By: Mahant Jay Jaggessur, January 1st, 2018 (New Year’s Satsang)
New beginnings always bring their share of excitement and challenges. As much as we are happy to be celebrating the beginning of a New Year, we also reckon that there will be challenges ahead which we will have to face in our efforts to strive towards our goals. If we are equipped with the right tools then it becomes easier for us to persevere and move on. Satguru Kabir Saheb has taught us which path to take and how to live our life so that we are not caught in the quagmire of illusion.
A spiritual outlook broadens our vision and allows us to better handle difficult situations. Very often life presents challenges in the form of choices to us. Temptation can easily sway us to go for the wrong choice. But being mindful of our duty as a spiritual being, we make the right choice. The journey of life comes with a chain of events; at different stages, we are faced with dilemmas of different nature. Like this, every year we grow older and our priorities, our responsibilities, our expectations keep changing. However, if all along we consistently hold tight to the spiritual principles as instructed to us by our Guru, then those changing priorities can easily be addressed.
As we become adept in practicing and living by the mantric prescriptions of our Guru, we should also aim at inspiring others to embrace these principles which will result in a better place for mankind. It is also our responsibility to leave a legacy for others to benefit from our success. One way of assuming this responsibility is to inspire others to adopt the spiritual path which has brought success to us. Saints and Sages transform us so that we have the same outlook as they have. And it is our responsibility to inspire others by living by example. The way Saints transform us is very unique. Satguru Kabir Saheb says:
“Paras Aur Sant Men, Baro Antaro Jaan;
Vo Lohaa Kanchan Kare, Yeh Karde Aap Samaan.”
(see transliteration and pronunciation guide here)
In other words, ‘paras’, the philosopher’s stone is known to be able to transform a piece of iron into gold, which is indeed a very great transformation. But can you imagine if the philosopher’s stone could transform iron into philosopher’s stone? And then that transformed piece of iron could transform other elements, thus changing everything else into philosopher’s stone. The Saint transforms the disciple in a way that the latter becomes as saintly as the Saint himself. If such a chain is triggered, everyone could become saintly, thus making the world a better place to live, enabling everyone to pursue his/her journey towards liberation.
It is good to treasure our resources, but it is better to share them so that everyone can benefit. Living by example helps to impel others to follow.
There once was a peaceful community living in a remote suburb. The inhabitants of this village would just mind their own business and would never harm their neighbours. But there was one feature in this village which really stood out. No one would ever maintain their lawn or gardens. Grass grew tall, weeds were everywhere, and hedges were out of bounds… People were not bothered by this unsightly landscape since no yard was well maintained. One day, a newcomer, who happened to be a gardener, moved in the community. The very day he moved in, he took out his lawn-mower and cut the grass. He also trimmed his hedge, and pulled out all the weeds. His yard stood out among all the other peoples’ yards. As the neighbours were passing by, they admired the nicely manicured lawn and yard. One by one, they started to get to work, cutting, trimming, clearing… In a few days, the whole village looked splendid.
This is the difference one person can make in the lives of so many others. Similarly, if we exhibit our qualities just by living them, we will make a big difference in many peoples’ lives. Which will make the world a better place to live.
