IISATYANAAMII

THE FAKE MASK

 

These days it is very important to wear protective gear to stay safe and protected from viruses. The face mask for instance protects us from droplet infection. We definitely have to protect ourselves and protect others catching the virus. But what about the other masks which many people wear, preventing them from seeing their Master? Unless we remove the veil, we will not be able to see Him. And to have it removed, we need our Guru. If we have that veil removed, if we have that mask removed, we will not need any other protective mask.

“Ghoonghat ke pat khol re tohe piyaa milenge”

We live in a world which is full of illusory attractions; if we get attracted to those deceptive traps we will not be able to see God. Traps are everywhere, in different forms. And our mind and senses are ever ready to fall in those traps. The Guru is the remover of darkness (ignorance) and beacon of light (knowledge). The knowledge we acquire from the Guru combined with his grace removes the veil and exposes us to reality.

“Ghat ghat mein waha sain basat hai, katuk vachan mat bol re”

No heart is devoid of His presence; never speak harshly to anyone. The divine presence is in all of us, all living beings. Speaking bitter words to anyone else is just like being abusive to God. It all starts in our mind : Satguru Kabir Saheb teaches us to be kind in thoughts, words and actions (man, vachan, karma). If we always think good, we will not ill-speak, we will not do wrong. This is why we should always apply the knowledge we obtain from our Guru. He enlightens us with truth. Truth which is God.

“Dhan joban kaa garb na kijiye, jhoothaa inkaa mol re”

There is no value in material wealth and youthfulness. Neither our youth nor our material wealth can save us from the sufferings of this world. Currently we all can see how the coronavirus does not discriminate by age, race, nationality, status… People who put all their faith in material things are greatly mistaken.

“Shunya mahal mein diyanaa baari le, aasan se mat dol re”

Light the lamp in the vacant palace and sit still in meditation. Satguru Kabir Saheb is giving us instructions here : Go to that void, let the light illuminate you, and be focused – you will meet your Beloved. The meditative phase when we are able to reach the void (Shunya) is when we start experiencing Divine Presence. This is when there is no veil, no mask, no obscurity. The goal is to connect to that void which is real and shun off all illusion.

“Kahat Kabir aanand bhayo hai, baajat anahad dhol re”

The experience of supreme bliss comes with the uninterrupted divine music – the unstruck melody.

Our roadblocks are desires (kaam), anger (krodh), greed (lobh), attachment (Moh), and ego (ahankaar). All these stitched together make the veil of ignorance, the fake mask of our destruction. We can remove that veil. We sure can. Let us all work on removing that veil and be free from afflictions.

Mahant Jay Jaggessur, Kabir Association of Toronto.