It was September 1948, Dr. Harinder
Singh Dhindsa was teaching our class under a shady tree in the grounds of the Khalsa College,
Amritsar. While sitting in the class, I could not help
repeatedly looking at the Granthi Sahib of the college gurdwara cutting
grass just 50 meters away. This
distracted the attention of the teacher.
Being
otherwise a disciplined student, the teacher excused me a couple of times. Finally, he became concerned at my looking
away again and again. He himself looked
back to see what was more interesting to me than the class. He also recognized that the gentleman cutting
grass was the Granthi Sahib of the gurdwara.
We
know that the person holding the responsibility of gurdwara Kirtan,
recitation, and prayer commands the highest respect among Sikhs. The whole class then also looked at the Granthi
Sahib. It is totally unexpected of
the person holding that status to perform a job usually done by illiterate
unemployed persons. Without saying anything
to me, the professor addressed us:
“Well
boys, close your notebooks. Let us
understand a great moral lesson today.
This will be a very important guide for your future life.” I felt relieved for not being rebuked by the
teacher. He continued:
“Do
you see that man with a white turban cutting grass in the fields? I know him.
He is the Granthi Sahib of our college gurdwara. He is a very admirable person. Sikhs in the locality respect him a great
deal. I also know why he is performing
that lowly job. He has a cow at his
house. Having put a rope around her
neck, it becomes his responsibility to provide, grass, grain, and protection
for her.
If
you young people get the ‘rope’ of faith around your neck, God will do
everything for you and will never fail to protect you from the worries and
problems of your life. If you follow the
path prescribed for you by your faith, you will never face any failure. You will always enjoy peace and pleasure in
your heart.
It
is only when we disregard the directions of our faith that we meet mental and
physical problems in our life. Think of
the cow tied at his house. If she gets
free from the rope and wanders into the green crops, the farm guard will beat
her with a stick. If she damages some
experiment, he may get very angry and teach her a lesson, he may even break her
leg. When we, under the stress of vices,
‘free’ ourselves of the religious ‘rope’ – the direction for a righteous life –
we land ourselves in trouble.
We
see thieves, drug users and cheats, creating trouble for themselves and leading
stressful lives. If you want to be
happy, respect the religious way of life.
It may appear to be restricting but it keeps you disciplined and, like
the cow at his (Granthi’s) house, safe.
SOURCE: TEACHING
SIKH HERITAGE TO THE YOUTH - LESSONS LEARNT'
BY S. GURBKASH SINGH JI
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