Baisakhi and Sikh Spirituality

Dr. K.K. Aggarwal

Baisakhi is the day when their 10th Guru, Guru Gobind Singhji started ‘Khalsa Panth’. Khalsa means a baptized Sikh (pure one or GURU’s very own). It is the way of pure living. After the line of corporeal gurus was brought to an end by Guru Gobind Singh, the Khalsa Panth was installed its own leader under the abiding guidance of Guru Granth Sahib. The Sikh Salutation “Wahe Guru Ji ka Khalsa: Wahe Guru Ji Ki Fateh”

There is nothing like heaven or hell, it’s all on the earth. If one lives according dharma and is in touch with one’s consciousness, then ones are in heaven. On the other hand, if one is surrounded by evil, attached to the worldly objects, or are suffering, then one is in hell.

Hell and Heaven are relative terms. It is all in the perception. By changing the perception, one can change the reality. One cannot hate anybody unless one loves him. Love is the fundamental nature of everybody. It is omnipresent and infinite like an ocean or the sky. It is a true representation of our consciousness and also the super consciousness and one only replaces the love with jealousy, hatred or attachment.

There are many classical examples of this in the nature. Heat has a natural existence and not cold. It is the absence of heat which causes cold conditions. Similarly, darkness is non-existent in the nature. It is only the absence of light which manifests as darkness. To induce cold, one has to withdraw heat, and to produce darkness, one has to take away the light. Similarly, evil does not exists, only goodness exists. It is simply the deficiency or the absence of goodness, which is perceived as evil.

Bhagvad Gita has described evil as undue “attachments, desire, greed, anger and ego” which, in turn, can cause hatred, anger, cynicism, jealousy and what not. If one is in touch with one’s consciousness and take consciousness based decisions, one can win the universe, and that is the message of Gita, Bible, Guru Granth Sahib or Rotary’s four-way test.

What then is ‘Wahe Guru’ in Sikhism? It is same as the Krishna consciousness or the Brahma in Hinduism, the Buddha in Buddhism, the Allah in Islam or the Christ in Christianity. In Vedanta, it represents the true consciousness, and acquiring it should be the aim of each person irrespective of the religion.

Once you are born, you have to perform your four assigned vedantic duties.

Dharma: Your duty or the purpose of life
Artha : Wealth, property or knowledge
Kama : Fulfillment of desire
Moksha : Liberation or letting go of all your attachment to the results of an action.

Understanding and spreading the message of love can achieve everything. If love is everywhere the evil cannot enter that place. You cannot remove darkness or ignorance, physically. The only answer is to bring light and the darkness would automatically start vanishing. Even a ray of light can make all the difference.

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