Sex,Scotch and Scholarship

by Khushwant Singh

  After she had gathered what she wanted, she came by a pond frozen with ice. It occurred to her that she had not had a bath for many days and her husband, though Jewish, might wish to celebrate the occasion in other ways. She took off her clothes, smashed the ice and jumped into the icy water. No sooner had she done so than she heard human voices approaching. She got out of the pool, gathered her clothes and ran naked into the woods towards her home.

  The human voices belonged to two farmers who happened to be out with their guns to see if they could get a wild hare or some other game for their Christmas dinner. They saw the figure of a young girl come out of the icy pool and disappear in the snows. They came back to the village and spread the story that they had seen the Virgin Mary. Soon the entire village was out to see the pond. All the signs of someone having bathed in it were there. Surely, if the Virgin had come there, the water must be blest.

  The middle-aged widow heard the story. She picked up her paralysed son in her arms and hurried to the pond. With full faith that a miracle would happen, she ducked her son in the chilly water. The shock did to the boy what medicines and therapy had failed to do. He was cured of his paralysis.

  The story of the miracle cure spread like wildfire. The trickle of pilgrims became a regular stream. The Jewish woodcutter and his wife made good business. They filled small phials with water from the pond and sold it at high prices for its medicinal properties. The site was examined by a representative of the Pope who confirmed that the Holy Virgin had indeed visited the place and many people had been cured of their ailments by drinking the water. A huge cathedral was built in the village and it soon became a place of pilgrimage. The one to benefit the most was the poor Jewish woodcutter who, through the sale of his land and millions of bottles full of ‘sacred’ water, became a millionaire.

  Zangwill’s story is, of course, apocryphal. But it does contain an element of truth in so far as people who have blind faith in miracles are known to have miraculous recoveries. I am not sure of the origin of Lourdes in France, but eveyone who goes there will see innumerable crutches abandoned by those who could not walk as evidence of their having been healed. Millions go to Lourdes for treatment. Perhaps a handful, already on the verge of being healed, get healed. But they perpetuate the legend that such miracles are possible.

  Belief in miracles exists in every religious system. The outstanding example is the Hindu’s belief in the purifying qualities of the waters of the Ganga and various ‘sacred’ tanks such as those at Kurukshetra and Pushkar near Ajmer. The ‘holy dip’ is a uniquely Hindu-Sikh phenomenon. Stellar constellations determine the more auspicious days like the Kumbhs when the ritual bath is said to be more beneficial. Some even wipe out all sins committed in the past.

  Guru Nanak proclaimed: ‘I have no miracle save the name of the Lord.’ Despite that, many miracles have become attached to his name and the places he visited. A freshwater spring, not far from Rawalpindi, has an overhanging rock with the imprint of a human palm dug into it. The faithful believe it is the palm of Guru Nanak as he stretched out his hand to stop a boulder loosened by an envious Muslim pir on him. The gurdwara that has come up on the site is known as Panja Sahib. There is an annual pilgrimage of Sikhs from all over the world to this gurdwara.

  There is another place in the hills where there is a tree growing reetha, which is normally very bitter. The fruit of this particular tree is very sweet because the Guru sat under its shade. It is no use telling devout Sikhs that there is in fact a botanical species of reetha which bears sweet fruit.

  As with the Hindus, so with the Sikhs, waters of temple tanks are endowed with sanctity. Bathing in ‘the pool of nectar’ from which Amritsar derives its name is de rigeur for all pilgrims. In addition, water from a sacred spot such as Har ki Pauri in Hardwar as well as behind the central shrine of the Golden Temple is drunk with reverence and collected in bottles to take home for relatives. The same reverence is accorded to the spring water of Gurdwara Bangla Sahib in New Delhi. Here the infant Guru Harikishen lived for a while before he succumbed to smallpox.

  It can hardly be maintained that belief in miracles is an integral part of religion. Many devoutly religious people scoff at them as spurious accretions to beguile the superstitious and the stupid. Indeed, a case could be made out to ban propagation of miracles for the harm they do to gullible people. Many years ago there was a film made called Nanak Naam Jahaz Hai (the name of Nanak is a ship, to take you across the waters of life). The theme was of a young man who lost his sight in an accident. When all medical treatment failed, he undertook a pilgrimage to the major gurdwaras. Ultimately, at the Har-mandir in Amritsar, a divine light came out of the temple and restored his vision. Millions of Sikhs and Hindus saw this film many times. The film producer made his millions. And spread a message of crass superstition. Miracles are the biggest money-spinners of institutionalized religion.

  Life of Guru Nanak

  On the night of the full moon in the month of Baisakh in Sam vat version - Mehervan’s Janam Sakhi - on the life of Guru Nanak, Tripta, the wife of Mehta Kalian Das Bedi of Talwandi Rae Bhoe, was in labour. Three-quarters of the night had passed. The morning star shone bright in the eastern sky; it was the hour of early dawn when she was delivered of her second child, a son.

  Nanak’s birth was thus on 15 April 1469. However, in order to continue an old tradition, the event is celebrated on the full-moon night in the month of November. As to the place of his birth, it is thought that the name Nanak was given to the child because he was born in the house of his maternal grandparents or nankey which was either in Kahna Kacha or Chalewal, two villages in the district of Lahore.

  Nanak was a precocious child, smiling and sitting up in early infancy. When he was only five years old, people noticed that he did not play with other boys but spoke words of wisdom well beyond his years. The people’s reactions were interesting. Whosoever heard him, Hindu or Muslim, was certain that God spoke through the little boy - and this belief grew stronger as Nanak grew older.

  At the age of seven Nanak was taken to a pandit to be taught. Nanak apparently turned the tables on his teacher and his discourse with his teacher is the subject of a beautiful hymn in Raga Sri. According to Nanak: The only real learning is the worship of God; the rest is of no avail, and wisdom devoid of the knowledge of the Creator is but the noose of ignorance about one’s neck. He that repeats the name of the Lord in this world, will reap his reward in the world to come.

  ‘Do you know how and why men come into this world and why they depart? Why some become rich and others poor? Why some hold court while others go begging door to door - and even of the beggars why some receive alms while others do not? Take it from me, O pandit, that those who have enjoyed power and ease in this life and not given praise to the Lord will surely be punished - just as the dhobi beats dirty clothes on slabs of stones, so will they be beaten; just as an oilman grinds oilseeds to extract oil will they be ground; just as the miller crushes grain between his millstones will they be crushed. On the other hand, those that are poor and those that have to beg for their living, who spend their lives in prayer will receive their honour and reward in the divine court of justice.

  ‘He that has fear of God is free from all fears. But monarch or commoner, he that fears not God will be reduced to dust and be reborn to suffer the pangs of hell. That which is gained by falsehood becomes unclean. The only truth is God. Our only love should be for God who is immortal; why love those that will perish - son, wife, power, wealth, youth - all are subject to decay and death’ (Mehervan: Jan am Sakhi).

  A year later Nanak was sent to the village mosque to learn Arabic and other subjects. Here, too, Nanak astounded his teacher: The mullah wrote down the Arabic alphabet from ‘alif’ to ‘yea Nanak at once mastered the writing and the pronunciation of the letters, and within a few days had learnt arithmetic, accounting and everything else the mullah could teach. The mullah marvelled: ‘Great God! Other children have been struggling for ten years and c
annot tell one letter from another, and this child has by Thy grace learnt all within a matter of days’ (Mehervan: Janam Sakhi).

  Nanak was a moody child and often refused to speak to anyone for days on end. He wandered about the woods absorbed in observing the phenomenon of nature: the advent of spring with its bees and butterflies; the searing heat of summer that burned up all vegetation followed by the monsoon which miraculously restored life and turned the countryside green; the ways of the birds and beasts of the jungle. All this mystery baffled young Nanak’s mind and he began to ponder over the character of the Creator, Preserver and Destroyer - and to question the efficacy of rituals, both Hindu and Muslim.

  When he was only nine Nanak demanded of the Brahmin priest who had come to invest him with the sacred thread, the janeu: ‘Do the Brahmins and Kshatriyas lose their faith if they lose their sacred thread? Is their faith maintained by their thread or by their deeds?’

  Nanak was the despair of his parents. He refused to do any kind of work. If he was sent to graze cattle, he let them stray into people’s fields; if he was given money to do trade, he would give it away to the poor and the hungry. He was saved from the wrath of his father by his mother and sister - and by the village folk who bore witness to the many miracles they had seen emanate from Nanak.

  At the age of sixteen Nanak was married to Sulakhni, daughter of Mul Chand Chona of Batala. They had two sons, Sri Chand and Lakhmi Das, and perhaps a daughter or daughters who died in infancy. Family life did not divert Nanak’s attention for too long. His moods would suddenly descend upon him, and he would remain silent for many days and then become argumentative on subjects such as God, man, death, rituals and moral values. And he remained as indifferent to making a living as he had been before he became a husband and father.

  One evening in July [Mehervan: Janam Sakhi], the skies over Talwandi were darkened by black monsoon clouds and it began to pour. At night the sky was rent with flashes of lightning and there was a fearful crash of thunder. Nanak began to sing hymns in praise of the Lord. His mother came to him and said, ‘Son, it is time you had some sleep.’ Just then the cuckoo called ‘peeoh, peeoh’, and Nanak replied, ‘Mother, when my rival is awake, how can I sleep?’

  It became evident to the people that it would not be long before Nanak took the hermit’s path in search of truth and once, when a group of holy men happened to pass through Talwandi on their way to a pilgrimage, Nanak’s mother expressed her apprehensions.

  ‘I know,’ she said, ‘that one of these days you too will be leaving me to go on a pilgrimage. I do not complain but would like to know what is gained by going to holy places.’

  ‘Nothing,’ replied Nanak categorically. ‘It is in our own body that we have to build our temples, free our minds from the snares of maya, renounce evil deeds and give praise to our Maker. This is as good as going to bathe in the sixty-eight holy places of pilgrimage.’

  ‘Then tell these holy men that they pursue the path of error,’ said Nanak’s mother. ‘Tell them that God can be found in their own houses.’

  ‘Let each one find his own path,’ replied Nanak. ‘Why should I worry my head about their methods?’

  The beauty of the woodland in spring cast its usual spell. But, for Nanak, the beauty was now tinged with anguish for he needed to know the truth of the reality that did not change with the seasons. A beautiful hymn in Raga Basant sums up the feeling:

  It was springtime. The trees were in new leaf; many wild shrubs were in flower. The woods around Talwandi were a beauteous sight. Young men of his village came to him and said, ‘Nanak, it is spring. Come with us and let us behold the wonders of nature.’

  ‘The month of Chaitra,’ said Nanak, ‘is the most beautiful of the twelve months of the year because all is green and every living thing seems to blossom into fullness. But my heart does not rejoice at the sight of the blossoming of nature until it is blessed with the name of the Lord. We must first subdue our ego, sing praises of the Lord and then our hearts too will be fragrant.’

  ‘We do not understand what you say,’ they protested. ‘We want to tell you that in the woods the trees are so green that we cannot find words to describe them; there are varieties of flowers whose beauty is beyond the speech of man; there are fruits whose lusciousness is beyond praise; and beneath them the shade is cool and fragrant. You should see these things with your own eyes.’

  ‘The Lord’s grace,’ says Nanak, ‘gave the trees their new foliage. His decrees covered them with blossoms of great beauty and filled their fruits with sweet nectarine. When they have their foliage the Lord makes their shade cool and fragrant. I have such foliage in my own heart with similar flowers, fruit and cool shade, and people seek shelter under it.’

  ‘The great God has given us eyes to see, ears to hear and a mouth to speak and eat the corn that grows. Why has He given us these things?’

  ‘He has given you eyes not merely to gape at the woods but to behold His creation and marvel at it; ears to hear godly counsel; the tongue to speak the truth. Thereafter, whatever you receive is your true wealth and sustenance.’

  The young men did not understand all that Nanak said. They tried once more to persuade him to come out with them. ‘Spring comes but once a year and nature dons its garb of green but once. Then comes the fall. Trees lose their foliage and the woods are barren of beauty. If you want to see nature at its best, see it in the month of Chaitra.’

  ‘Months and seasons ever come and go and come again’ replied Nanak. ‘Trees and bushes attain foliage in one season, lose it in another and once again become green when the season turns. The lesson for you is to see that those who do good acts reap the fruit of good action and those who do evil, wither and die; those who take the name of the Lord ever have spring in their hearts. The grape only receives its juice during the monsoon but the good man receives his reward at all times of the year and all times of the day and night. Human birth is the springtime of the cycle of birth, death and rebirth; it is the time for you to plant the seed of good action and reap its fruit in life thereafter; in this do not tarry.’

  As Nanak grew even more detached from the ties of living, he took no notice of his wife or children, of his goods or of the people about him. His life became one of prayer, almsgiving, ablution and the seeking after knowledge: naam, daan, isnaan and gyaan. Lust, anger and pride fell away as Nanak’s heart was filled with truth and blessed contentment. Nanak lived in this state ‘like one drunk’ for some years till his sister, Nanaki, now married, took the situation in hand. She persuaded her husband, Jai Ram, to invite her brother over to Sultanpur, where they lived, and get him employment with his master, Nawab Daulat Khan Lodhi.

  Nanak went to Sultanpur accompanied by a family servant, a Muslim named Mardana, who was to become his closest companion. Mardana, the Janam Sakhi tells us, came from the brewer caste, and was a gifted musician. Mardana played the rabab and also sang hymns.

  Nawab Daulat Khan Lodhi was impressed with the integrity of his new storekeeper and accountant. Nanak would not accept bribes from agents and refused to follow the corrupt practices of his predecessors. The people in Sultanpur could not stop praising Nanak.

  In Sultanpur, Nanak organized his daily life in an ideal manner. Every evening he and Mardana would sing hymns before retiring to bed. Nanak would wake up while it was still dark, and, after a dip in the river close by, sing hymns with the coterie of his followers. After this, at the appointed hour, Nanak would go to the court of the Nawab and apply himself to his work.

  Though he won the approbation of his employer and those he dealt with, Nanak was unhappy.

  ‘This has been suddenly put around my neck like a noose’ he said. He began to say to himself that if he had to serve anyone, wouldn’t it be wiser to serve his own Master who is within him instead of the person without? It is all very well to seek knowledge and wisdom but one cannot escape the noose of maya without sowing seeds of good actions. One cannot earn wages without service and it is the love of
the wage which stands in the way of renunciation. Why not then serve the great Master who is the Lord of all? Nanak postponed his decision with the thought: ‘I, Nanak, am no better than others; others are no worse than I; what the Lord wills, Nanak will honour and obey’ (Mehervan: Janam Sakhi).

  It was, however, clear that the time of decision was at hand.

  Nanak’s days were spent in noting down receipts and expenses. At the end of the day he added up the totals to make sure they tallied with the accounts. He often had to work late into the night adding up his figures under the light of the lamp. One night he got angry with himself and threw away his pen and account books. He asked himself, ‘Why have I got involved in these affairs and forgotten my Maker? Am I destined to spend my days and nights writing accounts? It is a vast net in which I find myself caught; if I let the days go by, the noose will close tighter around me. If I have to burn the midnight oil, it should be for something worthwhile.’

  Nanak pondered over these things late into the night and, instead of returning home, went to the stream to bathe. He prayed, ‘Lord send me a guru, a guide who will show me the path that leads to Thy mansion.’

  That very night God revealed Himself to Nanak. Nanak prayed fervently and begged the Lord to forgive him and remove him from the world which had so ensnared him. The Lord asked Nanak, ‘Why are you so agitated? You have done no wrong.’

  ‘I have let my mind turn from Thee,’ replied Nanak, ‘to the petty trifles of the world.’

  ‘Your errors have I forgiven. The maya that you complain of is also a part of Me. What you see is but its shadow.’

  ‘Lord destroy in me the longing for worldly gain.’

  ‘Nanak you shall no more crave for worldly gain. I am pleased with you. On you be My blessing’ (Mehervan: Janam Sakhi).