The month of January = 1, the Soul Body, and the number of the year = 2+0+2+3 = 7, the Aura, give us a unique opportunity to observe if our deep desire to be on this earth (the soul desire to have this earthly experience) matches the lives we have created. This is impregnated in our Aura: the visible structure around us, our magnetic field, the reflection of all our thoughts and actions, our memories, our construct, …
It is as if our consciousness were contemplating the distance between who we are supposed to be according to the primal and original impulse and who we have become through the ups and downs of life, circumstances, and our own capacity to digest the past, as reflected in our reactions and justifications.
And this is not necessarily a comfortable seat to sit in. The universal wisdom gives us a chance to see how much unconscious control we exert in our lives, basically how much we listen to our heads instead of listening to our hearts!
This play between the 1 and 7 is reflected in the 17th Pauree of the Japji Sahib and, this January 2023, we chose this Pauree of the Japji to meditate on.
In this Pauree, Guru Nanak tells us that there are countless paths open to all human beings, countless ways to perceive the One, countless ways to worship the One, countless ways to manifest the One, ….
We are like unique windows (Aura) receiving an infinite light, filtering it through our unique structures & constitution to reflect it back into the creation, making our uniqueness accessible to others.
But how do we choose among all these possibilities and shapes?
What are our criteria, and who dictates them?
How do we escape futile search and distractions?
How do we not compare ourselves with others?
How do we not judge others to justify our own choices?
How do we feel not judged by others?
Sometimes we are convinced that we are heading in the right direction, and when we realize that we are not, or that we need a change, we refuse to face the contradiction. We do not see the blessing of what we have learned through that experience. Instead, we perceive it as lost time. Paradoxically, to have the illusion of not having unnecessarily lost time and energy, we keep on the path that we now know to be out of date. So, we drag ourselves to jobs we dislike, we keep holding onto relationships that are harmful to us and to others, and we hate the city we live in but we do nothing to change it; we complain and criticize. The number 7 helps our ego to find rational excuses for why we made these choices. And in this way, we convince ourselves… except that, deep inside, we fail to do so, and our soul gets crunched, and we become depressed.
Reciting the 17th Pauree brings freedom and resurrection, as it is the moment of recognition of the One in the multiplicity. Choosing a shape or form does not limit us because we are not that! The shape is like a vehicle, bringing us to the next step. Holding and committing to a shape that resonates with our inner being makes our inner being available, accessible, tangible, and invites others to follow their own truths as we followed ours. Through this choice, we grow wings of freedom and embrace the countless, unlimited possibilities in which we can manifest the One, finding our own and unique way to do so.
We realize then, that whatever we choose through the call of our deepest Self, brings us to a new birth – to resurrection. Countless possibilities to live fully, and you will not have to worry about other paths you “missed” because there is nothing to miss!… There are all just countless opportunities to reach the same: the core of who you are.
In this Pauree, Guru Nanak mentions the Bhagat, translated as Yogis, Saints, Meditators, …. This word carries the energy of the devotion, the devotion in the prism of the 7 being our capacity to observe, contemplate, and completely embrace that what is; realising that everything is meticulously designed and unfolds according to a force that we will never comprehend in its totality but we can experience. We do not need to get lost in the intricacies of the mind and to understand and to analyse; we just need to experience and embrace the paradoxes and contradictions without looking for a solution, we need to experience the life as an unconditional gift without the doubt that something could go wrong!
Bhagat expresses the humility of the 1, recognising how small we are in this vastness. The 7 recognizes that no matter how small we are, we have an impact and we have a responsibility of the consequences of our choices. It is the opposite of false humility, which based on lack of self-esteem. We are nothing and nevertheless we impact everything!
KRIYA & MEDITATION
KRIYA: Exercise Set to Balance the Head and the Heart
MEDITATION: Chant and meditate with the 17th Pauree.
17th Pauree
The Seventeenth Pauree brings freedom and resurrection.
Asankh jap asankh bhaa-o. Asankh poojaa asankh tap taa-o.
Asankh granth mukh vayd paath. Asankh jog man reheh udas.
Asankh bhagat gunn gi-aan veechaar. Asankh satee asankh daataar.
Asankh soor muh bhakh saar. Asankh mon liv laa-ei taar.
Kudrat kavann kahaa veechaar. Vaari-aa na jaavaa ayk vaar.
Jo tudh bhaavai saa-ee bhalee kaar. Too sadaa salaamat nirankaar. ]17]
Countless are the meditations, countless the loves.
Countless are the worship services, countless the austere disciplines.
Countless are the scriptures and ritual recitations of the Vedas.
Countless are the yogis, whose minds remain detached from the world.
Countless are the devotees who contemplate the wisdom and virtues of the Divine.
Countless are the holy, countless the givers.
Countless are the heroic spiritual warriors, who bear the brunt of the attack in battle (who receive blows to their faces).
Countless are the silent sages, vibrating the string of Divine Love.
How can Your Creative Potency be described? I cannot even once be a sacrifice to the One.
Whatever pleases the One is the only good done. You, Eternal and Formless One.
