The human body is a holy book of God. Study it! Search it! Those who rose above the plane of senses and realized themselves, they realized God. This is the highest ideal of all.

Sant Kirpal Singh

How to develop the attributes of the Master

From the book "Morning Talks", written by Sant Kirpal Singh

1968-02-01, Delhi, Sawan Ashram
Talk available as mp3 at audio.sant-kirpal-singh.org

 

We ­should ­have ­love ­for ­God, ­but ­how is ­this ­love devel­oped? ­How ­can we ­develop ­love ­for ­God ­unless we ­see ­Him, ­come in con­tact ­with ­Him ­and ­enjoy ­His com­pany? So ­for ­that, we ­have to ­love ­some ­human ­pole at ­which ­God is man­i­fest, ­for ­the ­God in ­Him. So ­how to ­develop ­love ­for ­Him? ­That is ­the ­point.

We ­should ­develop ­those ­very qual­i­fi­ca­tions or attrib­utes ­that ­the ­human ­body in ­which ­God is work­ing ­has ­got. ­Let us ­say ­that He is a ­good ­painter, He ­likes paint­ing. ­Then ­you ­should ­develop paint­ing, ­because at ­the ­time of devel­op­ing paint­ing, ­you ­will ­always be remem­ber­ing ­Him, ­for ­whom ­you ­are ­doing it. In ­this ­way, con­stant remem­brance ­will ­come in. ­When ­you ­become a ­good ­painter, nat­u­rally ­you ­will ­draw ­His atten­tion to ­you, ­because ­that qual­i­fi­ca­tion is in ­Him. Sup­pose He is a ­good ­singer. He ­likes sing­ing, ­poetry or ­verse. ­Then ­you ­should ­develop ­that ­same tal­ent ­within ­you. ­Poets ­are ­half ­saints, I ­tell ­you. ­When ­you ­develop ­that tal­ent it ­will go to ­Him ­and He ­will be ­attracted to ­you. In pre­par­ing to be a ­painter, a ­singer or a ­poet, ­all ­the ­time ­you ­are think­ing of ­Him. If ­you ­keep some­body in ­your ­mind, ­you ­will ­react in ­his ­mind. If ­the dis­ci­ple remem­bers ­the Mas­ter, ­the ­God in ­Him, ­the Mas­ter ­will remem­ber ­the dis­ci­ple. ­Action ­and reac­tion ­will ­take ­place. So ­the ­first ­thing is, ­that we ­should ­develop ­those qual­i­fi­ca­tions ­which ­are ­within ­the Mas­ter. ­For exam­ple, if ­some appoint­ments ­become ­vacant ­and appli­ca­tions in writ­ing ­are ­called ­for by ­the offi­cer in ­charge, ­who him­self ­has a ­good hand­writ­ing, ­who ­will ­stand ­the ­best ­chance of get­ting ­the posi­tions? ­There ­may be hun­dreds of appli­ca­tions ­but ­only a ­few appoint­ments. ­The offi­cer ­will ­sort ­through ­all ­the appli­ca­tions ­and ­accept ­only ­those ­that ­are in ­good hand­writ­ing, ­because ­that ­very qual­i­fi­ca­tion is in ­him.

So if ­you ­want to ­develop ­love ­for some­body, ­just ­develop ­the qual­i­fi­ca­tions or attrib­utes ­which ­are ­within ­Him. At ­the ­very ­time of ­developing ­them, ­you ­will be remem­ber­ing ­the ­very ­same qual­i­fi­ca­tions ­that ­are ­within ­Him. ­That ­will ­act in ­two ­ways. If ­you ­keep some­body in ­your ­heart, ­you ­will ­reside in ­the ­heart of ­Him ­whom ­you ­are remem­ber­ing. At ­the ­very ­time of devel­op­ing ­that qual­i­fi­ca­tion or attrib­ute, ­you ­are ­also remem­ber­ing ­Him, ­and ­that ­will ­attract ­Him. So ­this is ­the ­first ­thing ­required. ­There is no ques­tion of ­whether ­you ­are in ­His pres­ence or ­away. ­You ­are ­just to ­develop ­that qual­i­fi­ca­tion. I ­have ­given so ­many exam­ples. ­One I ­gave ­was ­about Bul­leh ­Shah, ­who ­was a dis­ci­ple of ­Inayat ­Khan. Bul­leh ­Shah ­belonged to ­the ­high ­caste ­among ­the Moham­me­dans ­and he ­was ­afraid of ­what ­the peo­ple ­would ­say ­when ­they ­learned ­that a ­man of ­the ­higher ­caste ­had ­gone to some­one belong­ing to a ­lower ­caste. So ­Inayat ­Khan ­sent ­some of ­His dis­ci­ples to Bul­leh ­Shah ­and ­asked ­them to ­say to ­him ­that he ­was ­now ­their ­brother. ­When ­they ­reached ­the ­street ­where Bul­leh ­Shah ­lived,  ­they ­called ­out: "­Where is Bul­leh ­Shah? He is ­our ­brother in ­faith". So ­the peo­ple ­told Bul­leh ­Shah ­that ­his broth­ers ­had ­come. Bul­leh ­Shah ­was ­afraid of ­what ­they ­would ­say, ­since he as a ­man of ­the ­higher ­caste ­had ­gone to a ­man of ­the ­lower ­caste ­and so he ­said, "No, ­they ­are ­not my broth­ers". ­When ­the dis­ci­ples ­returned ­and ­told ­Inayat ­Khan ­what ­had ­occurred, he ­said, "­All ­right, we ­won’t ­water ­his ­field any­more".

­The dis­ci­ple ­who ­gets ­the atten­tion, or ­Water of ­Life ­from ­the Mas­ter ­only ­then is ­all ­right. ­With a lit­tle ­thought of ­the Mas­ter, ­the ­very ­ground of ­the dis­ci­ple is ­watered.

So ­that ­was ­stopped. ­The ­man ­who ­had ­that bless­ing ­before ­was ­deprived of it. ­How ­could Bul­leh ­Shah ­approach ­the Mas­ter?  ­What ­face ­had he ­got to go to ­the Mas­ter ­and ­tell ­Him ­that he ­was ­not a dis­ci­ple! Bul­leh ­Shah ­knew ­that ­his Mas­ter ­was ­very ­fond of hear­ing ­poetry, ­verse ­and lov­ing ­songs. ­Now, he ­had no ­taste ­for ­that ­sort of ­thing, ­but he ­had to ­develop it ­for ­the pur­pose of attract­ing ­the atten­tion of ­the Mas­ter. So he ­went to ­some danc­ing ­girls, ­whose pro­fes­sion ­included ­these ­things. He ­remained ­with ­them ­for ­months ­and learn­ing sing­ing. He ­served ­them ­free, ­day ­and ­night, ­until he ­had devel­oped ­that sing­ing ­within ­him. A ­week or so ­later, ­the danc­ing ­girls ­were to ­sing ­their ­songs to ­Inayat ­Khan. Bul­leh ­Shah ­said to ­them, "­Well, ­look ­here, ­you ­have ­got ­these wom­an­ish ­clothes, ­give me ­some ­and I ­will go ­today ­and ­sing ­before ­the Mas­ter." So he ­put on ­the ­clothes ­and ­went to ­sing to ­his Mas­ter. He ­was sing­ing ­from ­his ­heart ­and nat­u­rally radi­a­tion ­was ­there ­and ­the Mas­ter ­said, "Oh, he is Bul­leh," ­and ­got up ­and ­embraced ­him. Peo­ple usu­ally ­see ­from ­their ­own ­smoky ­glasses ­and ­they ­started say­ing, "Oh, ­look ­here, ­the Mas­ter ­has ­gone ­down ­and ­embraced a ­woman! ­The ­cat is ­out of ­the ­bag ­now." ­Inayat ­Khan ­said, "Bul­leh,  ­take ­off ­these ­clothes, so ­that ­the peo­ple ­may ­know ­who ­you ­are." Bul­leh ­Shah ­said, "No, I am ­not wor­thy, I am ­just a ­fool ­who ­has ­left ­you. I ­have com­mit­ted a hei­nous ­crime in ­not call­ing ­myself ­your dis­ci­ple." ­How ­did he suc­ceed? On ­account of ­the attrib­utes or qual­i­fi­ca­tions ­which ­his Mas­ter ­had, ­who ­was ­fond of sing­ing. He devel­oped sing­ing to ­please ­his Mas­ter.

This is ­one exam­ple, ­but ­there ­are ­also oth­ers. ­Lord ­Rama ­was ­exiled ­for four­teen ­years, ­and ­one ­woman ­called ­Shivri, ­who ­was liv­ing in ­the wild­er­ness to ­where ­Lord ­Rama ­was ­exiled, ­heard ­that he ­was com­ing. ­She ­thought to her­self ­that he ­would be com­ing ­bare ­footed ­and ­that ­the ­thorns ­would ­prick ­his ­feet. So ­she ­began clear­ing ­the ­way of ­all ­thorns. ­Love is devel­oped ­not nec­es­sar­ily by see­ing, ­but ­also by hear­ing. ­She ­also won­dered ­what ­she ­would ­offer ­him to ­eat. In ­the wild­er­ness ­there ­wasn’t ­much, ­only ber­ries. So ­she ­started pick­ing ­the ber­ries, ­tasted ­each ­one of ­them, ­and ­kept ­only ­the ­sweet ber­ries. ­There ­were ­also ­some ­great ­yogis liv­ing in ­the wild­er­ness ­but ­Lord ­Rama ­never ­went to ­them ­first. He ­went to ­Shivri, ­who ­cleared ­the ­way ­for ­him so ­that ­the ­thorns ­would ­not ­hurt ­his ­feet, ­and ­who ­had ­kept ­the ­half ­eaten ber­ries ­only ­for ­the ­sake of know­ing ­those ­which ­were ­sweet ­and ­those ­which ­were ­sour. So ­love ­knows no ­law. ­After ­Rama ­had ­been to ­Shivri, he ­went to ­visit ­the ­yogis. ­There hap­pened to be a ­pond ­where ­the ­yogis ­lived ­which ­was ­full of ­insects ­and ­the ­yogis ­asked ­Lord ­Rama to ­wash ­his ­feet in ­the ­pond, so ­that ­the ­insects ­would be ­cleared ­out. ­Lord ­Rama ­declined ­and ­said, "No, ­you ­are ­great ­yogis, it is bet­ter if ­you ­wash ­your ­feet in ­the ­pond, ­and it ­will ­then be ­cleared." ­All of ­the ­yogis ­put ­their ­wash ­water ­into ­the ­pond ­but it ­was ­not ­cleared of ­the ­insects. ­The ­yogis ­then ­said, "­You ­are ­Lord ­Rama, if ­you ­wash ­your ­feet in ­the ­pond it ­will ­surely be ­cleared." "­All ­right," ­said ­Lord ­Rama, "­We’ll ­try it." He ­washed ­his ­feet in ­the ­pond ­but it ­still ­was ­not ­cleared. ­Lord ­Rama ­then ­told ­the ­yogis to ­wash ­the ­feet of ­Shivri (­whom ­they dis­liked) ­and ­when ­they ­washed ­her ­feet ­and ­put ­the ­wash ­water ­into ­the ­pond, it ­was ­cleared.

­Those ­who ­love ­God, ­love ­the Mas­ter, ­the ­God in ­Him of ­course. It is ­not mat­ter of ­show. ­That ­very ­power is ­within ­you ­and ­knows ­every ­act of ­yours, ­what ­you ­are ­doing ­and ­why. He ­knows ­the ­very ­trend of ­your ­thoughts. ­Love ­knows no ­show. ­Love ­knows ser­vice ­and sac­ri­fice. ­The out­ward sym­bol of ­love is a ­sweet ­tongue, ­imbued ­with humil­ity. ­When ­you ­have devel­oped ­that ­love, ­what ­should ­you do? ­You ­must ­have ­patience, per­se­ver­ance ­and go on ­with it. ­Just ­like a ­moth ­which ­burns ­itself on ­the ­flame of a can­dle ­but ­never ­makes ­any ­sound. So ­those ­who ­want to ­love ­God ­should ­not ­care ­for ­their ­name or ­fame, hon­our, ­this or ­that ­thing. ­They ­should ­leave ­every great­ness ­that ­they ­have ­got phys­i­cally out­side, ­and ­lay ­down at ­His ­feet. If ­they ­lose ­their ­life in sac­ri­fice, ­even ­then ­they ­won’t men­tion it. So ­this is a ­very del­i­cate ques­tion, I ­would ­say. ­Those ­who ­have ­love ­for ­God, or ­the ­God-in-­man, ­well, ­this is a rela­tion ­between ­you ­and ­the ­God in ­Him ­and ­nobody ­else. ­You ­have to ­develop it. ­For ­that ­you ­must ­have per­se­ver­ance. It ­takes ­time. ­The ­work of ­the ser­vant is to do ­work, ­that’s ­all. It is ­for ­the Mas­ter to ­see ­what He ­has to ­give to ­him.

­Once a ­very ­nice Ara­bian ­horse ­was ­given to ­Guru ­Har ­Govind, ­the ­sixth ­Guru of ­the ­Sikhs. ­Guru ­Har ­Govind ­said ­that ­whoever ­should ­recite ­from ­the ­Jap Ji ­with no ­other ­though inter­ven­ing dur­ing ­the ­time ­that ­the ­verse ­was ­being ­recited, ­would be ­given ­his ­heart’s ­desire. ­One ­man ­came for­ward ­and ­said ­that he ­would ­recite. He ­began recit­ing ­and ­just ­before he ­was near­ing ­the ­end, he ­thought to him­self, "I won­der ­what ­the ­Guru ­will ­give me?" He remem­bered ­the Ara­bian ­horse ­that ­had ­been ­given to ­the ­Guru ­and ­thought ­that it ­should be ­given to ­him. ­When he com­pleted ­the rec­i­ta­tion, ­the ­Guru ­ordered ­that ­the ­horse be ­given to ­him. He ­then ­turned to ­the ­man ­and ­said, "­You ­poor fel­low, ­you ­did ­not ­know ­what I ­was ­going to ­give ­you ­. I was going to give you my very own place." So it is ­not ­for ­you to ­judge ­things ­and ­request ­what ­you ­want, ­but it is ­for ­Him to ­see ­what is ­really in ­your ­best inter­ests.

­­How can you ­develop ­love? ­First, ­just ­develop ­those attrib­utes ­which ­are in ­the Mas­ter. If He is a ­good ­painter, ­then ­develop paint­ing. If He is a ­good ­singer, ­then ­develop sing­ing. ­Our Mas­ter ­used to ­have ­wells ­dug ­for ­the ­good of ­the peo­ple at ­large. So ­those peo­ple ­than ­began to ­dig ­wells ­for ­Him ­and He ­was ­pleased. He ­wanted self­less ser­vants ­who ­would ­never ­utter ­any ­word to ­Him ­about ­what ­they ­were ­doing ­for ­the Mas­ter. He ­was a ­very ­plain ­spoken ­man. ­Those ­who ­went to ­Him ­and ­said, "Mas­ter, I ­have com­mit­ted ­this or ­that ­sin," He ­would ­say, "­All ­right," ­and for­give ­them. ­But ­those ­who con­cealed ­their short­com­ings ­from ­Him ­would ­lose ­out. ­

When we go to ­the Mas­ter, we sim­ply ­think ­that He ­does ­not ­know any­thing. ­But at ­the ­heart of ­hearts He ­knows ­what ­you ­say. As I ­was tell­ing ­you yes­ter­day, ­just ­like some­thing in a ­glass ­jar, He ­sees ­what is in us. ­Even if ­you ­try to con­ceal it, He ­still ­sees.  So we ­should go to ­the Mas­ter ­with ­very ­clean ­hearts, ­with ­love ­for ­Him, ­with ­all ­due def­er­ence ­for ­Him. ­Then nat­u­rally, He ­will ­give ­His ­own ­Self to ­you. So ­this is ­how we ­can ­develop ­love ­for ­the Mas­ter, ­for ­the ­God in ­Him. ­The attrib­utes ­that He ­has devel­oped in ­Him, ­you ­should ­try ­and ­develop in ­you. ­What ­are ­they? He ­wants ­love, no ­show, ­strict obe­di­ence to ­what He ­says. ­Once He ­says some­thing, ­obey ­Him. ­Obey ­Him lit­er­ally. ­While devel­op­ing ­these ­things ­you ­will ­all ­the ­time be hav­ing ­the ­sweet remem­brance of ­the Mas­ter ­within ­and ­also out­wardly.

It is ­for ­the Mas­ter to ­see ­what He ­has to ­give. He ­has ­come ­only to ­give ­Life. He ­has no ­other busi­ness. He is ­Life, ­Light ­and ­Love. He ­can ­give ­you ­these qual­i­ties ­only ­when ­you ­have ­become recep­tive ­and ­there is noth­ing ­that ­stands ­between ­you ­and ­Him. ­The attrib­utes of ­God ­are ­reflected in ­Him. If ­you ­just ­adopt ­those attrib­utes in ­your ­own ­life, ­then ­you ­will be ­loved by ­the Mas­ter ­and by ­the ­God in ­Him. As ­Christ ­said, "­Those ­who ­love me, ­will be ­loved by my ­Father, ­and ­whom my ­Father ­loves, I man­i­fest ­myself to ­him". ­All Mas­ters ­have ­said ­the ­same ­thing.