We are all lovers, devotees of a higher power, thousands of lovers, but the Beloved is one for all. He whom we desire is the beloved of the whole world and is the one God for all men, not specifically for Muslims only, or for Hindus only, or for Christians only.
          Sant Kirpal Singh

How to love God

From the book "Morning Talks", written by Sant Kirpal Singh, 24 January, 1968

Available as mp3 at audio.sant-kirpal-singh.org


I ­was tell­ing ­you yes­ter­day ­how ­love dete­ri­o­rates ­into attach­ment. ­Love is ­the ­essence of ­the ­soul. It ­has to be con­tacted ­with ­the Over­self. ­When it is ­attached to bod­ies, ­outer envi­ron­ments, it dete­ri­o­rates ­and is ­called attach­ment. Yes­ter­day it ­was ­explained ­how, on ­the ­way to ­God, we ­are ­stopped ­and ­instead of ­going in ­the ­right direc­tion, we ­are ­diverted down­ward. ­Today's sub­ject is ­not ­what is ­love ­and ­how it dete­ri­o­rates ­but ­how ­love ­should be exer­cised. It is ­already in us. We ­are ­also ­love per­son­i­fied. We ­are a ­drop of ­the ­Ocean of ­all ­Love. So ­this ­love, as I ­told ­you yes­ter­day, ­should go to ­God. Or if ­you ­have ­not ­seen ­God, ­then it ­should be ­given to ­the ­human ­body ­who is over­flow­ing ­with ­the ­love of ­God. ­For exam­ple, if ­you ­see ­some advo­cate, nat­u­rally it ­will ­bring to ­mind ­the ­courts, ­and ­the ­cases ­going on in ­the ­courts. ­When ­you ­see a doc­tor, ­then ­your atten­tion is ­diverted to med­i­cines, ­sick peo­ple or hos­pi­tals. Sim­i­larly, ­when ­you ­see ­some ­man on ­the ­way, ­your atten­tion is ­directed to ­feel ­the ­work ­that he is ­doing. So ­the Mas­ter or ­the ­Saint is ­one, ­who is a ­labourer in ­the har­vest of ­God. ­The har­vest is ­much, labour­ers ­are ­wanted. If ­you ­think of ­Him, ­you ­will ­always ­think of ­God. Nat­u­rally ­that ­will ­come of ­itself. So ­you ­should ­always remem­ber ­the Mas­ter. He is ­the pro­to­type of ­God on ­earth ­and ­God is ­within ­Him. He is ­within ­you ­too of ­course, ­but ­not man­i­fest. He is how­ever, man­i­fest at ­the ­human ­body of ­the Mas­ter. ­The Mas­ter ­loves ­even ­His ene­mies, ­for nat­u­rally He ­loves every­body, includ­ing ­those ­who ­speak ­ill of ­Him. He ­loves ­the ­worst sin­ner, ­just to ­raise ­him up to ­the ­level of man­hood, ­then to ­the ­level of God­hood. So ­you ­should ­love ­God, ­but ­you can­not ­love ­God ­unless ­you ­see ­Him. So ­love of ­the ­human ­pole, or ­the Mas­ter, at ­which He is man­i­fest, is ­love of ­God. ­When ­you ­see ­Him, ­you ­see ­God. As ­Christ ­said, "­Those ­who ­have ­seen me, ­have ­seen my ­Father". ­The ­same ­thing is ­explained by ­all Mas­ters ­who ­came in ­the ­past. ­Their lan­guage is dif­fer­ent, ­but ­they ­say ­the ­same ­thing. Sim­i­larly, ­when ­you ­see a Mas­ter, ­don't ­take ­Him as a ­son of ­man, ­but as ­God in ­Him. ­Only ­then ­are ­you  ­saved ­and ­your ­love ­for ­God ­will over­flow. If ­you ­take ­Him as a ­man ­like ­you ­then…? ­Even if ­you ­take ­Him as a ­good ­man, ­you ­can ­have ­only good­ness ­from ­Him. So ­when ­you ­think of a Mas­ter as ­the pro­to­type of ­God on ­earth, as ­the man­i­fested ­God in ­Him, ­only ­then ­will ­true remem­brance be over­flow­ing ­within ­you.

Gen­er­ally, ­when ­you ­think of any­body con­stantly, ­you for­get ­your ­own ­self. I ­was speak­ing of an inci­dent in ­Guru ­Nanak's ­life. He ­was weigh­ing ­out ­wheat in ­the ­shop ­where He ­was ­employed ­and ­when He ­came to ­the ­word ­Tera (mean­ing ­both 'thirteen' ­and '­thine'), He ­became intox­i­cated ­and ­went on repeat­ing "I am ­Thine, I am ­Thine," ­until He ­had ­given ­away ­all ­the ­grain. So ­those ­who ­have ­got ­love ­for ­God, nat­u­rally ­that ­love over­flows. ­Such a dis­ci­ple ­becomes ­absorbed in ­the Mas­ter. As St. ­Paul ­said, "It is I, ­not ­now I, ­but ­Christ ­lives in me". Sim­i­larly, ­saints in ­other coun­tries ­said ­the ­same ­thing. ­One of ­them ­said, "I am so ­much over­flow­ing ­with my Mas­ter, ­that I ­have for­got­ten ­whether it is He or I". ­The ­same expres­sion is ­given by ­almost ­all ­saints, of ­course in ­their ­own lan­guage. ­Their ­mode of expres­sion ­may be a lit­tle dif­fer­ent, ­but ­they ­say ­the ­same ­thing. So ­when ­you ­have ­such a ­love ­and ­you ­see ­the Mas­ter, ­you ­don't ­see ­His ­body, ­you ­see ­the ­God in ­Him. ­That is ­also ­the ­true ­love of ­God. I ­gave ­you exam­ples ­just ­before of ­when ­you ­see an advo­cate, remem­brance of ­the ­courts ­comes in, ­when ­you ­see a doc­tor, remem­brance of hos­pi­tals, ­sick peo­ple ­and med­i­cines ­arise. Sim­i­larly, ­when ­you ­see a ­Saint, ­then ­you nat­u­rally remem­ber ­God, ­because he is a pro­to­type of ­the remem­brance of ­God. He is over­flow­ing ­with ­the ­love of ­God. Mau­lana ­Rumi ­says, "­When ­you ­accept a Mas­ter, ­then ­you ­accept ­God ­and ­the ­Prophet in ­Him ­both". If ­you ­read ­the pref­ace of a ­book, it ­gives in ­digest ­form ­what is in ­the ­book. ­After ­you ­have ­read ­the ­whole ­book ­and ­you under­stand ­what it ­says, ­that ­can ­also be under­stood ­from ­its pref­ace. Sim­i­larly, ­when ­you ­see a Mas­ter, ­you ­are read­ing ­the pref­ace of ­God.
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These ­are exam­ples to ­show ­that ­when ­you ­meet a Mas­ter, ­you ­meet ­the ­God in ­Him. ­Such a ­God-in-­man is ­met ­with ­only by ­the ­grace of ­God. If ­you ­want to con­tact ­God ­and ­are pin­ing ­after find­ing ­Him, ­then He ­makes an arrange­ment ­whereby ­you ­are ­brought to ­the ­human ­pole ­where He is man­i­fest. I ­gave an exam­ple of a dis­ci­ple of a ­Saint ­named ­Bheek. He ­was so ­absorbed in ­the Mas­ter ­that he ­always ­used to remem­ber ­Bheek, ­not ­God, ­but ­Bheek. He ­took ­his Mas­ter as a pro­to­type of ­God on ­earth. ­His ­whole rep­e­ti­tion ­was ­not of ­the ­five ­names ­but of ­Bheek, of ­the Mas­ter. ­This is ­but nat­u­ral. He ­saw ­the ­God in ­Him, ­not ­the ­son of ­man. He ­was repeat­ing ­all ­the ­time, "O ­Bheek, O ­Bheek." He ­was liv­ing in ­the ­time of ­the Moham­me­dan ­reign ­and ­the Moham­me­dan peo­ple ­asked ­him, "­Who is ­your ­God?" He ­replied, "My ­God is ­Bheek, my Mas­ter is ­God." "­Who is ­his ­prophet?" "My ­Bheek is ­the ­Prophet." To ­say ­that ­was ­against ­the Moham­me­dan ­law, ­and so ­they ­passed a sen­tence of ­death ­against ­him. ­Such ­cases ­where a cap­i­tal sen­tence ­had ­been ­passed ­were ­brought ­before ­the ­king ­for ­final ­approval. ­When ­the ­case ­was ­brought ­before ­him, ­the ­king ­saw ­that ­the ­eyes of ­Bheek's dis­ci­ple ­were intox­i­cated. "­Well, ­who is ­your ­God?" ­asked ­the ­king. "My ­Bheek is my ­God". "­Who is ­your ­prophet?" "My ­Bheek is my ­prophet." ­The ­king ­said to ­his peo­ple, "­Leave ­this ­man, ­don't ­mind ­him." ­The peo­ple ­said ­that he ­would ­run ­away. "No, no", ­said ­the ­king. ­The ­king ­then ­turned to ­him ­and ­said, "­Well ­look ­here, we ­are hav­ing a ­dearth of ­rain in ­our coun­try ­for ­the ­past ­few ­months. If ­you ­would ­kindly ­request ­your ­Bheek ­for ­some ­rain, we ­would be ­able to ­grow ­more ­corn". "Oh, ­yes, I ­will ­asked ­Him", ­replied ­Bheek's dis­ci­ple. ­Just ­like a ­child ­you ­see, ­that ­has ­all con­fi­dence in ­its ­mother. It ­has no ­doubt what­soever ­that ­the ­mother can­not ­give ­what it ­desires. "­All ­right, ­when ­will ­you ­return?" ­asked ­the ­king. "I ­will ­come in a ­day or ­two", ­replied ­Bheek's dis­ci­ple. ­The ­next ­day ­there ­were ­heavy ­rains through­out ­the coun­try. On ­the ­third ­day, ­Bheek's dis­ci­ple ­returned. ­The ­king ­said, "­Well ­thanks to ­your ­Bheek, we ­have ­got suf­fi­cient ­rains. It ­was ­very ­kind of ­you ­and of ­your ­Bheek". ­The ­king ­then ­offered to ­Bheek's dis­ci­ple ­the ­land rev­e­nue ­from 21 vil­lages ­for ­his Mas­ter. ­Bheek's dis­ci­ple ­refused to ­accept ­the ­money, say­ing, "­This is a mate­rial ­thing, I am ­not ­going to ­take ­this to my ­God. He ­does ­not ­need it".

So such­like remem­brance ­gives ­you ­true ­love of ­God. As ­the nee­dle of a com­pass, ­even ­though ­you ­shake it, ­always ­points to ­the ­north, so in ­worldly ­affairs, every­thing, ­you ­should ­always ­have ­the ­sweet remem­brance of ­God. To ­look at ­the ­son of ­man ­who is over­flow­ing ­with ­the ­love of ­God, is to ­meet ­God. ­This is ­the ­true ­state of ­affairs. ­All so-called mas­ters ­are ­not Mas­ters of ­course, ­then ­how ­can ­you rec­og­nize a Mas­ter? ­The ­only cri­ter­ion is ­that He is ­able to ­give ­you ­some expe­ri­ence to ­raise ­you ­above ­the ­body ­level ­for a ­while, to ­give ­you some­thing to ­start ­with. ­Big gath­er­ing ­and prop­a­ganda ­can be ­brought ­about by ­very ­easy meth­ods, by pay­ing ­and ­other ­ways. ­You ­may ­appoint ­five or ­six peo­ple to go ­around ­and pro­claim ­that ­our mas­ter is ­God, ­and ­pay ­them ­for it. A ­true Mas­ter is ­met ­with ­only ­through ­the ­grace of ­God. He is ­met ­with by ­one ­who is pin­ing ­for ­God. ­God is ­within ­you, ­and it is He ­who ­makes ­the arrange­ments to ­bring ­you in con­tact ­with ­God ­who is man­i­fest in ­some ­human ­body, ­because ­the ­teacher of ­man is a ­man. So such­like ­love ­causes ­you to remem­ber ­God, ­not ­the ­Master's ­face or ­His ­coat. I remem­ber a dis­ci­ple ­who ­lived ­for ­forty ­years ­with my Mas­ter. He ­was serv­ing ­the Mas­ter ­while liv­ing in ­His ­home. ­One ­day, ­the Mas­ter ­asked ­him to go to ­one of ­the ­rooms in ­His ­house ­and ­get a cer­tain ­book ­from ­one of ­the cup­boards. ­The dis­ci­ple won­dered ­what cup­board ­and in ­which ­room ­the Mas­ter ­was refer­ring to. ­Just ­think, ­how ­absorbed he ­was in ­the Mas­ter, ­that ­while liv­ing in ­His ­house, he ­did ­not ­know ­which cup­board ­was in ­what ­room. ­This is an exam­ple to ­show. ­Such ­love ­just trans­fuses ­you ­into ­Him. ­The ­Love of ­the Mas­ter is ­the ­love of ­God. ­The ques­tion ­arises ­that ­how ­should we ­know a ­true Mas­ter? ­There ­are so ­many mas­ters. ­The ­only cri­ter­ion ­lies in ­the ­fact ­that He is ­able to ­give ­you some­thing to ­start ­with, ­not ­only ­the ­mere rep­e­ti­tion of cer­tain ­things or ­the per­for­mance of cer­tain out­ward meth­ods of wor­ship. ­The ­true Mas­ter ­will ­give a lit­tle ­boost, ­some cap­i­tal to ­start ­with, ­may be lit­tle or ­more. ­That ­depends on ­the back­ground of ­each ­one. ­But every­body ­must ­get some­thing. ­Even ­the ­blind ­man ­should ­get some­thing. ­They do ­get, ­when ­they ­come ­for Ini­ti­a­tion. ­One ­man ­came ­from Amrit­sar, ­was ­given ­half of ­the Ini­ti­a­tion ­and ­then ­stood up ­and ­said ­that he ­had ­many ­doubts. I ­told ­him to ­leave ­and ­take ­time to ­have ­them ­cleared up. I ­met ­him in ­the eve­ning ­and ­told ­him to for­get ­all ­his learn­ing ­for a ­while ­and ­sit ­like a ­child ­who ­knows noth­ing. He ­got ­the ­best expe­ri­ence. He ­then ­put a ques­tion ­that see­ing ­Light dur­ing Ini­ti­a­tion in ­the day­time ­was ­maybe ­due to ­the ­light out­side. I ­said, "­Well, ­here is a ­blind ­man ­next to ­you, he ­saw ­the ­Light." So it is ­the ­inner ­Light ­that we ­have to ­see. ­Christ ­said, "I am ­the ­Light of ­the ­world. Who­soever ­comes to me ­shall ­never ­walk in dark­ness". ­All Mas­ters ­say ­this ­and ­when ­you ­meet a Sat­guru ­you ­see ­Light, ­both ­inside ­and out­side. ­When ­that ­Light is devel­oped, ­you ­also ­see it out­side.

So ­today's sub­ject ­was "­How to ­Love ­God, or ­the Mas­ter". ­Love of ­God is man­i­fest in ­the Mas­ter ­and ­all of ­the qual­i­fi­ca­tions of ­God ­are in ­the Mas­ter on a min­i­a­ture ­scale, ­because ­God is ­reflected in ­Him. He is ­the pro­to­type of ­God on ­earth.