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Summary of Question:	Who Is Responsible To Explain Gurubani In Society.
Category:	Gurbani
Date Posted:	Saturday, 6/08/2002 6:10 AM MDT

Please clarify.

1.Wheather it is clearly mention in 'SHRI Guru Granth Sahib ji'
that do not eat 'HALAL' .
that whether it is written clearly to eat 'JHATKA'.

2.Whether it is possible that some of our Gyanis are explaining Gurubani
according to their own knowledge and the meanings of their explainations are
diffrent.

3.Who is reponsible , if our sikh society is not getting attached to their
culture or the peoples are ,due to lack of knowledge , are not knowing the basic facts of our religious.

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Sat Siri Akal, dear.

You must understand what Guru Gobind Singh left us when he gave us the Siri Guru Granth Sahib. He gave us the Divine Teacher, the Guru as Shabd, as Word. In the path to realization, every person needs two things: a discipline and a teacher. For the Sikh, the teacher is not a person, but the very Word, itself, as spoken by people who had attained union with the Divine.

Ultimately, there is no one final interpretation of the Guru, as the Guru is not a dialectic, a logical argument. What you understand when you meditate upon Gurbani will be different than what someone else understands-because your souls are different and are here to learn different lessons. If you see the Siri Guru Granth Sahib as a Living Teacher, and you meditate upon its Words with love and humility, it will become your own Personal Guide throughout your life.

The problem in the Panth arises when people "compare notes" on what the Guru is saying and realize that they are coming away with different interpretations of the same words. This has created insecurity in the community and so, for some, they strive to try and pin down an exact meaning that everyone should follow. However, this goes against the spirit of what a Guru is-which is a Teacher. It is better to share our understanding with each other and let other people's experiences enrich our own, instead of trying to narrowly interpret Gurbani for all people, all cultures, across all time and space.

That said-listen to what others have to say about the Guru, but do not treat their understanding as final. Go to the Guru yourself, meditate upon it yourself, follow the instructions your heart understands. And don't be bothered y the confusion, arguments and doubts of others. Remember-life is aplay through which we work out our karma and grow in spiritual consciousness. The Sikh Panth is a pwoerful stage where that play gets acted out-see the Maya of it and realize that the only Truth that can be found is through your loving meditation on the Guru's Words.

May you feel Guru's light and love guiding you on your journey.

Sincerely,

GPK