RECOGNIZING GOD
Do we believe and recognizing God?
Once upon a time there was a small village by the river. Everyone lived happily and offered regular prayers at the village temple. Once during the monsoon season, it rained heavily. The river started flooding and water entered the village. Everyone started to evacuate their homes and set out to go to a safe place.
One man ran to the temple. He quickly went to the priest’s room and told him: “The flood water has entered into our homes and it is rising quickly.
And water also has started to enter the temple. We must leave the village as in no time it will sink under the water! Everyone has to go out to the safer place and you must come along.”
But the priest told the man, “I am not an atheist like you all and I have full faith in God. I trust in God and He will come to save me. I will not leave the temple, you may go.”
So the man left. Soon the water level started to rise and reached the waist height. The priest climbed on a desk. After a few minutes, a man with a boat came to rescue the priest.
He told the priest, “I was told by the villagers that you are still inside the temple, so I have come to rescue you. Please climb into the boat.”
But the priest again refused to leave giving him the same reason. And so the boatman left.
The water kept rising and reached the ceiling, so the priest climbed to the top of the temple. He kept praying to God to save him.
Soon a rescue helicopter came and they dropped a rope ladder for the priest and asked him to climb and get inside the helicopter so that they could take him to the safer place. But the priest once again refused to leave and again gave the same reason. So the helicopter left to search and help others.
At last, when the temple nearly submerged under the water, the priest kept his head up and started complaining, “Oh Lord. I worshipped you all my life and kept my faith in you. Why did you not come and save me?”
Suddenly God appeared in front of him with a smile, and He said, “I came to save you three times. I came running to you to ask you to leave for the safest place. I came with a
boat; I came with a helicopter. What is my fault if you did not recognize me?”
The priest immediately realized his mistake and asked for forgiveness. He got his chance to go to the safe place one more time, which he accepted.
In our lives, do we believe in God? But do we recognize God?
The Enlightened Saints of the time bless us with the power to recognize God. Indeed, They themselves are the form of God who have incarnated in this world to show us the right path. They alone can bless us to cross the ocean of worldly existence.
We cannot say anything about those who are unaware of this spiritual path. However, those who have gained the knowledge of the spiritual path should ponder upon this point that God always comes to guide us in some form. It has been stated that:
गुरु परमेश्वर एकै होई । जानै विरला गुरुमुख कोई ।।
(Shri Guru Mahima)
Meaning: There is no difference between the Perfect Spiritual Master and God; both are same, but only a few devotees know this.
God has come in the form of Shri Paramhans Supreme Spiritual Masters to show us the right path. As in the above story we saw that God came to help the priest, but did he take advantage? No, he did not obey what God told him. Even God called the priest thrice to come towards Him, but he did not go towards God.
Similarly, our Divine Master enlightens us a number of times that one needs to come to the sanctuary of the Enlightened Saints so that one may cross this ocean of worldly existence and unite with God.
We have to ponder over the point that we have this golden opportunity that God in the form of our Holy Master is enlightening us on our real duty. He is continuously bestowing upon us the real knowledge because He wants our welfare.
The True Master has incarnated in this world only for welfare and wellbeing of souls. We are highly fortunate that we have obtained the sanctuary of the Supreme Spiritual Masters in Shri Anandpur Darbar.
Although, there is no doubt that the Divine Master is the form of God, how can one recognize Him?
The answer is that one will have to follow the divine commands of the Holy Master very sincerely. As one will meditate in accordance with the divine instructions of the True Master, one will start realizing that True Master is the form of God. Then one will intuitively say that:
11 Doha 11
पारब्रह्म सतगुरु मेरे, पूरण सच्चिदानन्द ।
नमस्कार प्रभु आपको, भक्तन के सुखकन्द ।।
(Pooja Ke Phool, Vinti) Meaning: O my Supreme Lord, True Master! You are perfectly the almighty God, who is the form of Truth, Consciousness, and Bliss. O God! We bow at Your Holy Lotus Feet. You preserve the honor of Your devotees.
Everyone in this world is addressed by some name. However, are these names the real ones?