Spiritual / Temporal spring clean

_/\_ Spiritual / Temporal spring clean:New Year's decision=WIll only b usin Twitter.No more blog, facebook or facebook fanpage updates, reading of messages, comments, inbox etc... This will be last message on all these webpages. If u still want2 contact or communicate with this insignificant person do this: 1. Join twitter 2. Download and install a decktop client like tweetdeck (you'll thank me-Twitter is useless without a client) 3. Follow AtmaSingh http://twitter.com/AtmaSingh (if u need to be shown the 'Twitter-Ropes' I'll help u with that via Twitter). Why this change for me? i want to decrease time spent communicating with others via internet yet don't want to minimise the meaningful, qualitative, truly useful things it can sometimes afford. Need to contact me re: photography? Pls please visit site: http://www.AtmaImages.com and message me that way - or via twitter! Peace, Love and above all, Vaheguroo Continue reading ...

5 Sponges

A Gursikh sent the below to me - it's really beautiful so thought I'd share it.

( ( ( :-)>>>

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ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂਜੀਕਾਖ਼ਾਲਸਾਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂਜੀਕੀਫ਼ਤਹਿ

There are five sponges laying on your kitchen counter top. Each member of your family has been cleaning up different areas of your home, but all the sponges look the same. You are curious as to what was cleaned in your home, but you can't tell by looking...they all look the same....so what do you do?

You squeeze each sponge to see what comes out. As you squeeze the first sponge, you see that cola comes out, and so you decide that someone cleaned the kitchen with that one. Upon squeezing the second sponge, you find tub and tile cleaner - that one was used to clean the bathroom. Next, in the third sponge, you find motor oil -- hubby was cleaning the garage! In the fourth sponge, baby powder puffs out when it is squeezed -- yep, the baby's nursery was done with that one! And finally, in the last one, is floor wax -- that was the one you used on the hall floor! As you lay the last one down, you look again at their similarity - and they all look the same until they're squeezed.

We are the same way. As life squeezes us, different things come out - anger from one, greed from another, attachment from one, lust from yet another, pride from one - and finally, from the Gurmukh, pours forth the love of Waheguru.

Just like the sponge, we can only squeeze out what is put in - stay in the Word of Guru Nanak Dev Ji Maharaj daily, and be in continuous prayer, so that when life puts the squeeze on you (and it will), Vaheguru, and Vaheguru alone, will shine forth from you!

ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂਜੀਕਾਖ਼ਾਲਸਾਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂਜੀਕੀਫ਼ਤਹਿ Continue reading ...

A New Direction

Life: Busy.

Time: Limited.

Solution: The blog will take a different direction.

Detail: Every now and then, I will feature a Sikhee-inspired poem or photograph and occasionally, a Sikhee-inspired film. I have to be realistic and realise that I'm trying to stretch myself too much - so I need to capitalise upon what I am involved in already and get more things out of it, more material and ultimately, more that I can share with the Sangat. This will be the way I do it...

everyday sikhee - through the artistic expression of words as well as still and moving images.

The design of this blog may change to accommodate this new direction but that won't happen for a while because...you've guessed it...limited time lol

See: This Photograph and feel free to comment.

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Poems from the Past

Posting this link so you can have a look at these. I must warn some are quite graphic in terms of the imagery they conjure-up so they are not ideal for young kids.

Ps - In the middle of starting-up Photography / Film-making business AtmaImages so time is so limited. If it is in His Hukam, will post properly soon.

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A Matter of Course

© Atma Singh 2009

The Sikh Course is an excellent training-course which is being offered by The Foundation for Sikh Thought. It's been designed and is delivered by some very passionate and professional individuals. It's absolutely free and open to anyone - so knowledge or experience, as well as preconceptions ;-) are absolutely irrelevant.

You may ask: What is the point of trying to express Sikhee through a training course? That's not a bad question. The answer is: Because relying upon others' opinions and experiences can sometimes NOT give you the kind of personal insight that Sikhee truly requires, in order to be experienced. It's all about personal perspective.

I went along quite recently - it's held at different locations all over the UK - and found it very refreshing and well put-together. It's a full day course so requires your commitment but the rewards are great. Most importantly, it focuses very much so on the concept of Naam which sadly most non-Sikhs, not to mention Sikhs, hardly ever get to find out about. Without Naam, Sikhee is pretty much just a shell.

Do check-out the web-links above - they'll be courses coming-up very soon in Gravesend, Hayes, Manchester and Milton Keyes.

Ps - You can follow The Sikh Course via Facebook.

© - Atma Singh 2009

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Priceless Jewels

ਕੋਟਿਤੀਰਥਮਜਨਇਸਨਾਨਾਇਸੁਕਲਿਮਹਿਮੈਲੁਭਰੀਜੈ॥
kott theerathh majan eisanaanaa eis kal mehi mail bhareejai
Millions of cleansing baths at sacred shrines of pilgrimage only fill the mortal with filth in this Dark Age of Kali Yuga.

ਸਾਧਸੰਗਿਜੋਹਰਿਗੁਣਗਾਵੈਸੋਨਿਰਮਲੁਕਰਿਲੀਜੈ॥੨॥
saadhhasa(n)g jo har gun gaavai so niramal kar leejai 2
One who sings the Glorious Praises of the Lord in the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, becomes spotlessly pure. 2

Ang/Limb 747 (full shabad)


Reading today's Hukamnama (The Satguroo's Daily Command), the above Dupanktee (couplet) stood-out. Most of the time, for most of us, religion and spirituality take the form of an intellectual voyage. Knowledge leads to the idea, the intimation, that our final destination is a state of mind produced by our mind...the idea that our mind is the physician that will cure it's own disease.

We're locked into this idea that spirituality is a balance-sheet where we are rewarded for every 'religious action'. Our Chaturaee (cleverness) only drags us deeper into the pit of slef-centeredness.

Here's a simple test: Ask yourself - are you truly altruistic? If a person swears at you after you show them an act of kindness, and it makes you feel as though you shouldn't have done them a good turn, is this truly altruism?

Worse-still many so-called religious people use their 'God-given knowledge' to brutalise others. To tell them how they are non-believers, infidels, sinners and devils. They think they are now 'God's-chosen' and blessed with divine knowledge. In fact they have become the opposite. Haumai (Ego), the great subduer, fuels their thoughts, words and actions. Their beliefs have become weapons which they use to inflict pain upon others.

ਇਕੁਫਿਕਾਨਗਾਲਾਇਸਭਨਾਮੈਸਚਾਧਣੀ ॥
eik fikaa n gaalaae sabhanaa mai sachaa dhhanee
Do not utter even a single harsh word; your True Lord and Master abides in all.

ਹਿਆਉਨਕੈਹੀਠਾਹਿਮਾਣਕਸਭਅਮੋਲਵੇ ॥129॥
hiaao n kaihee t(h)aahi maanak sabh amolavae 129
Do not break anyone's heart; these are all priceless jewels. 129

Ang/Limb 1384 (full shabad)


So when you next meet a 'spiritual person', apply the above test. Are their words fashioned to hurt the hearts of others or are their words soothing; the words of someone for whom warming others' souls is an act of worship. Meeting and spending time with such people, we slowly become like them. These Gurmukhs (Satguroo-centred spiritualists) are the only hope for us in such a world, where to become religious is merely an act of distinguishing oneself from others...when really, we should be trying to become the dust off the feet of all. Continue reading ...

That thing you left behind

Finding time to blog is proving very difficult with my current lifestyle. From now-on I'll micro-blog - short and sweet. It's a challenge trying to convey in less words what may perhaps need more. I'll give it a whirl. Besides, it's the only way I'll be able to continue blogging. Excuses done!

I'm currently away from home, at my in-laws home in the Midlands. There's a funeral about to take place tomorrow morning because my wife's Tayaa (her father's elder brother) passed away recently. Long story - non-relevant.

I was shown his possessions earlier by someone and when I remarked, off the cuff, that they're just possessions and have no connection to the man that was, I was told I can be really un-feeling sometimes. I guess it just slipped-out and I should have been more sensitive. Sometimes though, when you say words that you haven't analysed, those words that leave your tongue un-refined, there's a truth about how you describe things...a sure perspective.

It got me thinking on a related tangent. I have possessions. My Canon Digital SLR camera is probably my favourite because it's the only tool I have apart from the written word that allows me to express myself to others. This thing doesn't reveal anything of me though; it's just a tool. But when I pass away I guess my loved ones might attach some special significance to it because my being was projected through the things I did, the things I loved. And I loved taking pictures. I better stop talking in the past tense otherwise it will seem like I've died already!

Possessions, as we all know, are just temporary and we should never be attached to them. You don't need me to tell you that, but here's an interesting experiment. I want you to comment below by answering the following questions:

1. When you die, as you so obviously will (!), which one possession do you think people will most associate you with and why?

2. What do you think this possession says about you, from the perspective of your loved-ones?

3. What doesn't it say about you, from your perspective? Continue reading ...

Boring, Boring!

It's boring being racist. Just imagine not wanting to interact with whole sections of society because you don't like the amount of melanin in their skin; because they don't look, dress, speak, think or eat like you. Borrrrrrrring! In my short and limited life, meeting people of different backgrounds has led to so many valuable things. Insights, thoughts and ideas seep from one human to another. To be racist is to close yourself off, to ignore a world of wonder, in exchange for a blinkered tunnel. Sadly, whilst the rest of us smile and soak ourselves in all the wonderful diversity out there, there's a section of society which does the opposite.

In Britian we have the BNP - The British National Party. They're a bit embarrasing really; like a relative you never want anyone to find out about; you know, because they smell or pick their bogies in front of everyone. One of their policies is to offer voluntary repatriation to all non-Whites. It's excellent fun trying to work out who they would want to kick-out or keep in. David Beckham is an all British poster-boy, admired around the world for his footballing prowess. But would the BNP let him remain in Britian, given he has a Jewish grandparent? You see, that's the problem. What's their definition of white? Are they going to trace-back people's ancestors and verify all those birth certificates?! Their policies aren‘t just prejudiced; they‘re flawed logically. They’re currently trying to get one of their MEP’s into the European Parliament.

It's almost guaranteed that support for the BNP will increase during the credit-crunch. Labour supporters are discussing this issue here. It's worth remembering that there's one major reason as to why Hitler managed to galvanise so much power and influence so quickly. Germany was going through one hell of a recession. You see, for some people it's nice being told that 'those lot are nicking all your jobs and homes while you get nothing'. Ahhhh...the old 'it's someone else's fault' syndrome. Works a treat if you're the kind that likes to look at what others have, instead of pulling up your sleeves and getting on with it.

A little while back I had to buy some Samosae and Sholae (triangle, fatty and fried fings with spicy, curried chick-peas) from a local sweet-shop. We had guests so thought we'd buy-in the catering. While waiting to be served, I chin-wagged with the owner about a pair of white guys who had bought £50 of all things asian and tasty. He told me: "They love the stuff more than we do". And why not? This is just one small benefit of a multi-cultural society - our taste-buds get to go on interesting adventures. I'm a very simple eater but even I end-up cooking things or combining ingredients which hail from all corners of the planet. If only people got on as well as ingredients do in the cooking-pot!

The sweet-shop owner's words got me thinking though: if the BNP did get rid of all us 'Pakis', who would cook their curries - you know, the ones that some of them like to savour whilst swigging their lager...which would have probably been brewed in India or Africa.

For the last few years, I've realised that we should feel sorry for racist people. It’s actually a bit like a mental-illness of sorts, being racist - it's de-habilitating, affects every aspect of a sufferer's life and places limits upon their potential. I mean, do racist people even think about how incoherent their beliefs actually are...

"Do you think it's right that the black puppy should kiss the blonde ferret? Answers on a postcard to: Aren't racists funny, Small-minds-ville, PO Box...." Photo-credit: Foxtongue

On a related note, it's sad what Prince Harry (another one of those British relatives I mentioned earlier) said recently. He’s obviously no BNP member; more a case of someone who put his foot in his mouth I think, but the thing is that his words have been broadcasted all over the world and therefore Britain is yet again portrayed as a place where racist attitudes are present even amongst the most popular and well-known inhabitants. I suppose having Prince Phillip as your grandpa probably doesn’t help much!

Needless to say, The Satguroo has summed-up the totality of race, of colour, of melanin so adequately as to render it completely irrelevant. For a Sikh to even contemplate being racist, prejudiced or to even stereo-type others, is so absolutely contradictory to The Satguroo's Teachings as to be hilarious - in an un-funny way of course! So let's finish with the very straight-forward words of The 10th Mehl (Satguroo's Form), Guroo Gobind Singh Jee:

ਦੇਹਰਾਮਸੀਤਸੋਈਪੂਜਾਔਨਿਵਾਜਓਈਮਾਨਸਸਬੈਏਕਪੈਅਨੇਕਕੋਭਰਮਾਉਹੈ॥
dhaeharaa maseeth soee poojaa a nivaaj ouee maanas sabai eaek pai anaek ko bharamaao hai
The Temple and the Mosque are the same; there is no difference between them. Neither is there any dissimilarity between pooja [Hindu worship] and the namaaz [Muslim daily prayers]. The whole human race is the self-same but due to illusion, they appear different.
Siree Dasam Granth Sahib, Panna (Page) 47 - read the whole shabad

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Poem - Mool Mantar

Granthee © Atma Singh 2008

Mool Mantar

You are the Essence
You are the Form
You are the Source
Forever
Unborn

You are the weft
You are the warp
Oh’ Ever-New…
Siree Ik Onkaar

…

You are the Truth,
You are the Proof
You are the Known
Forever
Aloof

You are the tears
You are the calm
Oh’ My Beloved…
Siree Sat Naam

…

You are the Doer
You are the Done
You are the Many
Forever
One

You are the reader
You are the book
Oh’ Beautiful Beholder…
Siree Kartaa Purakh

…

You are Friend
You are Enemy
You are the Hand
Forever
Mercy

You are the Lover
You are the Loved
Oh’ Perfect Poise…
Siree Nirbhau , Nirvair

…

You are the Death
You are the Life
You are the Form
Forever
Alike

You are the Constant
You are the Stable
Oh’ Wondrous Wonder…
Siree Akaal Moorat

…

You are Alpha
You are Omega
You are the Treasured
Forever
Un-measured

You are the Trader
You are the Traded
Oh’ Perfect Perfection…
Siree Ajoonee Saibhang

…

You are the Light
You are the Sound
You are the Now
To Whom
I
Forever
Bow

You are the Aad…
You are Jugaad…
Oh’ Perfect Grace…
Siree Gurparsaad

You are the Essence
You are the Form
You are the Source
Forever
Unborn

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To Be or Not To Be

Even praising Vaheguroo,
I-am-ness can challenge us
© Atma Singh 2008



So much of the religious and spiritual solutions we come across today are based upon the concept that good actions equal spiritual achievement. The thing is that doing good deeds and speaking sweet words, we often tell ourselves how good we are. We tell others of our Gunn (virtues) or try to display them indirectly. It doesn't even have to be consciously either because our subtle ego, that most insidious aspect of Hou(n)mai (I-am-ness), constantly makes us pat ourselves upon our own backs.

ਸਭਿਗੁਣਤੇਰੇਮੈਨਾਹੀਕੋਇ ॥
sabh gun thaerae mai naahee koe
All virtues are Yours, I have none at all.

ਵਿਣੁਗੁਣਕੀਤੇਭਗਤਿਨਹੋਇ ॥
vin gunn keethae bhagath n hoe
Without virtue, there is no loving meditation.
Ang (Page) 4

In particular, when we do Bhagtee (loving-meditation upon Vaheguroo), Hou(n)mai attacks us viciously whether or not we realise it. The Satguroo tells us that we have no Gunn…and yet we are then told that without Gunn, Bhagtee is impossible. How can this riddle be solved?

ਮੋਹਿਨਿਰਗੁਨਤੁਮਪੂਰਨਦਾਤੇਦੀਨਾਨਾਥਦਇਆਲ ॥੧॥
mohi nir-gunn thum pooran dhaathae dheenaa naath dhaeiaal 1
I am unworthy; You are the Perfect Giver. You are the Merciful Master of the meek. 1
Ang 980

We are Nir-gunn (completely without virtues), so we need to be given these virtues; they are not our possessions. By constantly reminding ourselves that we are Nir-gunn, we begin to disarm our mind which loves nothing better than to dwell upon it's 'own virtues'. When this begins to happen, the door to Vaheguroo's Grace is opened and we begin to receive blessings; the gifts of Gunn from the Perfect Giver.

Those who are truly humble are like the empty cup. They are ready to be filled by The Master of the meek. Manmukhs (those who follow their mind) are filled with self-regard. They are overflowing with the wine of self-intoxication. What can be poured into such a toxic and overflowing cup? They cannot absorb nor contain Gur-parsaad (The Satguroo's Grace). From Rehraas Sahib (evening recitation):

ਹਰਿਧਿਆਵਹੁਸੰਤਹੁਜੀਸਭਿਦੂਖਵਿਸਾਰਣਹਾਰਾ ॥
har dhiaavahu santhahu jee sabh dhookh visaaranehaaraa
Meditate upon The Ever-Blossoming O Spiritual Ones; The Dispeller of all pains.

ਹਰਿਆਪੇਠਾਕੁਰੁਹਰਿਆਪੇਸੇਵਕੁਜੀਕਿਆਨਾਨਕਜੰਤਵਿਚਾਰਾ ॥੧॥
har aapae thaakur har aapae saevak jee kiaa naanak janth vichaaraa 1
The Ever-blossoming is The Master, The Ever-blossoming is The Servant. O Nanak, the poor beings are miserable! 1
Ang 10

The Sants (spiritually-enlightened ones) become free of Dhookh (pains) and Chintaa (anxieties) because they become free from Hou(n)mai. After all, how can you attack that which has no form? To lose your Hou(n)mai is to become unassailable. When the self disappears and all that remains is The Master (Par-aatmaa, The Universal Soul) and The Servant (Aatmaa, The Soul), the drop merges with the ocean and vice-versa. We come to know that there is no other. It was Vaheguroo alone all along.

Whilst other paths such as Buddhist schools of thought stress the importance of Udham (personal/right effort) as the only way to collect the Gunns needed for The Path, The Satguroo stresses Gur-parsaad upon the Path of Brahm-Giyaan (Vaheguroo-consciousness). Only through Gur-parsaad will we be blessed with Gunns such as Udham, Nimrata (selflessness) etc. Any 'virtues' that the mind self-generates through ‘personal/right effort’ cannot be classed as Gur-parsaad. To possess or place faith in any such Gunn would be to embrace Hou(n)mai according to The Satguroo.

When having been given Gunn by Vaheguroo we begin to believe that we had something to do with it, the Gunn are taken away. Like a loving parent, The Satguroo reveals to us our mistake so that we may recover. If we do not heed this lesson, then we are unable to advance spiritually. We are left worshipping our sense of self, devoid of Bhagtee. At the mercy of our sense of separateness we will ultimately be miserable even if we aren't at the moment.

Why is it that the highest-achievers are often secretly unhappy? Why do some of the most intelligent minds become depressed? Why do some of the most popular people feel the most insecure? Something inside them remains unhappy, despite them having developed certain virtues. Essentially they come to know they are un-fulfilled, with or without these virtues, even if they don’t know why.

It’s a scary situation for those who haven't begun The Inner Journey. In a second, the sham will be exposed, when our Aatmaa drops the cloak of this body at the time of mortal death. Our sense of self, constantly cultivated and consolidated through lifetimes of words and actions, will be the 'virtuous best friend' that suddenly reveals itself as our worst enemy. The Truth that was hidden from us instantaneously becomes blinding. We will not have mastered our destiny, through Gur-parsaad.

These three Pankteeaa(n) kept coming to me this morning, when my mind was wandering whilst trying to Jap Naam (loving meditation upon Vaheguroo). I share that which is not mine, in the hope that you will find some meaning of your own.

( ( ( :-)>>> Atma Singh

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Sickness & Creativity

A photograph featured within my online portfolio
© Atma Singh 2008


Yes - I've caught a bug. It was only a matter of time. People around me have been falling like flies; it's a buggy time of year you know.

The thing is that I'm not actually that annoyed by it. Well, apart from the fact that I have to listen to my Singhnee (wife) talking to our unborn child, requesting s/he arrive immediately. She's eating tonnes of pineapple and regularly taking warm baths because apparently this speeds-things-up. You really don't want to know the rest.

Anyway, back to my point - why am I not bothered about being sick? Because nowadays it's the only time I get to really indulge my creative-side, which I would never otherwise have the time to indulge. Yes, that old thief time - I've already moaned about it at length here.

With this spare time, the last two days have been mostly spent exploring Flickr and uploading the first few photographs onto my new account. Here it is. Over the next few weeks, I'll be putting lots more on there. It's a way of me sharing my personal work with a wider audience, as well as soon giving potential clients access to portfolios regarding weddings, events and portraits. Anyone who wants a limited edition print can contact me...enough plugging Atma Singh!

I really believe that Sikhs need to express themselves artistically to a much greater extent than they are currently doing so. If I had a rupee for every Sikh who has told me about a creative passion they harbour but never got to explore, I would be a rich man. Well not in England but probably in Punjab, where Rupees are useful. Anyhow, I've spotted a pattern over the last 10 years or so - Sikhs are not making the kind of strides in the creative industries as they are elsewhere. What's the big deal? Well, it all boils down to one thing - exposure.

With very few prominent film-makers, photographers, painters, musicians, writers, graphic designers etc., our very ability to express ourselves is being left by the way-side. We're limited to being a community defined by our 'concerned statements'. We tend to react more than create and direct. Usually, our voice is limited to making statements regarding religious or political issues, in a decidedly non-artistic manner. Is this the sum-total of our being, our ability to communicate and propose?

Sikh Chic is one website which is doing lots to redress this imbalance. Forget whether you like or dislike any of the material - whether you agree or disagree with the editorial or guest-writers; because that's irrelevant. The fact is that this site represents a crucial 'Sikh dialogue', regarding all things artistic and creative. A dialogue which is hardly taking place anywhere else.

Well here's my bit for the creative cause - my Photostream. You can view the captions to the below images there, as well as more of my work. Viva la Sikh Artistic Revolucion!

( ( ( :-)>>> Atma Singh

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The Weight of Words

Bullying isn't always physical...

/ Photo-Credit: Mens Project

Around 3-4 years ago, I walked past a woman near to where my wife and I were lodging at the time. I looked-up at her as we walked past one another, early evening trees crowding the pavement with their shadows. She didn’t see me but I recognised her instantly. 15 years ago, this woman was someone who I bullied at secondary school (high school).

I never used to hit people. The strange thing is that I would often help other pupils who were being bullied. However for some reason I verbally bullied this girl regularly. Me and around five others would call her all sorts of names. We would say she looked like a monster, that she was fat and had a moustache. Lots of other nasty, thought-less things left our little stupid mouths. She would mostly stay quiet. When she did say something or start crying, as she sometimes did, we would simply apply more pressure, making her feel smaller and smaller with our taunts, aiming spears at her wounded self-esteem.

Peer-pressure makes us do such terrible things. For an insecure person, there’s nothing better than making someone else feel even more insecure than yourself amongst a crowd. They become the centre of negative attention - never you. You see, at the heart of a bully is a quivering coward; someone who is either bullied themselves or is unable to take control of their own life. It's a shame I didn't know then what I know now.

As I walked past, I noticed how she seemed sad. Maybe it was her reclusive posture or her soft, almost apologetic steps. I saw her enter a house on the very same road and instantly knew that’s where she must live. Upon arriving home, I spoke to my wife about it. “What do you mean you’re going to visit her and apologise? She might have finally got over it and you’ll bring it all back. Maybe you just want to do it to make yourself feel better. Is it worth causing her even more pain for your own selfish needs?”

She was partly correct – I did want to feel better. I wanted to tell this woman that I was sorry, that the boy who bullied that girl might have come across as someone self-assured but actually, he was just a weak and insecure idiot. But I also wanted this woman to feel better. I wanted her to know that it wasn't her fault - that she had no reason to ever feel that she was in some way inferior because someone like me had said so. To risk hurting her even more just didn’t seem like a risk worth taking so I never did visit her. However without even realising it, she’s made me visit my previous self.

My memories remind me how much pain thoughtless words can cause, how easy it is to oppress someone and make them feel as though they are powerless. Without even trying, she made me realise that every word that leaves my mouth needs to be full of love. I need to make-up for the person I was, for the pain I caused. It’s the least I can do.

Ever-since being inspired by sikhee, I’ve intuitively felt that to walk away while someone else is being bullied is not permissible. There have been several such minor incidents where I’ve stepped-in and defused such situations. For some inexplicable reason, I believe that I would cease to be a sikh if I didn’t do so. Maybe it’s to do with the way The Satguroo, in the The Ninth Form (Guroo Tegh Bahadur Sahib Jee), so gracefully challenged the despotic Mughal Emperor. “If you can force me to discard my beliefs, then they will follow”, were perhaps the words He uttered, as He protected the Hindu Brahmins (priests) from forced-conversion to Islam.

On another level, I think it’s my subconscious mind. The remnants of the pain I caused this woman and probably many others are still there. The Satguroo has perhaps blessed me with a way to indirectly undo what was done. I certainly hope so.

I’ll never really know if I should have visited that woman. One thing’s for sure though – words are such powerful, potent things that we should treat them with the respect and awe we would treat any other kind of dangerous implement; perhaps even more so.

Most physical wounds will heal over time – they often disappear without leaving a scar. But words, they can mould us, change us; twist us up inside. Their effects can leave us feeling things that may never go away. Such is the weight of words, the burden that we carry.

( ( ( :-(>>> Atma Singh

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A Bit Closer

What's the chance this year will start and end 

the same way as the last? / Photo Credit: bennylin0724

New Year’s day was a very climatic occasion for me 8 years ago. On this day in 2000, I smoked a massive amount of cannabis. I’d already stopped drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and eating meat/fish/eggs by this point but cannabis was my favourite and therefore remaining vice. So I thought let’s go out with a bang. With The Satguroo’s Grace, I haven’t looked back since the…erm…big bang.

I’m living proof - a New Year can lead to a New You. There’s a mystical power behind it, a psychological catalyst which gives a unique impetus. We get to judge where we are, where we’re heading and if we like the thought of heading there. That’s the only time it’s actually worth something. Apart from that, with the drugs, nostalgia and noise removed, let’s be honest - it’s just another day. Another day bringing us a bit closer to death.

The Satguroo teaches us to challenge death head-on, and realise that it has no power over us. All those beauty products, which fight wrinkles and tired skin, all those younger fashions and all that make-up which will knock a decade off you; they all point to one thing. We all want to defeat death via its symptoms. We haven’t challenged it head-on.

Bhai Sahib Randhir Singh, one of the greatest sikhs of the 20th century,

photographed at the moment of mortal death - smiling.

We see our bodies change, we see death slowly but surely looming closer and closer, so we fight the way it manifests. We fight this fight every day yet we don’t acknowledge what we are truly fighting. The advertising industry blatantly plays-upon this. There’s a lot of money to be made out of such a common fear, such a universal insecurity. In this consumer ego-driven society, we are all too willing to play the game. Our bodies, to which we are so attached, are reduced to a house of death:

ਖਾਵੈਭੋਗੈਸੁਣਿਸੁਣਿਦੇਖੈਪਹਿਰਿਦਿਖਾਵੈਕਾਲਘਰੇ ॥
khaavai bhogai sun sun dhaekhai pehir dhikhaavai kaal gharae
He eats and enjoys, listens and watches, and dresses up to show off in this house of death.

ਬਿਨੁਗੁਰਸਬਦਨਆਪੁਪਛਾਣੈਬਿਨੁਹਰਿਨਾਮਨਕਾਲੁਟਰੇ ॥੫॥
bin gur sabadh n aap pashaanai bin har naam n kaal ttarae 5
Without the Word of the Guru's Shabad, he does not understand himself. Without The Everblossoming’s Name, death cannot be avoided. 5

ਜੇਤਾਮੋਹੁਹਉਮੈਕਰਿਭੂਲੇਮੇਰੀਮੇਰੀਕਰਤੇਛੀਨਿਖਰੇ ॥
jaethaa mohu houmai kar bhoolae maeree maeree karathae sheen kharae
The more attachment and egotism delude and confuse him, the more he cries out, ""Mine, mine!"", and the more he loses out.

ਤਨੁਧਨੁਬਿਨਸੈਸਹਸੈਸਹਸਾਫਿਰਿਪਛੁਤਾਵੈਮੁਖਿਧੂਰਿਪਰੇ ॥੬॥
than dhan binasai sehasai sehasaa fir pashuthaavai mukh dhoor parae 6
His body and wealth pass away, and he is torn by scepticism and cynicism; in the end, he regrets and repents, when the dust falls upon his face. 6

Ang 1014 - read complete shabad (verse)

I had no hope before sikhee. I was the worst kind of loser - a loser who thought he was winning. Who thought temporary pleasures and the temporary contentment they afforded was the point of life. A mind so lost in the search for pleasure that poison seemed sweet, and nectar tasted bitter.

The Satguroo offered me The Pinnacle, Perfect Enlightenment, and on The Path towards this, he has already blessed me with so many gifts. Faith in Him is evidenced, the gamble, the leap, has been justified over and over again. It's not a matter of faith any longer.

It’s a simple equation: You + The Satguroo = sikhee. So discard the experiences you’ve hard-wired amongst those neurones. Of caste and booze, of boys dating and girls not being allowed, of religious rituals and rules, corrupt gurduaraa committees, of wolves wearing sheep’s clothing, domestic violence and preachers angrily preaching. I’ve been there; I know how they stunt the seed of sikhee’s spirituality. But they can never kill it. Because your soul is the seed.

Make this a year for you to reclaim - reclaim the seed you may never have nourished, beg for the moment that will unfold an epiphany. You’re one year closer to death - why not use it to get a bit closer to The Satguroo?

( ( ( :- )>>> Atma Singh

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