A tale of two Saints

A Tale of two Saints

Last week we were visited by a holy saint who has single handedly changed the scene in rural education in North India, be it Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. H e stared small, with a dream and it has attained such heights that seem UN attainable. According to him, he holds two things that shaped his destiny, his life i.e. his mother and her stories about the Gurus and how they became one with God. He also started on this path. However, for him it was the thirst of knowledge along with one single important trait that is the stumbling block of all of us. He always said yes to his Guru, be it not leaving his government job, to keep on being employed, to give it all up, to spread the knowledge of divine scientifically. Baba Iqbal Singh Baru Sahib wale has changed the horizon for many a child and his family by a domino effect. The bar of education has been raised for the children along with a dedicated concerted effort to eradicate the menace of drugs.

How many of us, actually do anything? None of us.

We talk, we procrastinate and talk we do to such levels that one can become dizzy!

Punjabis are great talkers but sometimes we have a stalwart who changes the scene for generations to come.

Well, we were all blessed by is presence, and then the evening came when he was sitting in the living area on the sofa and he was holding satsang where he was regaling and imparting precious gems on materialism, attachment and why we need to preserve our dying culture in the midst of war between rapid modernization and the ethos that makes us.

My father, called lovingly Daarji by all of us, far and wide, sat next to him and I looked at him. He sat all quietly, on one side trying to take up minimum space so that he would not interfere in the aura. And I thought, it is true we are blind. We do not recognize the one in midst of us but will prostrate and listen, pay respect to saints who visit us. What about the man who has been advocating dietary change, watching ones breath and paying attention to the inner soul? Call it deja’ vu we happened to discuss the merits of Soham mantra and how that is the essence of our lives. And then, I thought how we run after what is available out but never look at the gem in our midst . We remain oblivious to the gem in our family looking for salvation outside.

Daarji is the epitome of the sentence, mediation in action. For me it is this saint who I live with day and night and who has reached the pinnacle of his life and is at the zenith with his contribution to agriculture, the revolutionary way he ahs changed the scape of agriculture. The most un-assuming , humble , ego free and quiet person who notices , observes , but forever holds his council! He and I talk about everything , be it the bees, nature, the world economy and our favorite love of cricket and spiritual growth . 

I think the only , we disagree is on Manmohan vs Modi! 

To agree, is to disagree and to learn from him is I think life's best lesson in action.