ACCEPTANCE/APPRECIATION!
A bird was walking on the baking hot desert floor. An angel came down and greeted the bird. The bird recognized the angel was from Vaheguroo (God) and asked if it could help by blessing it with a tree to perch on and avoid the burning desert floor.
The angel said it couldn't grant this gift but it would go and ask Vaheguroo if he could give the bird this blessing.
The angel went to Vaheguroo and asked whether the bird could be given a tree to help it cope with the desert heat.
Vaheguroo replied 'No it can't, because it is not in it's destiny, however go back and tell the bird to walk on one leg and then switch to the other, it should find walking easier. Another message Vaheguroo had for the bird was, 'tell the bird it should be grateful for all the things it's ever been given and all the good things it has now.'
The angel agreed and went back to the bird. The bird was told Vaheguroo'sย message and it thanked the angel. The bird began walking on one foot and then switched to the other, which helped it manage the heat better.
The angel then left.
A little while later, the angel returned to the desert to find the bird looking happy, as it now perched on a tree.
The angel was shocked and surprised. It immediately went to Vaheguroo to ask, 'you said that the tree wasn't in the birds destiny and now I have seen it perching on a tree, I don't understand'.
Vaheguroo replied, 'when the bird began to be grateful for what it had previously received and thankful for all the gifts it currently had, then its destiny changed. It changed because it appreciated all the gifts it had ever received, hence now being blessed with the tree.
This is a valuable lesson for us all. We may suffer ups and downs and focus on looking at what we don't have or need but this can lead us to be unappreciative of what we currently have. Let us appreciate all the great blessings we have been given! In this way, our destiny may change to include much more positivity.
When one accepts the will of Akaal Purakh Vaheguroo (God), one becomes peaceful and content. The mind becomes relaxed, the Name of God settles within them and Guru Sahib Ji fulfils all their wishes.
Guru Ramdas Ji Says, "I have obtained the fruits of my mind's desires, O my Lord of the Universe; I am transfixed with ecstasy, gazing upon the Perfect Guru."
Vaheguroo!
Game of love โค๏ธ- PERFECT OR CRACKED
PERFECT OR CRACKED
An elderly Sikh woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck.
One of the pots had a crack in it, while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water.
At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.
For a full two years, this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.
Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments.
But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."
The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on yourside of the path, but not on the other pot's side?"
"That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path and every day, while we walk back, you water them."
"For two years, I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table.
Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."
Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have, that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.
You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good within them. We spend too much time judging others wrongly and not seeing the purity within them. We all have flaws and all make mistakes. Only Vaheguroo (God) is the one that doesn't make any mistakes. We just have to be mindful, while learning from and repairing our flaws and mistakes. All wisdom comes from within, through the blessings of the True Guru and meditation on naam (Name of God). Guru Ji will always look after us, we just have to realise he's always there for us and watching over us.
We only see in others, that what we have within ourself!
Guru Nanak Dev Ji Says, "Everyone makes mistakes; only the Guru and the Creator are infallible."
Vaheguroo!
Game of love ๐- TRULY FORGIVING
TRULY FORGIVING
One day, a Gursikh brother gave a singhni an empty sack and a basket of potatoes.
"Think of all the people who have done or said something against you in the recent past, especially those you cannot forgive. For each of them, inscribe the name on a potato and put it in the sack."
The singhni came up with quite a few names and soon her sack was heavy with potatoes.
"Carry the sack with you wherever you go for a week," said the Gursikh. "We'll talk after that."
At first, the singhni thought nothing of it. Carrying the sack was not particularly difficult but after a while, it became more of a burden. It sometimes got in the way and it seemed to require more effort to carry as time went on, even though its weight remained the same.
After a few days, the sack began to smell. The carved potatoes gave off a ripe odour.
Not only were they increasingly inconvenient to carry around, they were also becoming rather unpleasant.
Finally, the week was over.
The Gursikh questioned the Singhni, "Any thoughts about all this?"
"Yes," the Singhni replied. "When we are unable to forgive others, we carry negative feelings with us everywhere, much like these potatoes. That negativity becomes a burden to us and after a while, it festers."
"Yes, that is exactly what happens when one holds a grudge. So, how can we lighten the load?"
"We must strive to forgive. Forgiving someone is the equivalent of removing the corresponding potato from the sack."
"How many of your transgressors are you able to forgive?"
"I've thought about it quite a bit ji," the Singhni said. "It required much effort, but I have decided to forgive all of them."
"Very well, we can remove all the potatoes. Were there any more people who transgressed against you this last week?"
The Singhni thought for a while and admitted there were. Then she felt panic, when she realised her empty sack was about to get filled up again.
"Veer ji (brother)," she asked, "if we continue like this, wouldn't there always be potatoes in the sack week after week?"
"Yes, as long as people speak or act against you in some way, you will always have potatoes."
"But Veer ji, we can never control what others do." So what good is divine wisdom (bibek budh) in this case?"
"We're not at the realm of Divine wisdom (Gyaan) yet.
"Everything we have talked about so far is the conventional approach to forgiveness. It is the same thing that many philosophies and most religions preach. We must constantly strive to forgive for it is an important virtue. This is not the divine wisdom Sikhi teaches us because there is no striving in Sikhi."
"Then what is divine wisdom (bibek budh/Gyaan) in Sikhi, Veer ji?"
"You can figure it out. If the potatoes are negative feelings, then what is the sack?"
"The sack is... that which allows me to hold on to the negativity. It is something within us that makes us dwell on feeling offended.... Ah, it is my inflated sense of self-importance (ego/mind)."
"And what will happen if you let go of it?"
"Then... the things that people do or say against me no longer seem like such a major issue."
"In that case, you won't have any names to inscribe on potatoes. That means no more weight to carry around, and no more bad smells. The Gyaan/bibek budh of forgiveness is the conscious decision to not just remove some potatoes... but to relinquish the entire sack."
The sack, which is the polluted egotistical mind, will only be purified through 24/7 meditation on Gods name.
This is the Sikh's purpose in life.. Relinquish the sack/mind to conquer the universe.
Guru Nanak Dev Ji Says, "He forgives those with whom He is pleased; they silence their egotism and pride through Gods name"
Vaheguroo!
