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Summary of Question:	Meaning Of Ramkali Shabd
Category:	Gurbani
Date Posted:	Monday, 8/25/2003 10:43 AM MDT

I am confused please explain me the meaning of this shabad. Its on page 878.

"saagar meh boond boond meh saagar kavan bujhai biDh jaanai. "
If you see the punjabi translation of shabad, its different than the
english translation.
The english translation says
"The drop is in the ocean, and the ocean is in the drop. Who understands, and knows this? "
The punjabi translation says just like drops are in oceans and oceans are made of drops sameway waheguru is in everyone and everyone is in waheguru"

In one line later on next page 879
"man meh jot jot meh manoo-aa panch milay gur bhaa-ee"
The punjabi translation talks about the divine light.
The english translation says
"The Light is in the mind, and the mind is in the Light. The Guru brings the five senses together, like brothers."
Which light is being reffered to the light we see or the light which we can't see?

Could you please explain me the meaning of the whole shabad (page 878 to 879 ramkali mehal 1)..I shall be greatly thankful for this..

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REPLY
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Sat Siri Akaal. This shabd describes Guruji's meditative experience of attaining liberation by meditation so deep one comes to know the Creator.
Here is the entire English of this shabd:
"The drop is in the ocean, and the ocean is in the drop. Who understands, and knows this? He Himself creates the wondrous play of the world. He Himself contemplates it, and understands its true essence. ||1||
How rare are those who contemplate this spiritual wisdom. Through this, the supreme state of liberation is attained. ||1||Pause||
The night is in the day, and the day is in the night. The same is true of hot and cold. No one else knows His state and extent; without the Guru, this is not understood. ||2||
The female is in the male, and the male is in the female. Understand this, O God-realized being. The meditation is in the music, and knowledge is in meditation. Become Gurmukh, and speak the Unspoken Speech. ||3||
The Light is in the mind, and the mind is in the Light. The Guru brings the five senses together, like brothers. Nanak is forever a sacrifice to those who enshrine love for the One Word of the Shabad. ||4||9||"

Both translations say the same thing, differently. The "The drop is in the ocean, and the ocean is in the drop. Who understands, and knows this?" refers to God is the ocean. The drop (human) is in the ocean (God) and God is in the human. Guru Sahib says elsewhere in SGGS that God is in all things and beings. The Gurus who knew God knew that vast expanse of divinity from WITHIN themselves, and tried to tell us that in Gurbani. 9th Guru (ang 702) says that "I ran into the forest looking for God, but God, the Jewel, was (always) deep within my heart."

The Light IS the Divine Light. It is not a Light the way you light a candle or turn on a light. So in that sense it is unseen except one can SENSE the radiance of one who knows this Light.
When one meditates deeply on God, one loses one's sense of self. One loses (during the meditation) the senses (taste, touch, smell, feel, sight)into meditation. Deep meditation unites all dualities, unites all aspects. Hot and cold are not felt, nor day and night noticed. These references also tell us that deep meditation gives us pure neutrality. Hot and cold, angry or sad. Deep meditation leads to the sukh sehej so often cited in Guru: Pure peace and balance.

This shabd goes on to talk about the male in the female and the female in the male. There is ONE creator of the creation. Not male or female, but both. God is in all. So that sense of maleness or femaleness dissolves into neutral ONENESS in deep meditation. For the Creator is neither male nor female and is both male & female!

In deep meditation, one meditates on the unstruck sound (anahad, Naad or sound current)'heard' deep within oneself. This is the reference to the music and unspoken speech. Shabd Guru (Truth, the Word) is this anahad, this Naad. Meditation on the Naam, on Gurbani takes one to this space that truly, cannot be described in words, though our Gurus did their very best as shown by this Shabd. Guru Nanak is a sacrifice to all those saints who, before him, attained liberation through deep spiritual meditation on the Shabd Guru.

This shabd also reminds us that our Guru is Shabd Guru, not a person. Shabd Guru is the Divine Teaching or Truth that is understood only through meditation on the Naam. Our Gurus gave us Gurbani to use as a tool or technology to take us to this space. They gave us mantra and paath, which sincere practice of leads to deep meditation. Without this Shabd Guru, this state cannot be attained.

Take heart. It took 9th Guru 27 years of meditating before he was granted Guruship. So it does not come overnight! Guru ang sang,
-DKK