ਮਨ ਕੀ ਮੈਲੁ ਨ ਤਨ ਤੇ ਜਾਤਿ
Life is impossible without water. Water gives life to everything in this world. It is also very important in ALL the world religions since the beginning of time. In almost all the religions, creation account is depicted as related through or from water. Most of the religions today consider water as pure and holy. Water is the means of purification, and the abode of divine powers. In fact, in some religion such as Hinduism it is worshiped by the devotees? Rivers are the arteries of the earth and the giver of life hence, they are regarded as sacred. It is also believed that, pools of water are the doorways to the spiritual realm (such-khand or nishkala) hence, they are called place of pilgrimage (tīrtha) or fords. That is why taking a dip on certain occasion is considered as getting rid from sins or bad karma.
Beside this, it also has association with cleanliness, which is in turn associated with purity and holiness. Though, for ablution or getting cleanliness there are several ways in the world such as to wash with water as in India, to rub with clay or sand as in Arabic world and to wipe with paper cloth or some sheet in western world. Yet, best of all is to get cleanliness with water. As a result, the symbols of rituals for cleanness and purification have made water a meaningful part of life. Therefore, it is thought that it provides internal purity.
Water plays all the more greater role when one talks about Sikhism. It is interesting to note that Sikhism was born on the bank of a river and blossomed in the surroundings of five rivers hence, the cradle of Sikhism is found in Punjab (panj-aab). A lot has been spoken in the Guru Granth about water. It is thought that a chully (ਚੁੱਲੀ) that is a handful of water or a fist full of water is enough to clean the whole body. A Sikh knows the ritual called “Panj Ishsanaanaa” or “Panj Ishnan” (“five washings” – that is to say washing of two hands, two feet, and the face before entering in a Gurdwara, or before reciting Paath, and the like) which is normally found among Sikhs.
Thus, it has been seen that the external cleanliness leads to internal cleanliness or in other words the external cleanness can help a person to clean with his or her mind, the very pattern of his thoughts and thinking. That is why the very concept of “Panj Ishnan” (“five washings) was envisioned in Sikhism as seen above. However, the Guru Granth makes it clear that there is difference between one’s outer man (ਬਿਦੇਹੀ, ਪਿੰਡਾ), and the Inner man (ਦੇਹੀ ਗੁਪਤ), “The visible body is hidden, and the etheric body is seen” (SGGS, 900).[1] Since, the mind resides in the Inner man hence it has nothing to do with outer ablution. That is why, Guru Granth says that one’s mind cannot be cleaned or purified by any kind of ritual or mean, that is to say that even by a fist full of water (chully). The reason for this is that, this mind remains in an indecisive state till he or she meets with Satguru.
Till that time the condition of mind has been depicted as wind like – wavering, restless, wandering,
“The mind is like the wind, but if it comes to rest in peace, even for an instant, then he shall abide in the peace of the Name, O Siblings of Destiny”,[2]
SGGS 634
like a stranger, alien, foreigner, looking for happiness outside, “If the mind becomes a stranger, then all the world becomes a stranger to him” (SGGS 767),[3] like a snake, a mad dog, a donkey, a stork, a crow, “Why offer camphor to a crow? Why give the snake milk to drink?” (SGGS, 481).[4] Therefore it is stricken by the winds of desire (Trishanaa), “O Kabeer! The mind has become like a bird; it soars and flies in the ten direction. According to the company it (mind) keeps, similar is the fruit it eats” (SGGS, 1369).[5]
Hence, to clean or to purify the mind with any measure of water is a futile efforts, “(But he is) not aware of the filth staining their inner being, while he tries and tries to wash off the outer dirt” (SGGS, 139).[6] So, it can produce nothing but waste, “Those whose hearts are filled with the filth of deception, wash themselves on the outside. They practice falsehood and deception (in daily life), and their falsehood becomes apparent” (SGGS 1243).[7] Therefore, the call is given to bring this mind under the submission of God, “O my beloved stranger mind, please come Home” (SGGS 451).[8]
Only when one brings one’s mind to the headship of Lord God, the search for having Name (Naam), Diving Knowledge (Amrit-Giaan), Bliss (Param-annand) and the like will end,
“O my mind! Remain steady and do not wander around outside. By searching around on the outside, you will only suffer great pain; the Ambrosial Nectar is found within the home of your own being”[9]
SGGS 598
and one will have spiritual Unfoldment (ਆਤਮਿਕ ਤਰੱਕੀ), spiritual Vision (ਆਤਮਿਕ ਦਰਸ਼ਨ), realization of God (ਆਤਮਿਕ ਅਹਿਸਾਸ ਜਾਂ ਬੋਧ), Awakened State (ਜਾਗਦੀ ਅਵਸਥਾ), State of Wisdom (ਗਿਆਨ ਅਵਸਥਾ). Thus, the remedy is seen in the Name (Naam), “But when the intellect is stained and polluted by sin, it can only be cleansed by the Love of the Naam” (SGGS 4).[10]
To sum up, Water is an essential element of life. One can find in each religion that water is associated with ritual in some way or the other. Rivers and Sarvoar (pool) have always been seen as the place for a person’s Inner purification. But, no measure of water can cleanse the mind since it is intrinsically polluted and corrupt. The condition of mind is like an animal. A Bhakta has been advised to bring his or her mind under the headship of Lord or Satguru. The best solution is given in taking the refuge in the Name.
Now, this brings us to seek the answers for some of the questions that arise from our above discussion. How one can bring his mind under the subjugation of Lord? Where can a devotee find the Name? When the mind or the Inner man is corrupt, the question begs as to how and why it got corrupted and what is the remedy for it? How one can achieve the state of wisdom or bliss? The answer to all these can be found in the Granth Bible.
The Granth Bible has exhaustively spoken about the state of mind and has given an articulated summary of it. It says, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). It can produce nothing but filth and waste, “For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly” (Mark 7:21-22). Since it is under the captivity of evil desire, it always leads a person to distraction, “but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed” (James 1:14). Therefore, whatever effort one would make, one cannot purify oneself from the stain of filth, “For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord GOD” (Jeremiah 2:22).
However, Almighty God in His abundance grace (nadar), gives an open invitation to a devotee to come near to him, “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18). The invitation giver is none other than the one who has not only created the universe and the whole of water in it but can measure the whole water contained in it with his one handchully (ਚੁੱਲੀ),
“Who (God) has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who (God) has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance?”
Isaiah 40:12-15
So, in this way it is a clear contrast between Granth Bible and Guru Granth. One finds in Guru Granth, a handful of water is what is thought to be enough for the purification of the heart of a devotee but at the same time it is a futile effort since the mind is stained or tainted. But here in Granth Bible one finds that the whole world’s water is now in the chully of the Creator God (karta Purakh).
The Granth Bible further says that, God in His love not only hides a devotee from all the sinister with the hollow of his hand, “he hid me in the hollow of his hand” (Isaiah 49:2), but also have “engraved you on the palms (hollow of hand) of his hands; your walls are continually before me” (Isaiah 49:16). This is to say that, a devotee would remain in His sight. This Lord God (Alakh Parmeshwer), the Word (Sabd-sarup) came down to live among his people whose very image he has engraved in the hollow of his hand, and this Word is known in Granth Bible as Satguru Jesus Christ. Therefore, once Satguru Jesus Christ said to a big crowd, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of Living Water will flow from within them” (John 7:37-38). For he himself is the Water of Life, “I am the Water of Life” (Abbeye Hayat Ka Chasma, Zindagi ke pani, and Jivan Jal) (John 4:10). Satuguru Jesus Christ further said,
“Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life”
John 4:13-14
The Granth Bible makes it very clear that whoever will call upon his name will be saved, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13) since He is the only name given to humankind for salvation or liberation (ਮੋਖ), “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Interestingly, Satguru Jesus Christ is also known by other names in Granth Bible, “He is the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24), a devotee is called to “grow in the grace and knowledge” of Him (2 Peter 3:18). He is immaculate or stainless or free from any corruption that humankind has, hence, he is capable of taking away our sins (bad karma), “for our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Furthermore, Satguru Jesus Christ is a cheerful giver to such extend that he gave himself for us, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Hence, a devotee can say boldly, “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). He is further called as Truth and the very personification of Truth, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). He has been given the highest title, that King of kings or Lord of lords, “On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:16).
It is here the depiction of a fist full of water (Chully) becomes more significant as shown in Guru Granth. Because, in order to bring one’s mind under the Lordship of God, Chully for a Wise person consists of the Divine Wisdom or Knowledge (Brahm Vichaar); Chully for a Yogi is Jatt is meant as freedom from all the corruption (Bikaar); Chully for a Brahman is contentment; Chully for a householder is remaining truthful and generous; Chully for a king is justice for all; and Chully for an educated or a learned person is the Reflection on Truth, “O Nanak, the mouth is truly cleansed by ritual cleansing, if you really know how to do it. For the intuitively aware, cleansing is spiritual wisdom. For the Yogi, it is self-control. For the Brahmin, cleansing is contentment; for the householder, it is truth and charity. For the king, cleansing is justice; for the scholar, it is true meditation” (SGGS, 1240),[11] and one finds all these qualities personified and perfected in Satguru Jesus Christ.
As a result anyone who meets with Satguru Jesus Christ knows that, the true Chully will transform and bring about the purity of the mind (Bairagee mind) in other words, the purity in his thinking, in his lifestyle and he will be able to cultivate Wisdom (Amrit-Giaan) that will produce Virtues (ਗੁਣ) such as — “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23), and “compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other” (Colossians 3:12-17) that will help a devotee to realize the bliss (param anand)– which is the ultimate quest of a devotee. So, draw near to Satguru Jesus Christ.
[1] ਦੇਹੀ ਗੁਪਤ ਬਿਦੇਹੀ ਦੀਸੈ ॥
[2] ਮਨੂਆ ਪਉਣੁ ਬਿੰਦੁ ਸੁਖਵਾਸੀ ਨਾਮਿ ਵਸੈ ਸੁਖ ਭਾਈ ॥
[3] ਮਨੁ ਪਰਦੇਸੀ ਜੇ ਥੀਐ ਸਭੁ ਦੇਸੁ ਪਰਾਇਆ ॥੭॥
[4] ਕਊਆ ਕਹਾ ਕਪੂਰ ਚਰਾਏ ॥ ਕਹ ਬਿਸੀਅਰ ਕਉ ਦੂਧੁ ਪੀਆਏ ॥੨॥
[5] ਕਬੀਰ ਮਨੁ ਪੰਖੀ ਭਇਓ ਉਡਿ ਉਡਿ ਦਹ ਦਿਸ ਜਾਇ ॥ ਜੋ ਜੈਸੀ ਸੰਗਤਿ ਮਿਲੈ ਸੋ ਤੈਸੋ ਫਲੁ ਖਾਇ ॥੮੬॥:
[6] ਅੰਤਰਿ ਮੈਲੁ ਲਗੀ ਨਹੀ ਜਾਣੈ ਬਾਹਰਹੁ ਮਲਿ ਮਲਿ ਧੋਵੈ ॥
[7] ਜਿਨ ਕੈ ਹਿਰਦੈ ਮੈਲੁ ਕਪਟੁ ਹੈ ਬਾਹਰੁ ਧੋਵਾਇਆ ॥ ਕੂੜੁ ਕਪਟੁ ਕਮਾਵਦੇ ਕੂੜੁ ਪਰਗਟੀ ਆਇਆ ॥
[8] ਮੇਰੇ ਮਨ ਪਰਦੇਸੀ ਵੇ ਪਿਆਰੇ ਆਉ ਘਰੇ ॥
[9] ਮਨ ਰੇ ਥਿਰੁ ਰਹੁ ਮਤੁ ਕਤ ਜਾਹੀ ਜੀਉ ॥ ਬਾਹਰਿ ਢੂਢਤ ਬਹੁਤੁ ਦੁਖੁ ਪਾਵਹਿ ਘਰਿ ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤੁ ਘਟ ਮਾਹੀ ਜੀਉ ॥
[10] ਭਰੀਐ ਮਤਿ ਪਾਪਾ ਕੈ ਸੰਗਿ ॥ ਓਹੁ ਧੋਪੈ ਨਾਵੈ ਕੈ ਰੰਗਿ ॥
[11] ਨਾਨਕ ਚੁਲੀਆ ਸੁਚੀਆ ਜੇ ਭਰਿ ਜਾਣੈ ਕੋਇ ॥ ਸੁਰਤੇ ਚੁਲੀ ਗਿਆਨ ਕੀ ਜੋਗੀ ਕਾ ਜਤੁ ਹੋਇ ॥
ਬ੍ਰਹਮਣ ਚੁਲੀ ਸੰਤੋਖ ਕੀ ਗਿਰਹੀ ਕਾ ਸਤੁ ਦਾਨੁ ॥ ਰਾਜੇ ਚੁਲੀ ਨਿਆਵ ਕੀ ਪੜਿਆ ਸਚੁ ਧਿਆਨੁ ॥