirectly. He
said:
Different Mahapurushas have different opinion
regarding the assassination of Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji.
A fraction of the youth feels very agitated and volatile. If somebody feels that we have to take revenge,
then I feel that the only way this blood can be avenged is by taking the message of Baba
Gurbachan Singh Ji to every nook and corner of the world.
We should provide cool showers of love to the world smoldering in animosity."
For sometime Gurudev was addressing
Nirankari devotees chiefly. During this time,
whereas on the one side His Holiness touched upon the current situation being faced by
devotees, on the other, he did not leave any universal or global topic too untouched. Along with inspiring Nirankari devotees to cast
away hatred from their minds, Gurudev also kept on inspiring them to imbibe the art of
leading an ideal life of perfect disciples. His
discourses on such feelings often calmed the feelings of revenge in the minds of
Nirankaris, which could have otherwise erupted like an inferno. But some minds were still perturbed. As it is, it is difficult not to do evil to an
evil person. And to go a step ahead and wish
well of even an evildoer seems not only difficult but impossible. Some people were finding this ideal impractical
and thus were still feeling upset.
One day, a Mahapurusha mustered up courage to ask His
Holiness, "Baba Ji! You always say that we have to wish well of everybody. We have to forgive even the evil and cunning
people by looking upon them as immature children. It
sounds very pleasing as far as only the feelings are concerned. But to be able to always do the same in practical
life is generally impossible, I feel. How can
we wish for the welfare of an evil doer?
He
had asked all this without looking into the eyes of His Holiness. After he finished, he looked up instinctively to
get an answer. But the face of His Holiness
was reflecting the same spontaneity, ease and equivalence.
Yes, there were clear hints of a faint smile on the lips. Closing his eyes for a moment and then lifting his
eyelids, His Holiness started speaking in a very resolute manner: "I have not spoken these words to the people of
the world but to those God-realized saints, who, after knowing and realizing the Formless
One have become one with the Formless."
After
a pause, His Holiness started speaking again: "I
do not know much of Gurbani but you must have read it.
It is written there:
‘Brahmgyani
Ka Sagal Aakar
Brahmgyani Aap Nirankar.’
‘A
God-realized person has cosmic-consciousness,
A God-realized one is himself the
Formless.’
Now you can understand yourself that
for a God-realized person, the whole world becomes his own self. Not only this, after God-realization, he himself
becomes a repository of those divine virtues which are found in the Formless. After reaching this state, he manifests those
divine traits in his practical and day-to-day life also."
Seeing that seeker's
lips move still, Gurudev realised that he needed to understand it further. Therefore, continuing with his own words His
Holiness said, "Just as the Formless is
untainted, fearless, similarly, His devotee too starts imbibing such virtues in a very
natural way. Now I do not have to tell you
that there is nothing unnatural about someone acquiring the habits of a drunkard or for
that matter a gambler by living in their company. In
the same manner, by living in the presence of the Formless day and night, one gets the
required strength to lead such a noble life very naturally."
That
gentleman might have felt that to pursue the topic further might be taken as imprudence
and not inquisitiveness on his part. So, he
prepared to leave. But after staying quiet
and thoughtful for a few moments, Gurudev started speaking once again on his own. He said, "In
this context, it is extremely important to keep one fact in mind - that the nearness of
the Formless can only be attained by those who adopt and maintain the company of
God-realized saints and Mahapurushas. Seeing
this Formless ever-present with them, they always try and lead their lives within the
perimeter of His will and His awe. If someone
gives up the company of a saint either because of fear or embarrassment, then it is not
only difficult but impossible for him to lead such a life."
Feeling extremely elated, that Mahapurusha bowed at the feet
of Satgurudev. He appeared to be perfectly
satisfied. After taking blessings of the
Satguru, he went back. |