(The All-Embracing Perspective)
During the global shutdown at the start of the pandemic in 2020, our family tried our first 1,000-piece puzzle. It took a couple of weeks, some concentration and a lot of patience. When it was complete, I couldn’t shake off this thought:
What if every religious faith or spiritual belief was a piece of a larger puzzle? If some of the pieces believed they were different from the other pieces, perhaps thinking they were the only right piece and refused to connect with the other pieces, the puzzle would never be complete. What a sad thought!
And what if the pieces represent the ultimate puzzle, humanity?
Imagine if all the pieces, however different they might be, came together and allowed themselves to fit perfectly. Wow! To me, that would look like human unity and peace on earth.
But there’s a catch here. The puzzle pieces wouldn’t be able to come together until they first realized they were part of the same puzzle. And how can human beings come together unless and until we first realize that we are all one, part of the same Super Soul, and extensions of one another?
We often hear in the Sant Nirankari Mission that ‘religion unites; it never divides’. It may sound contradictory given that we see so many fights and wars in the name of religion. This is where God-realization or Gyan gifts us the vision to see the thread of divinity that connects us all.
In Sikhism, there is a sacred prayer that starts like this:
“Ik Onkar, Sat Nam, Karta Purakh…”
(There is but one God, Eternal Truth is his name, He is the Creative Spirit…)
This line emphasizes the importance in the belief that we are all children of the same one God, which means inherently there exists a oneness in all living beings. When we realize and accept this truth, who can we fight without seeing divinity in them first? Self-realization through God-realization or Gyan eradicates so many man-made conflicts. What is left is peace.
In the Bible, it is written:
Do you not know that you are God’s temple
and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?
~ 1 Corinthians 3:16
What a beautiful reminder – the divine spirit of love and peace resides in each one of us. God is in each of us, making us equal beings. When we imbibe this knowledge, not only would we do our best not to hurt anyone, this all-embracing perspective would also call us to lift everyone up.
For example, a teacher, on noticing that a student in 6th grade cannot read, write sentences or produce a simple paragraph, has a choice. He could opt to ignore the issue, letting the student pass on to the next grade, and thereby turning the problem over to someone else. However, the teacher could also choose to do his or her best to help the student, making sure he works to improve the omissions teachers made previously. When we live in awareness of God all around us, there are no strangers and we take responsibility for whatever is in front of us – be it taking care of our planet or our brothers and sisters.
Param pitha parmathma se natha jo joodh jata hai
Ek garane jaisa sara jahan nazar yeh aatha hai.
(Once we become one with the Almighty Formless
We see the whole world through the lens of Oneness).
Verse 67 of the Hardev Bani beautifully captures this sentiment of seeing everyone with love as a part of our own selves, not differentiating based on backgrounds, skin color, religion, or anything else.
When connection with the Father God
Is readily, firmly established – Nirankar
Then like one family – the whole world,
Appears to be here on earth, Nirankar,
The one spirit, dynamic in every being,
All start to see all around, O’ Nirankar,
To be able to live in brotherhood they,
Acquire the righteous way, O Nirankar
Often times, children’s puzzles come with little markings like a color, shape or symbol on the back so that kids readily observe which pieces go together. The markings indicate the pieces are part of the same puzzle. I like to think we all have a similar marking within us – I call it the formless divinity. When you look into the eyes of another, you sense its presence. When you look at the trees, oceans and mountains, the stoic presence of the formless can be felt. Observing the vast cosmos at night, the silent being of the formless manifests itself. One only needs to look for the marking – sometimes obvious, sometimes subtle, because as Baba Avtar Singh Ji writes;
Each atom has your mark
Every leaf Your physique
In four corners all around
I see only Your Mystique
Avtar Bani, Verse 2
Hopefully one day we will all share this peace-invoking realization that we are part of the same perfect puzzle, God’s own masterpiece!
– Arti Nehru, Los Angeles USA
