Guru Arjan Sahib describes the beautiful and moving union of the longing seeker with IkOankar (the Divine).
In the fourth stanza, we are made aware of bringing an intuitive and natural state of mind into our lifestyle. The first link with the Light chiseled us by making the Utterances filled with infinite wisdom the center of our existence. And prepared us, beings, to become Wisdom-centered, to live in
Nam, Identification with the Beautiful Being, and Nam became sweet to the mind. The second link with the Light, the “meeting” with the Eternal Wisdom, materialized. “Reverence” entered us and enabled us to see the Light in everything, and the limitless innate sound began to resound within us. The third link with the Light, a perpetual intense “longing,” and the melody of the Light entered our hearts. Guru Ramdas says,
Through the fourth link with the Light, intuitive, natural bliss has welled up in the mind of the human-bride; I have found the Light; I lovingly surrender myself to the dearest Beautiful Being. The Guru says that you have attained the Light; you are one with the Light. The waves have subsided; the excitement has dissipated, and the being has become one with the Beautiful Being. With intense love, devotion, and vigor, willingly surrender to the Beautiful Being in this love-journey. Through
parvirti,
nirvarti is realized; the wave has become part of the Ocean.
The Guru elaborates that Wisdom-orientedness has now become your innate nature, and the mind and body have become sweet. The mind, and the body, feel
that sweetness naturally, effortlessly, and continuously. The love-journey continues with intense love, devotion, vigor, and willing surrender to the Beautiful Being. You will experience the vastness, the all-pervasiveness, and the sweetness of the Light and the Divine. The Divine has become yours and likes the state you are in. Your submission is complete, and your adornments are Nam and the Utterances filled with infinite wisdom. The Light was instrumental in making you experience this continuous connection. Whatever your mind desires, your Owner, the one you have surrendered to, is giving it to you without asking. And Nam, in celebration, is echoing congratulations. The Light and the Divine created this ceremony; this union is with the Light and the Divine as my Ruler; the heart of the human-bride-being illuminated with the radiance of Nam. The fourth link completes the ceremony with the Being; the imperishable Divine is joined with the being.
Similar is the journey of two beings coming together in the House of Guru Ramdas with the One as their center. Towards that journey, the couple must be in a state of intuitive bliss. What is
this intuitive bliss? It is a state when there are no waves in the mind. It is a state where there is no question of being excited or not being excited anymore. It is a state where the mind is no longer affected by the ups and downs of life. It is a state of love and awareness beyond worldly attachments and influences. It is a state without separation between the being and the Being. For, the being has become one with the Being. How will this stage be reached? When they become Wisdom-oriented, through the “meeting,” through “reverence,” through “longing.” The Wisdom will guide their journey. It will not happen through compulsion, asceticism, or a severe disciplinary lifestyle. It will happen naturally through the Wisdom. When they become Wisdom-oriented, their nature will change, making the mind and body sweet. When Nam becomes sweet, when immersed in Nam day and night, its sweetness will become permanent. In regular parlance, we use the word sweet to describe desserts, memorable moments, and actions emanating from kindness and caring. And then, there are the sweet relationships. A relationship becomes sweet when the mind, and the body, feel
that sweetness naturally, effortlessly, and continuously. The adornments in the relationship become Nam and the Utterances filled with infinite wisdom. They will beautify them, which will please the Divine, their Owner. Their submission will be complete. In a worldly, interpersonal relationship, if a partner says, “I own you, I am your master,” it is a terrible power dynamic at play. However, when we lovingly and willingly articulate, “I am yours,” it is liberating and expanding in a relationship. “I am yours” flows from selflessness born out of love. Positional fear in any relationship is enslaving, is subjugating. Submission or surrender in love is
given, never taken; it is offered, not demanded. It flows from reverence, and the mind feels this success. There is the worldly idea of success, and then there is this ultimate idea of success—the submission, “I am Yours.” It is no longer a statement but an admission of that divine existence. In this intuitive stage, they will receive whatever their mind desires. They will not need to ask for it; they will be graced with it by their Owner. Nam, that helped them in their journey to become filth-free and helped them beautify themselves, will congratulate them. The Light and the Divine created this ceremony as my Ruler, the Divine-Groom-Being. The heart of that human-bride-being, that couple will illuminate Nam, the divine radiance. This ceremony is not a creation of self-exploration, family, or internet exploration. The Light and the Divine created this ceremony; the attainments of a Wisdom-oriented nature and intuitive bliss come on their own as gifts from the Light. The human-bride-being, the couple, experiences bliss for the imperishable Timeless Being has met. Intuitive, natural bliss is the last step in this link. It is life’s last stage of existence—not the physical life, but the life we are meant to live. The path to divine-centered intuitive, natural bliss is completed through the fourth link.
What are the jewels that we want to adorn ourselves with? According to the Eternal Wisdom, the jewels are Nam and Utterances filled with infinite wisdom. Are we prepared to mine these jewels from the depths of our being? Do we want the four-stanza
Lava composition to be the Ultimate Ceremony? What are we lovingly and willingly surrendering to wed the Beautiful Being as shared by Guru Ramdas?