At Jama Masjid in Old Delhi, photographing a man absorbed in Namaz (muslim prayer), my thoughts meandered to the complementary practice of “discipline” and “letting go”, as taught by Baba Sheikh Farid of Shakarganj.
Sheikh Farid (1175 – 1265) was a Sufi saint born at Kothiwal in Multan (Pakistan). He became a disciple of Khwaja Kutubdin Bakhtiar Kaki of Multan. Later in his life, he shifted to Pak Pattan (Shakarganj) in West Punjab (Pakistan). Baba Farid’s sayings are so full of love that 116 of his hymns were reflected in Adi Granth, spiritual scripture of Sikhs, by Guru Arjan Dev, the fifth Guru.
“Discipline” and “letting go”: In hymn 119 on page 1384 of Adi Granth, Baba Farid reflects on importance of discipline. Though essence of the hymn is for a spiritual seeker but I also read the message as importance of incorporating discipline in any aspect of life. Studies, career, passion, spirituality. The first step is always – discipline.
Were my feet become tired, I will walk on my head, if I can meet my Beloved. ||119||
Interestingly in the following hymn 120, he stresses on the importance of letting go. Once any aspect of life is mastered, there is no need for discipline to be maintained as the nectar has to be allowed to flow from within. Practically, I have seen the amount of effort it takes me to develop any aspect of my life but then reaching the zenith, I find the practice of letting go becomes the essence of my creativity. This too is the essence in spirituality.
What harm have your head and feet done to you? See your Beloved within yourself. ||120||
Comments(17)
Dhruv says:
February 9, 2014 at 12:12 AMDear Amardeep,
Beautiful, and great understanding. Shows how all religions preach the same words, but the technique of achieving the final goal has been misappropriated for gain. Another thing that one really must renounce. Beautiful buddy. I’ll teach you the original technique taught by the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, when we meet. Then the circle will be complete. Be Happy.
Sarva Mangalam,
Dhruv
Gill says:
February 9, 2014 at 5:07 AMVery nice interpretation!
Hemani says:
February 10, 2014 at 1:50 PMBeautiful interpretation Amardeep, and so appropriate for all aspects of life. I have been following up your Blog even more afer coming to India and find them so relevant and inspiring.
Karamjeet Singh says:
February 12, 2014 at 9:25 AMBaba Farid’s Hymns touches your heart-they are questions,acceptances and breaking away from the ritual-His ultimate objective is purification of soul through devotion.All seers follow a disciplined life but few revolt against rituals and fruitless pursuits they themselves indulged in.This is where ‘letting go’ occurs and they soar to higher realms of spirituality and leave set norms to follow.Good post!!!
Sonia Dhillon-Marty says:
February 19, 2014 at 1:06 PMGreat philosophy, so beautifully explained. You are making a great contribution in helping us all attain a better understanding of our heritage.
Baba ji says:
February 19, 2014 at 9:54 PMVery nice ji bohat accha laga touhady wichar jan k ji
Baba ji says:
February 19, 2014 at 9:56 PMGrate work you are doing
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Baba ji says:
February 19, 2014 at 9:58 PMhttps://www.facebook.com/savehistoricalplacesofpakistan?ref=hl
large details of Toms.Forts,Mandirs,Gurdwaras.Old places of pakistan
kawal nain singh says:
September 8, 2014 at 8:36 AMYou r doing great. Taking a simple every day actions and comparing with bani
Ratinder Aujla says:
September 8, 2014 at 9:41 AMAmazing!
Geetali says:
September 8, 2014 at 9:55 AMBeautiful image, accompanied by wonderful thoughts.
Ravinderpal Kaur says:
September 8, 2014 at 6:51 PMAs usual your photography is awesome.
Karamjeet Singh says:
September 8, 2014 at 7:42 PMIn essence discipline comes through fine tuning norms one practices everyday and Baba Farid has a word on letting them go if those are distractions to the true meaning of life.Nice post by Amardeep Singh.
Capt Suresh Sharma says:
September 8, 2014 at 10:06 PMBrilliant capture…
Surupa Chatterjee says:
September 11, 2014 at 5:20 PMBeautifully and deeply expressed and yes discipline and letting go applies to all aspects of life….
Muktinder Singh says:
September 13, 2014 at 9:00 PMActually to achieve stability in letting go one must pass through strict discipline first. Letting go without immersing deep into things can be disastrous too as it can lead to Laziness. Which has actually became a big cause of non progressiveness especially in religios people.
kishore kumar biswas says:
September 13, 2014 at 10:20 PMA saint saw light within him centuries ago , that became a inextinguishable flame . It still shows us the right path .
Everything in the creation carries a ‘ divine ‘ rule of discipline. This truth we know through science. Out mortal life is a ‘ part’ of the ‘ disciplined ‘ creation. If we want to be in harmony with that we must also be ” disciplined ” .The natural world does not show any effort to remain ” disciplined ” . Once discipline turns to be ‘ habit’ or ‘ nature’ then it flows with ease and naturally.
Amardeep here presented a picture of human soul offering prayer to the Divine that speaks of ‘ discipline ‘ and the devotee does the prayer with flowing ease as discipline became his second nature at that moment. Amardeep’s note and snap bring us an illuminating message from our heritage.