Rai Balwand Ji and Satta Ji

According to the writings of Baba Prem Singh Santrain Ji, Balwand ji was the son of Rajada and Satta ji was his cousin(mother’s sister’s son) . Both of them recited Kirtan in the congregation of Sat Guru Arjun Dev ji. As stated in Gurupur Parkash written by Baba Prem singh :

Balwand is the son of rajaada He sings good hymns in the guru’s feet Satta is the son of their aunt Who is poor and full of sorrow and pain He has tried to obtain wealth but to no avail After wandering and roaming he has returned to the guru’s door

There was once a shortage of money in the house. So in order to earn some money, Balwand ji stopped his Kirtan and went to earn a living in a foreign country. He tried several different methods to earn money but he was unsuccessful. At last in deep despair, he came back to Satguru Arjun Dev ji’s shelter. Suffering from poverty and misery, he stood before Guru Arjun Dev ji with folded hands, sang praises of the Almighty and asked for help. He said,”

I have come to your door and shelter, bestow your mercy Immense lofty Reputation have you, vanquisher of pain, sorrow and misery of the poor Saviour of dropadi and a morsel you lift aginst an elephant Destroyer of armies of demons giver of victory to gods Prehlad was saved from pain in blink of an eye as was pudreek rishi Evil minded Balmeek was saved reciting your name and gained the four qualities Ganka a prostitute was delivered which pilgramge did she need to visit ? i.e you As you have emancipated these people so deliver me too o lord

Guru Arjun Dev was very pleased to hear his ‘Swayia’ in Guru-Darbar. Satguru ji blessed him spiritually and with wealth. Congregation was also pleased to listen to their kirtan and they gave a lot of money. Then Satta jiand Balwand ji were given the title of Rai which means chief or king. As mentioned in Gurpur Parkash :

listening to them Guru ji was pleased and bestowed much money. The congregation listened and donated a lot of money. They emerged as leaders amongst many and in a short time became rich

So many years were spent in serving the Guru. Due to the melodious kirtan, money began to accumulate. This caused a feeling of pride in their mind that they were the best singers and congregation gathers here to listen to them only. They felt the reputation and prestige of Guru Ghar(house of guru or a temple) was due to their presence only. Such thoughts overpowered them and they forgot their previous days when they were saved from starvation. The false pride of money and people around them controlled their thinking. Balwand ji fixed a day for the marriage of his daughter. He thought about doing the Nikkah(marriage ceremony according to Muslim religion) with lot of pomp and show. So after finding a good match both(Satta ji, Balwand ji) requested Satguru Arjun Dev ji as : They went and said to the Satguru to marry their daughter by blessing money and wedding items. The daughters wedding will be big they said whoever sees or hears of it will give praise They asked guru ji that they had fixed the marriage of their daughter and wanted this occasion to be shown to the people with great glamour and pride. So they asked for more money for the wedding. Satguru ji heard this request and ordered,” Satta jiand Balwand ji! You can take as much wealth as you need.” Both of them were happy but influenced by greed they thought that guru ji may not give enough and so why not ask for the takings for one day. They replied,” Guru ji , please give us all the offerings on the day of Baisakhi.” Satguru ji smiled and said,” O.K. If your work can be accomplished with the offerings of Baisakhi, then you can take it.” They recited Kirtan happily and went home. They started to wait for Sangradh(First day of the month) of Baisakhi eagerly. Finally, the day of Baisakhi came. They came early that morning to Guru Darbar and started Kirtan. Just see the irony of fate, rain began to fall heavily on that day and the Congregation from far and near villages couldn’t come. So due to the small number of people, offerings were also insufficient.

After the Kirtan was over, Satgur ji gave them all the offerings to them, but it was not enough according to their expectations. They threw away the bag containing the offerings before Satguru ji and said,” You have cheated us.” Satguru ji gave 100 rupees(Indian currency)more and said,” Use this amount and take more if you need.” But because of their pride, they talked bad about Satguru ji and went home in an angry mood : With a foul mind they walked out. And they Spoke slanderous words about for the guru they vowed not to come near the guru’s house and never to sing Hymns again, The next morning, the congregation gathered at Guru Darbar, But Satta jiand Balwand ji did not come to sing Kirtan. After waiting for some time, Sat Guru Arjun Dev ji sent one man to bring Satta ji and Balwand ji from their home. The person, abiding by the Guru’s order, went to their house and gave them the message. Both of them were overpowered by their pride and they started maligning Guru Ji, insulting and slandering all the Guru’s too. The messenger Gursikh could not tolerate it. He came back and said,” Lord! Rababis have been overpowered by pride. They spoke insulting words. The embodiment of peace and patience, Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji Himself went to Satta jiand Balwand’s house to persuade them to come and sing kirtan for the congregation. The entire event is beautifully described by Bhai Vir Singh Ji in very touching way which is worth reading. It reads,’ Look there! Near the Dharam Saal of Bhai Salo ji, the Divine Light is standing in the door steps of Satta jiand Balwand ji. The corpses of both the people(Satta jiand Balwand ji) didn’t even get up to pay respect to the eternal truth. Their stubbornness and false pride didn’t allow them to at least be grateful and say,” Welcome !O eternal light. Great are you and greater are your deeds. You are superb who has this high degree of peace, patience and love.”

Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji lovingly said to them,” Why are you annoyed, O servants of divine words (Shabad)? Why didn’t you come to the Darbar today? Are you annoyed over some material things? What ever you have, try to serve your purpose with that. If you need more in the future, you will get more to meet your needs. This is a rotating cycle.” Both of them (Satta jiand Balwand ji) answered in a very angry voice,” We have received 100 rupees from your so called main treasure. We heard about your treasury every day but never saw it. It was empty. There were millions of rupees offered and it all disappeared. Nothing stayed. Where have you buried the treasure of Guru Nanak? Now we will work with someone else who will honor and admire our tunes and earn our livelihood in this way. As long as we stayed with you, we wasted our gift of music.” They further said,” You have lost your memory. For so many years, no body knew Guru Nanak. When Mardana recited Kirtan, only then Guru Nanak came into existence. Lehna(Guru Angad Dev ji) couldn’t become a guru, hadn’t our ancestors helped him. He would have remained a mere son of a Khatri without our support. It was all due to our ancestral rababi singers that Lehna(Guru Angad Dev ji) achieved the heights of a guru and sons of Guru Nanak(Sri Chand ji and Lakhmi Das ji) remained without the title of Guruship. The reputations of your father and forefathers were basically created and nurtured by our family Rababis. We have made you a Guru. Now we are unhappy. We will create a new Guru and sing his praises. We will ask the congregation to stop giving you offerings. Then you will come to know whether this Guruship was bestowed on you or did we contribute this Guruship title. Until now you have not recognized our efforts. Now you will come to know when we make somebody else a Guru.” Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji silently tolerated his own insult but he couldn’t take it any more when they started making insulting remarks and slandering Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sri Guru Angad Dev ji. Guru Arjun Dev ji left the place saying,” They have become too proud to the point of bursting” These words of Guru ji became a curse for the rababis. In Punjabi guru ji used the word ‘Fit jana‘ which has two meanings. One means to become so proud as to split open. In another sense it also means to blister open with leprosy.

Rai Balwand Ji and Satta Ji Continued.....

Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji came back to Harmander Sahib as usual in his cool temperament, stood on the terrace and the congregation gathered there. Everybody knew that Rababis had insulted Guru ji so they felt angry and annoyed . But Guru Ji told them very patiently,”dear congregation, let us sing the praise of God ourselves. He handed over the Rabab and Saranda to the Sikhs and allowed them to do the Kirtan. From that day onwards, the combination of rhythm and rhyme started in the form of divine Kirtan. Guru Arjun Dev ji blessed Sikhs with knowledge of music and started the institution of Raagis(religious singers at Gurdwaras). It is stated in Gurupur Parkash as :

From then knowledge of raag came into the sikhs Singing listening with affection and attention all were delivered The Singer caste (doom) repented and felt remorse for their greed Going house to house singing the Shabad they did not get any respect

When Guru ji uttered the words about Satta jiand Balwand ji that they have become too proud, their bodies started to decompose with leprosy. Every body avoided them. No body dared to recommend or tell the plight of the bards to Guru ji because guru ji declared already that who ever makes a recommendation for anything regarding these proud singers, would be dishonored in public by having their face blackened, a garland of shoes placed around the neck and taken on a donkey ride around town. At last both of them met with Bhai Ladha ji at Lahore in extreme pain and misery. They cried desperately before him and told him the entire episode and requested Bhai Ladha ji to propose their case and ask for forgiveness from Guru Arjun Dev ji. Bhai Ladha ji took pity on them. Bhai Ladha ji took on all the punishment upon himself by blackening his face, wearing a garland of shoes and riding a donkey in public as fixed by Satguru Arjun Dev ji. He arrived like this in Amritsar amidst a crowd jeering him along with Rababis Satta jiand Balwand ji. Bhai Santokh ji has beautifully written :

One accursed by the guru is forgiven at the behest of the sikh.

One accursed by the sikh has no other door to turn to.

They keep burning until they meet water that brings them to life and quitens their agony Injuries easily vanish this life is saved from falsehood life does not escape

Bhai Ladha ji reached Sri Amritsar Sahib. Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji was moved seeing Bhai Ladha ji in this condition and hearing his touching request to pardon Satta ji and Balwand ji rababis. Guru Arjun Dev ji ordered water to be brought and in front of the Sangat(congregation), washed the blackened face of Bhai Ladha ji. He then hugged him lovingly and Guru ji blessed Bhai Ladha ji as ‘Bhai Ladha Parupkari (benevolent)’ and thus forgave the rababis. Guru ji ordered them to praise the divine throne of Guru Nanak with the same tongue with which they had spoken all those insulting words and only then could they be forgiven This episode clearly proved to Satta jiand Balwand ji how much power and capacity they really possessed. Now, the art of music of which they were so proud of, had faded away and their mind was purified with the grace of Guru. Both of them wrote a vaar in praise of guru’s. The first five Pauris are written by Balwand ji and the last three are written by Satta jiji. This vaar is entered in Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji by Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji on page 966 giving the singers of Guru Ghar(house) equal place and status, thus making Satta ji and Balwand ji immortal and respectable for ever. This is open-mindedness of Guru Ghar(guru house). After Guru Arjun Dev ji, Satta ji and Balwand ji used to recite Kirtan daily and punctually in the Darbar of Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji. One day when they were reciting Aasa Di vaar in the presence of Sri Hargobind Singh ji and the congregation, both of them took their last breath together. Sri Guru Hargobind Singh ji performed the last rituals with his own hands and blessed them the boon of merging in the feet of Almighty. The first five pauris written by Balwand Ji portray the praise and greatness of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sri Guru Angad Dev ji. He writes that Guru Nanak Dev ji established the empire of modesty and kindness. The fort of truth was established for its safety and the foundation was laid by Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji exceptionally firmly. Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji in his own life time bestowed the throne of this modesty and kindness to Sri Guru Angad Dev ji and bowed before him. Before blessing the Guruship title, Guru Nanak Dev ji tested his sons and disciples very thoroughly. Only Bhai Lehna ji could pass this hard test of the complete Guru. He completely surrendered before the Guru. He ignored his own will absolutely. He always remained ready to abide by the orders of the Great Guru. Guru Angad Dev ji’s greatness spread everywhere after he was blessed with the title of Guruship by Guru Nanak Dev ji. As usual, the congregation gathered in large numbers with great inspiration and joy. It looked as if Guru Nanak Dev ji had just changed his body, the Light was the same. The way of life and tradition was the same. The same divine canopy was over the head of Guru Angad Dev ji. Who ever visited and got glimpses of Sri Guru Angad Dev ji got their consciences cleared of all the bad deeds of previous lives. Balwand ji has stated on page 966-967 as :

Nanak established the kingdom; He built the true fortress on the strongest foundations. He installed the royal canopy over Lehna's head; chanting the Lord's Praises, He drank in the Ambrosial Nectar. The Guru implanted the almighty sword of the Teachings to illuminate his soul. The Guru bowed down to His disciple, while Nanak was still alive. The King, while still alive, applied the ceremonial mark to his forehead. Nanak proclaimed Lehna's succession - he earned it. They shared the One Light and the same way; the King just changed His body. The immaculate canopy waves over Him, and He sits on the throne in the Guru's shop The Praises of the Master were sung, and the Divine Light descended from the heavens to the earth. Gazing upon You, O True King, the filth of countless past lives is washed away.

Balwand ji not only praised the Holy qualities of Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji he also described the great love for sangat(congregation) and extremely hard service in langar by Mata Khivi ji particularly in his vaar. At no other place in Bani of SatGuru ji, we get the details of the type of langar(community kitchen) that was served in that time period of Sat Guru ji. Balwand ji described the type of dishes served with extreme love and affection by Guru ji himself and his wife. Both of Balwand ji and Satta ji describe all these things in their var as followed on page 967 :

Balwand says that Khivi, the Guru's wife, is a noble woman, who gives soothing, leafy shade to all. She distributes the bounty of the Guru's Langar; the kheer - the rice pudding and ghee, is like sweet ambrosia

And on page 968 it states that :

Your kitchen always has ghee and flour to eat.

In Guru ka langar(community kitchen) food was made with melted butter, flour, sugar and rice cum milk pudding daily and distributed in the congregation. Some historians had written a false and imaginary story that in times of Guru Angad Dev ji, meat was used in the langar. This is a total lie. If meat was used in the langar then Satta ji and Balwand would have mentioned it. When meat was not cooked or used in the langar then the question of it being mentioned does not arise. Even today in all the langars at Gurdwaras(Sikh temple or house of Guru) in India or abroad, meat is neither prepared nor used in any form because it is not acceptable in the Langar of the Guru. In the sixth pauri of his Bani, Satta ji has written”Pota”(Grandson) as regards to Sri Guru Amar Das ji, so he portrayed him as a true form of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji. As stated on page 968 :

The same mark on the forehead, the same throne, and the same Royal Court. Just like the father and grandfather, the son is approved

In the seventh Pauri Bhai Satta ji has mentioned the Grandson of Sri Guru Ram Das ji as,” O Guru Ram Das ! You are great, You are great. All the Sikhs have bowed before you, considering you as a true form of Almighty. YOU yourself are the incarnation of Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sri Guru Angad Dev ji, and Sri Guru Amar Das ji. And now in your present form of Sri Guru Ram Das ji, you are giving your glimpses in fact as a true form of Almighty to the Congregation. Who ever is blessed with your glimpses, His wandering mind has come become still. As stated on page 968 :

Blessed, blessed is Guru Raam Daas; He who created You, has also exalted You. Perfect is Your miracle; the Creator Lord Himself has installed You on the throne. The Sikhs and all the Congregation recognize You as the Supreme Lord God, and bow down to You. You are Nanak, You are Angad, and You are Amar Daas; so do I recognize You. When I saw the Guru, then my mind was comforted and consoled.

In the eighth Pauri Bhai Satta ji has portrayed Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji as fifth form of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and is thus shown us the reality that the light of Guru Nanak Dev ji after being personified in the four Gurus has now embodied in the form of Guru Arjun Dev ji. This light now graces the throne of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and shows the better path to the humanity. As stated on page 968 :

The four Gurus enlightened the four ages; the Lord Himself assumed the fifth form. He created Himself, and He Himself is the supporting pillar Your miracles increase two-fold, even four-fold; this is the True Lord's true blessing. The four Gurus enlightened the four ages; the Lord Himself assumed the fifth form.

Satta ji and Balwand ji had awakened us in two ways. Firstly, they have portrayed the greatness of divine light awakening the curious learners to let them know that there is no difference between Guru and God. Secondly, they have shown the people a lesson to learn from the personal life experience of Satta ji and Balwand ji. The lesson is that greed and desire for money covers the virtues of a man as pure water is covered by dust and pollen grains, so one must always be cautious to refrain from greed. As mentioned on page 967 :

Greed ruins mankind, like the green algae in the water. Also Satguru Nanak Patshah orders about greed on page 419 as :So renounce greed - you are blind! Greed only brings pain. When the True Lord dwells within the mind, the poisonous ego is conquered.

Balwand ji no doubt has portrayed the evil state of mind polluted by greed in Gurbani, but Satta ji has also blessed us with the teachings of living according to Guru’s Will and Grace. As reads on page 968 :

Those blessings granted by the Pleasure of the True Guru - please bless Satta with those gifts.





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				Rai Balwand Ji and Satta Ji According to the writings of Baba Prem Singh Santrain Ji, Balwand ji was the son of Rajada and Satta ji was his cousin(mother’s sister’s son) . Both of them recited Kirtan in the congregation of Sat Guru Arjun Dev ji. As stated in Gurupur Parkash written by Baba Prem singh : Balwand is the son of rajaada He sings good hymns in the guru’s feet Satta is the son of their aunt Who is poor and full of sorrow and pain He has tried to obtain wealth but to no avail After wandering and roaming he has returned to the guru’s door There was once a shortage of money in the house. So in order to earn some money, Balwand ji stopped his Kirtan and went to earn a living in a foreign country. He tried several different methods to earn money but he was unsuccessful. At last in deep despair, he came back to Satguru Arjun Dev ji’s shelter. Suffering from poverty and misery, he stood before Guru Arjun Dev ji with folded hands, sang praises of the Almighty and asked for help. He said,” I have come to your door and shelter, bestow your mercy Immense lofty Reputation have you, vanquisher of pain, sorrow and misery of the poor Saviour of dropadi and a morsel you lift aginst an elephant Destroyer of armies of demons giver of victory to gods Prehlad was saved from pain in blink of an eye as was pudreek rishi Evil minded Balmeek was saved reciting your name and gained the four qualities Ganka a prostitute was delivered which pilgramge did she need to visit ? i.e you As you have emancipated these people so deliver me too o lord Guru Arjun Dev was very pleased to hear his ‘Swayia’ in Guru-Darbar. Satguru ji blessed him spiritually and with wealth. Congregation was also pleased to listen to their kirtan and they gave a lot of money. Then Satta jiand Balwand ji were given the title of Rai which means chief or king. As mentioned in Gurpur Parkash : listening to them Guru ji was pleased and bestowed much money. The congregation listened and donated a lot of money. They emerged as leaders amongst many and in a short time became rich So many years were spent in serving the Guru. Due to the melodious kirtan, money began to accumulate. This caused a feeling of pride in their mind that they were the best singers and congregation gathers here to listen to them only. They felt the reputation and prestige of Guru Ghar(house of guru or a temple) was due to their presence only. Such thoughts overpowered them and they forgot their previous days when they were saved from starvation. The false pride of money and people around them controlled their thinking. Balwand ji fixed a day for the marriage of his daughter. He thought about doing the Nikkah(marriage ceremony according to Muslim religion) with lot of pomp and show. So after finding a good match both(Satta ji, Balwand ji) requested Satguru Arjun Dev ji as : They went and said to the Satguru to marry their daughter by blessing money and wedding items. The daughters wedding will be big they said whoever sees or hears of it will give praise They asked guru ji that they had fixed the marriage of their daughter and wanted this occasion to be shown to the people with great glamour and pride. So they asked for more money for the wedding. Satguru ji heard this request and ordered,” Satta jiand Balwand ji! You can take as much wealth as you need.” Both of them were happy but influenced by greed they thought that guru ji may not give enough and so why not ask for the takings for one day. They replied,” Guru ji , please give us all the offerings on the day of Baisakhi.” Satguru ji smiled and said,” O.K. If your work can be accomplished with the offerings of Baisakhi, then you can take it.” They recited Kirtan happily and went home. They started to wait for Sangradh(First day of the month) of Baisakhi eagerly. Finally, the day of Baisakhi came. They came early that morning to Guru Darbar and started Kirtan. Just see the irony of fate, rain began to fall heavily on that day and the Congregation from far and near villages couldn’t come. So due to the small number of people, offerings were also insufficient. After the Kirtan was over, Satgur ji gave them all the offerings to them, but it was not enough according to their expectations. They threw away the bag containing the offerings before Satguru ji and said,” You have cheated us.” Satguru ji gave 100 rupees(Indian currency)more and said,” Use this amount and take more if you need.” But because of their pride, they talked bad about Satguru ji and went home in an angry mood : With a foul mind they walked out. And they Spoke slanderous words about for the guru they vowed not to come near the guru’s house and never to sing Hymns again, The next morning, the congregation gathered at Guru Darbar, But Satta jiand Balwand ji did not come to sing Kirtan. After waiting for some time, Sat Guru Arjun Dev ji sent one man to bring Satta ji and Balwand ji from their home. The person, abiding by the Guru’s order, went to their house and gave them the message. Both of them were overpowered by their pride and they started maligning Guru Ji, insulting and slandering all the Guru’s too. The messenger Gursikh could not tolerate it. He came back and said,” Lord! Rababis have been overpowered by pride. They spoke insulting words. The embodiment of peace and patience, Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji Himself went to Satta jiand Balwand’s house to persuade them to come and sing kirtan for the congregation. The entire event is beautifully described by Bhai Vir Singh Ji in very touching way which is worth reading. It reads,’ Look there! Near the Dharam Saal of Bhai Salo ji, the Divine Light is standing in the door steps of Satta jiand Balwand ji. The corpses of both the people(Satta jiand Balwand ji) didn’t even get up to pay respect to the eternal truth. Their stubbornness and false pride didn’t allow them to at least be grateful and say,” Welcome !O eternal light. Great are you and greater are your deeds. You are superb who has this high degree of peace, patience and love.” Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji lovingly said to them,” Why are you annoyed, O servants of divine words (Shabad)? Why didn’t you come to the Darbar today? Are you annoyed over some material things? What ever you have, try to serve your purpose with that. If you need more in the future, you will get more to meet your needs. This is a rotating cycle.” Both of them (Satta jiand Balwand ji) answered in a very angry voice,” We have received 100 rupees from your so called main treasure. We heard about your treasury every day but never saw it. It was empty. There were millions of rupees offered and it all disappeared. Nothing stayed. Where have you buried the treasure of Guru Nanak? Now we will work with someone else who will honor and admire our tunes and earn our livelihood in this way. As long as we stayed with you, we wasted our gift of music.” They further said,” You have lost your memory. For so many years, no body knew Guru Nanak. When Mardana recited Kirtan, only then Guru Nanak came into existence. Lehna(Guru Angad Dev ji) couldn’t become a guru, hadn’t our ancestors helped him. He would have remained a mere son of a Khatri without our support. It was all due to our ancestral rababi singers that Lehna(Guru Angad Dev ji) achieved the heights of a guru and sons of Guru Nanak(Sri Chand ji and Lakhmi Das ji) remained without the title of Guruship. The reputations of your father and forefathers were basically created and nurtured by our family Rababis. We have made you a Guru. Now we are unhappy. We will create a new Guru and sing his praises. We will ask the congregation to stop giving you offerings. Then you will come to know whether this Guruship was bestowed on you or did we contribute this Guruship title. Until now you have not recognized our efforts. Now you will come to know when we make somebody else a Guru.” Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji silently tolerated his own insult but he couldn’t take it any more when they started making insulting remarks and slandering Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sri Guru Angad Dev ji. Guru Arjun Dev ji left the place saying,” They have become too proud to the point of bursting” These words of Guru ji became a curse for the rababis. In Punjabi guru ji used the word ‘Fit jana‘ which has two meanings. One means to become so proud as to split open. In another sense it also means to blister open with leprosy. Rai Balwand Ji and Satta Ji Continued..... Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji came back to Harmander Sahib as usual in his cool temperament, stood on the terrace and the congregation gathered there. Everybody knew that Rababis had insulted Guru ji so they felt angry and annoyed . But Guru Ji told them very patiently,”dear congregation, let us sing the praise of God ourselves. He handed over the Rabab and Saranda to the Sikhs and allowed them to do the Kirtan. From that day onwards, the combination of rhythm and rhyme started in the form of divine Kirtan. Guru Arjun Dev ji blessed Sikhs with knowledge of music and started the institution of Raagis(religious singers at Gurdwaras). It is stated in Gurupur Parkash as : From then knowledge of raag came into the sikhs Singing listening with affection and attention all were delivered The Singer caste (doom) repented and felt remorse for their greed Going house to house singing the Shabad they did not get any respect When Guru ji uttered the words about Satta jiand Balwand ji that they have become too proud, their bodies started to decompose with leprosy. Every body avoided them. No body dared to recommend or tell the plight of the bards to Guru ji because guru ji declared already that who ever makes a recommendation for anything regarding these proud singers, would be dishonored in public by having their face blackened, a garland of shoes placed around the neck and taken on a donkey ride around town. At last both of them met with Bhai Ladha ji at Lahore in extreme pain and misery. They cried desperately before him and told him the entire episode and requested Bhai Ladha ji to propose their case and ask for forgiveness from Guru Arjun Dev ji. Bhai Ladha ji took pity on them. Bhai Ladha ji took on all the punishment upon himself by blackening his face, wearing a garland of shoes and riding a donkey in public as fixed by Satguru Arjun Dev ji. He arrived like this in Amritsar amidst a crowd jeering him along with Rababis Satta jiand Balwand ji. Bhai Santokh ji has beautifully written : One accursed by the guru is forgiven at the behest of the sikh. One accursed by the sikh has no other door to turn to. They keep burning until they meet water that brings them to life and quitens their agony Injuries easily vanish this life is saved from falsehood life does not escape Bhai Ladha ji reached Sri Amritsar Sahib. Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji was moved seeing Bhai Ladha ji in this condition and hearing his touching request to pardon Satta ji and Balwand ji rababis. Guru Arjun Dev ji ordered water to be brought and in front of the Sangat(congregation), washed the blackened face of Bhai Ladha ji. He then hugged him lovingly and Guru ji blessed Bhai Ladha ji as ‘Bhai Ladha Parupkari (benevolent)’ and thus forgave the rababis. Guru ji ordered them to praise the divine throne of Guru Nanak with the same tongue with which they had spoken all those insulting words and only then could they be forgiven This episode clearly proved to Satta jiand Balwand ji how much power and capacity they really possessed. Now, the art of music of which they were so proud of, had faded away and their mind was purified with the grace of Guru. Both of them wrote a vaar in praise of guru’s. The first five Pauris are written by Balwand ji and the last three are written by Satta jiji. This vaar is entered in Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji by Sri Guru Arjun Dev ji on page 966 giving the singers of Guru Ghar(house) equal place and status, thus making Satta ji and Balwand ji immortal and respectable for ever. This is open-mindedness of Guru Ghar(guru house). After Guru Arjun Dev ji, Satta ji and Balwand ji used to recite Kirtan daily and punctually in the Darbar of Guru Hargobind Sahib Ji. One day when they were reciting Aasa Di vaar in the presence of Sri Hargobind Singh ji and the congregation, both of them took their last breath together. Sri Guru Hargobind Singh ji performed the last rituals with his own hands and blessed them the boon of merging in the feet of Almighty. The first five pauris written by Balwand Ji portray the praise and greatness of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sri Guru Angad Dev ji. He writes that Guru Nanak Dev ji established the empire of modesty and kindness. The fort of truth was established for its safety and the foundation was laid by Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji exceptionally firmly. Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji in his own life time bestowed the throne of this modesty and kindness to Sri Guru Angad Dev ji and bowed before him. Before blessing the Guruship title, Guru Nanak Dev ji tested his sons and disciples very thoroughly. Only Bhai Lehna ji could pass this hard test of the complete Guru. He completely surrendered before the Guru. He ignored his own will absolutely. He always remained ready to abide by the orders of the Great Guru. Guru Angad Dev ji’s greatness spread everywhere after he was blessed with the title of Guruship by Guru Nanak Dev ji. As usual, the congregation gathered in large numbers with great inspiration and joy. It looked as if Guru Nanak Dev ji had just changed his body, the Light was the same. The way of life and tradition was the same. The same divine canopy was over the head of Guru Angad Dev ji. Who ever visited and got glimpses of Sri Guru Angad Dev ji got their consciences cleared of all the bad deeds of previous lives. Balwand ji has stated on page 966-967 as : Nanak established the kingdom; He built the true fortress on the strongest foundations. He installed the royal canopy over Lehna's head; chanting the Lord's Praises, He drank in the Ambrosial Nectar. The Guru implanted the almighty sword of the Teachings to illuminate his soul. The Guru bowed down to His disciple, while Nanak was still alive. The King, while still alive, applied the ceremonial mark to his forehead. Nanak proclaimed Lehna's succession - he earned it. They shared the One Light and the same way; the King just changed His body. The immaculate canopy waves over Him, and He sits on the throne in the Guru's shop The Praises of the Master were sung, and the Divine Light descended from the heavens to the earth. Gazing upon You, O True King, the filth of countless past lives is washed away. Balwand ji not only praised the Holy qualities of Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji he also described the great love for sangat(congregation) and extremely hard service in langar by Mata Khivi ji particularly in his vaar. At no other place in Bani of SatGuru ji, we get the details of the type of langar(community kitchen) that was served in that time period of Sat Guru ji. Balwand ji described the type of dishes served with extreme love and affection by Guru ji himself and his wife. Both of Balwand ji and Satta ji describe all these things in their var as followed on page 967 : Balwand says that Khivi, the Guru's wife, is a noble woman, who gives soothing, leafy shade to all. She distributes the bounty of the Guru's Langar; the kheer - the rice pudding and ghee, is like sweet ambrosia And on page 968 it states that : Your kitchen always has ghee and flour to eat. In Guru ka langar(community kitchen) food was made with melted butter, flour, sugar and rice cum milk pudding daily and distributed in the congregation. Some historians had written a false and imaginary story that in times of Guru Angad Dev ji, meat was used in the langar. This is a total lie. If meat was used in the langar then Satta ji and Balwand would have mentioned it. When meat was not cooked or used in the langar then the question of it being mentioned does not arise. Even today in all the langars at Gurdwaras(Sikh temple or house of Guru) in India or abroad, meat is neither prepared nor used in any form because it is not acceptable in the Langar of the Guru. In the sixth pauri of his Bani, Satta ji has written”Pota”(Grandson) as regards to Sri Guru Amar Das ji, so he portrayed him as a true form of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji. As stated on page 968 : The same mark on the forehead, the same throne, and the same Royal Court. Just like the father and grandfather, the son is approved In the seventh Pauri Bhai Satta ji has mentioned the Grandson of Sri Guru Ram Das ji as,” O Guru Ram Das ! You are great, You are great. All the Sikhs have bowed before you, considering you as a true form of Almighty. YOU yourself are the incarnation of Guru Nanak Dev ji and Sri Guru Angad Dev ji, and Sri Guru Amar Das ji. And now in your present form of Sri Guru Ram Das ji, you are giving your glimpses in fact as a true form of Almighty to the Congregation. Who ever is blessed with your glimpses, His wandering mind has come become still. As stated on page 968 : Blessed, blessed is Guru Raam Daas; He who created You, has also exalted You. Perfect is Your miracle; the Creator Lord Himself has installed You on the throne. The Sikhs and all the Congregation recognize You as the Supreme Lord God, and bow down to You. You are Nanak, You are Angad, and You are Amar Daas; so do I recognize You. When I saw the Guru, then my mind was comforted and consoled. In the eighth Pauri Bhai Satta ji has portrayed Sri Guru Arjun Dev Ji as fifth form of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and is thus shown us the reality that the light of Guru Nanak Dev ji after being personified in the four Gurus has now embodied in the form of Guru Arjun Dev ji. This light now graces the throne of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji and shows the better path to the humanity. As stated on page 968 : The four Gurus enlightened the four ages; the Lord Himself assumed the fifth form. He created Himself, and He Himself is the supporting pillar Your miracles increase two-fold, even four-fold; this is the True Lord's true blessing. The four Gurus enlightened the four ages; the Lord Himself assumed the fifth form. Satta ji and Balwand ji had awakened us in two ways. Firstly, they have portrayed the greatness of divine light awakening the curious learners to let them know that there is no difference between Guru and God. Secondly, they have shown the people a lesson to learn from the personal life experience of Satta ji and Balwand ji. The lesson is that greed and desire for money covers the virtues of a man as pure water is covered by dust and pollen grains, so one must always be cautious to refrain from greed. As mentioned on page 967 : Greed ruins mankind, like the green algae in the water. Also Satguru Nanak Patshah orders about greed on page 419 as :So renounce greed - you are blind! Greed only brings pain. When the True Lord dwells within the mind, the poisonous ego is conquered. Balwand ji no doubt has portrayed the evil state of mind polluted by greed in Gurbani, but Satta ji has also blessed us with the teachings of living according to Guru’s Will and Grace. As reads on page 968 : Those blessings granted by the Pleasure of the True Guru - please bless Satta with those gifts.

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