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09.06 - At the Feet of the Formless God - by Mansi Aggarwal of Life
Positive Magazine, India
The
Sant Nirankari Mandal is probably one of India's largest
spiritual movements. An interview with its spiritual leader,
Baba Hardev Singh.
By strength of spirit, a person gets courage to face criticism
-Baba Hardev Singh
"Ik tuhi Nirankar, mein teri sharan, mujhe
baksh lo"
The above verse still reverberates in my mind as I return
from my visit to the Sant Nirankari Mandal, situated amidst
the bustling Sant Nirankari Colony on the outskirts of North
Delhi. A peaceful atmosphere pervades and passerbys bow their
head respectfully to each other, which, I later discovered,
is an expression of reverence for the formless God, who is
their object of worship, and who dwells within all human beings.
The Sant Nirankari Mandal is a humongous organisation, whose
followers number over a crore in over 50 countries. Their
annual samagams or gatherings attract several lakhs of devotees,
from all classes, castes and communities. In its own quiet
way, this movement is a force to be reckoned with and an instrument
of tremendous social change. Despite the mass following, especially
among the less privileged, their philosophy is of the highest
order, for they give their allegiance to the formless God.
Recognized by the Vedas as Brahman, the nameless and formless,
who is the source of all forms and names in the universe,
the Source is here called Nirankar.
The Philosophy
The movement prescribes absolute surrender to Nirankar, who
alone prevails. Recognizing that all attributes of body, mind
and property are gifts of the formless God, they urge the
devotee to abjure all vanity, and vanquish the ego. The movement
claims to be able to give devotees an instantaneous experience
of God-realisation. The only prerequisite being that the seeker
must surrender himself at the feet of the satguru, Baba Hardev
Singh, and ask for salvation with the urgency of a drowning
man praying for a rescue.
Many of the followers I encountered claim to be God-realized,
though it is not clear whether the term is tantamount to enlightenment
or not. What is indisputable is their all-inclusivity. The
rich and poor, the harijan and the brahmin, all come together
in equality in their movement.
Babaji, as he is referred to, constantly reminds his followers
to move beyond all differences and to live in the brotherhood
of man under the fatherhood of God. The philosophy is practiced
through charming customs like touching each other's feet,
bowing and saying "Dhan Nirankar", meaning God is
great. They also serve the first morsel out of their platter
to another person as a food offering to God.
At the same time, controversy has dogged this movement, thanks
largely to the perception that they repudiate the teachings
of traditional religions such as Sikhism and Hinduism. One
of the reasons for this is their firm conviction that nothing
save recourse to the formless God will give realisation. This
being so, they discourage the practice of rites, rituals,
pilgrimages and other aspects of traditional faith. Their
spiritual practices consist of seva, satsang and simran (contemplation).
The Mission follows five precepts:
o All assets belong to God and man is only their trustee
o To overcome all distinctions of caste, class, color and
community
o To disparage no one on the basis of appearance, diet or
lifestyle
o To embrace householder life
o Never to divulge divine truth to anyone without knowledge
of the satguru
The History
The inception of the Mission dates back to the early nineteenth
century when Baba Buta Singh, at the age of 40, realized brahma
gyan or knowledge of God. The Mission had its formal beginning
in May 1929, when Baba Avtar Singh, the second satguru, received
brahma-gyan from Baba Buta Singh and joined him in spreading
the word among the people. The two formed a team until Baba
Buta Singh breathed his last in 1943 and the satguru manifested
in Baba Avtar Singh.
One of the unique attributes of Baba Avtar Singh is that
during his lifetime itself he took a decision to revert from
the satguru to an ordinary devotee. Because of his humble
decision, he is still referred to as the dearest of all Nirankaris.
Thereafter, the torch was handed over to Baba Gurbachan Singh.
Unfortunately, Baba Gurbachan Singh was assassinated on April
24, 1980, thanks to the resistance of the Sikh community to
this breakaway sect that revolved around a live guru. Such
a practice runs against their allegiance to the Guru Granth
Sahib, and has therefore earned the Nirankaris their antagonism.
It was the darkest moment of the Mission's history, but it
also proved to be its greatest. Baba Gurbachan Singh's young
son, Hardev, was made the new satguru. The Nirankaris were
inflamed and agitated by the traumatic event and thirsting
for revenge. Though taught to surrender to the will of God,
they found it hard to practice this lofty ideal.
Despite his own grief, both as a son and disciple, young
Hardev rose nobly to the occasion. In his very first discourse,
he said, "If there is anyone who should be ready to take
revenge for Baba Gurbachanji's assassination, it should be
me. But if I do so I will not be emulating the ideals of humanity
set by him, for which he laid down his life. If I tread the
path of revenge, I would neither be his son nor his disciple."
What could have destroyed the Mission became instead a source
of inspiration, that spurred the Nirankaris to spread the
teaching with even greater zeal all over the world. The mission
has sparked off a veritable spiritual revolution not just
in India but in countries like USA, Canada, UK, Germany and
Australia.
Even as I acquaint myself with their history, Baba Hardev
Singh, the present satguru of the spiritual lineage of Nirankari
mentors, makes his appearance, clad in a spotless white kurta-pajama.
He takes a place beside us, though a high alter chair had
been thoughtfully placed in an authoritative corner of the
room for him. I am struck by his serene and unpretentious
appearance. The smile on his face is effulgent; he affectionately
looks around, and satisfied with the settings, centers his
focus upon us. Excerpts from the interview:
What is the philosophy of the Mission?
Sant Nirankari Mission is an all-encompassing spiritual movement
that aims to establish universal brotherhood through the fatherhood
of God. The Mission's philosophy is that God is formless and
can be realized with the grace of a living master. Spirituality
is the way through which the mind can be sublimated by removal
of poisonous attributes like jealousy, arrogance, intolerance,
pride and prejudice, hatred, etc. The pollution of vices is
converted into the oxygen of saintly attributes.
What is the distinguishing factor of the Mission that makes
it stand apart?
The Mission's objective of imparting divine knowledge instantaneously
to a seeker makes it stand apart. The only prerequisite is that
the seeker must humbly ask for it and should have an intense
desire to realize God, like a drowning person's desire to survive.
Besides, the Mission's core values like equality of men irrespective
of their color, caste, nationality and religion, are other distinguishing
factors.
What was it like, being part of the mission?
I was fortunate to have been born and brought up in the Mission.
With the grace of my true master, Baba Gurbachan Singhji Maharaj,
I have always been in the company of saints and associated
with seva, satsang and simran from my childhood.
The Mission has been a part of your family, since your father
was the previous satguru. Is the post hereditary?
Baba Buta Singhji, the first head of the Mission, handed over
the responsibility of the Mission to Baba Avtar Singhji, who
was not his blood relative. Satguru declares his successor
in accordance with the ancient tradition of gurmat in which
there is no scope for bias based on familial background or
socio-economic status.
You often call yourself a das(servant)...
I call myself a das because I see in each and every human
being a twinkling spark of divinity. Because I am the das
of the Almighty, I am a das of his devotees.
Do you feel that with the changing times the ethos needs
to be redesigned?
The foundation of the Mission's philosophy is God, the formless
One, who is unchangeable and imperishable. Baba Buta Singhji,
founder of the Mission, set out with the objective of enlightening
the world with God knowledge and establishing universal brotherhood.
Because there is widespread ignorance about the formless One,
the Mission's philosophy is still as relevant as it was when
it started. Spiritual awakening is the objective of the Mission.
Can rites and rituals lead to God?
People are ignorant about the supreme power of God and are trying
to please or realize him through rituals, austerity, and so
on. They may do some good if the practitioner has a theistic
bent of mind. Generally speaking, the human eye can see everything
except itself. To see it, one needs a mirror. Similarly, one
can see one's real Self in the mirror of God knowledge.
Then
what should be the ultimate path?
Divine love - love for God and love for others - is the only
path. Due to ignorance about the Omnipresent, the world is divided
on many issues. The Mission has been constantly striving to
bring souls in communion with the Super Soul through its message.
Everything else is incidental. Peace, universal brotherhood
and communal harmony are the goals to strive for. The Mission
is trying to foster love among fellow beings. The key benefit
of communion with the formless One is that man lives a life
devoid of ego. Such souls are assets to the world and create
a congenial atmosphere for peaceful coexistence. The Mission,
with its message, is also helping seekers become good citizens.
How
do you perceive various aspects of life like unity, truth, and
ahimsa?
Truth, that is the formless One, is the only absolute. All other
aspects like unity, ahimsa, etc, are relative and cannot be
brought about in a true sense of the word unless man realizes
the basic and ultimate Truth.
How can we practice compassion?
By strengthening our spirit. Once we accomplish superiority
of our soul, the love for our fellow beings emerges as a side-effect.
Otherwise, one's actions or words could hurt people. By strengthening
one's spirit a person gets courage to face criticism and not
be hurt by it. The human soul is essentially compassionate;
it is wrapped in numerous layers, which represent negativities.
Find that soul by looking within yourself.
Could you throw some light on the ego?
Ego is the worst enemy that one can possess. The concept should
be thee and thy and not me and my.
What is the goal of the human being?
There is no distinction in the basic instincts of an animal
and human. However, humans have a profound level of understanding.
We all are blessed with human life to get salvation. Realize
your mission. There is only one lifetime, and only one chance.
God knowledge is the beginning and God realisation is the
end.
Your message for Life Positive
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