About Babaji

Birth:

Baba Darshan Singh Ji Khalsa was born to Subedar Surjit Singh and Sardarni Rajinder Kaur at a historical town Gharuan, District Ropar in Punjab on 15th May 1964. He had all the qualities of a saintly person since his birth. Unlike other children, Baba Ji possessed a serious nature and displayed values of kindness, simplicity, patience, and perseverance in his behaviour. It is often said that coming events cast their shadow before. Baba Ji manifested all the qualities of a blessed soul from his very childhood. Worldly people are unable to recognize the unique qualities of such a spiritual being and only the devoted people can understand their greatness. Baba Ji talked less and did not behave like a common child who is often restive and unable to concentrate on serious things. Baba Ji was quite intelligent and good at studies, but he preferred to remain in seclusion. He preferred simple food and simple clothes and did not quarrel with others like most of the children of his age. He loved to go to Gurudwara and perform service there. He liked to sit in the company of holy men and listen to them with rapt attention.

Meditation and Service during Childhood

There is a religious place associated with Shri Guru Teg Babadur Sahib outside the town Gharuan. At that time, it was a secluded place which was visited by few people. The land of the family also fell on that side. Baba Ji selected this place for meditation and service. He always liked to sit at such lonely places where he meditated for hours together. At some places, he dug pits surrounded by shrubs and sat there in meditation late till midnight. Sometimes he would go near a water tank with two companions and prayed there till dawn. Thereafter they would go to the Gurudwara and perform service of Sri Guru Granth Sahib till morning. Sometimes he would find time from various activities of agriculture and sit quietly at a lonely place to meditate or read hymns of Sukhmani Sahib. Baba Ji’s longing for meditation became deeper day by day and he manifested an intense desire for a union with the Lord. This feeling of divine love since his sprevious births took the shape of a unique detachment.

Feeling of intense Detachment

Baba Ji was already detached from the world and he soon made union with the Lord as his life mission. He lost interest in institutional education and worldly affairs. He no longer felt interested in meeting relatives or friends and spent most of his time in meditation. After coming home, he would confine himself to his room and read Holy Scriptures. His passion for meditation and service took the shape of intense detachment. He was always looking for secluded places where he could meet holy men and spent his time on meditation and service. He learnt a good deal of Gurbani or hymns by the Gurus by heart. While he was in his 5th class, he could recite hymns of Rehraas, Kirtan Sohila, Sukhmani Sahib, and many other prayers. He read a large number of books of historical and religious interest. He got baptized by taking Amrit from five beloved ones in the Gurudwara in Sector 39 at Chandigarh. He never forgot instructions given to him by the five beloved ones and he practised them strictly in his life. He even gave up taking tea. He would take his bath almost at midnight and sit on a single sheet in his room, fully involved in meditation and recitation of holy hymns.

Love for Sri Guru Granth Sahib

Baba Ji would take many other children with him in the evening and they would sit before Sri Guru Granth Sahib and spend long hours in religious service with great devotion. He made several groups of 30 children each for religious service. Each group loved Baba Ji passionately and obeyed his commands. Sometimes young boys would also join these groups for religious service. Thus, Baba Ji organized volunteers who were always ready for religious service and sacrifice. It was due to his spiritual nature that he began to acquire the status of a holy man in his childhood. Even the children of his age began to realize that he would become a great saint in future. Interestingly, children would never disobey him, though they sometimes did not follow the commands of their own parents. There was a magnetic attraction in his personality and a divine impact in his instructions. They would surround him as moths would surround flowers. Baba Ji would make these children recite appropriate couplets from Gurbani and practically demonstrate the importance of meditation. He would tell them about the miraculous deeds of the Gurus and instill in them the reverence for Sri Guru Granth Sahib and the Sikh traditions. Soon Baba Ji gave up the town and detached himself from the worldly activities, whereas most other persons of his age involved themselves in domestic affairs. Baba Ji rose above Maya – the illusion of worldly reality and identified himself in noble deeds which involved meeting with saints and spending long hours in meditation. Having the company of religious people is Satsang or holy congregation which should not be given up in any case. It is a source of divine peace during suffering or prosperity in life and it keeps a man devoted to the Lord forever.

Faith in Sri Guru Granth Sahib

Baba Ji had an abiding faith in Sri Guru Granth Sahib which is the manifestation of the Guru himself. He would never go anywhere without seeking the Hukumnama or the divine edict from Sri Guru Granth Sahib. If he could not do so on any day, he would imagine the presence of Sri Guru Granth Sahib in his mind and seek the divine edict in his thoughts. He always felt presence of Sri Guru Granth Sahib in him. He would always serve Sri Guru Granth Sahib like a keen devotee. During summer, he would serve the Guru with a hand fan. He would move the Chaur over Sri Guru Granth Sahib for hours together and make his volunteers share the service with him. The volunteers would bring flowers for the Guru and they would meditate before him in deep silence for many hours. Baba Ji had a great love for the five symbols of Khalsa, i.e. Kakars. All his volunteers also carried these out five symbols with them all the time.

Impact of his Noble Life

Baba Ji would not talk much with the worldly people and would interact intimately only with his holy volunteers. No wonder, only these volunteers would know him closely, which the people at large developed a great respect for his divine personality. People became his devotees and families began to follow him reverently. Many people approached him for the fulfilment of their worldly desires. Baba Ji would always tell them to pray to the Lord and recite Gurbani in order to achieve peace and prosperity. Sometimes he would also perform prayer for others or ask five beloved ones to pray for them. The devotees would often request him to pay holy visit to their houses and partake food with them. Baba Ji would oblige them quite often and advise them to be devout men and women of the Sikh Panth. All this happened in the town Gharuan, where a number of families got baptized with Amrit under his guidance. Many women and men became true Sikhs and began to recite Gurbani regularly giving up their bad habits.

Meditation in the form of Service

Baba Ji, had many unusual experiences during meditation and service. The religious service would sometimes make him become oblivious of himself and he would be lost in divine ecstasy during that time. Baba Ji wants that people should involve themselves in religious service and should consider this service as meditation and not as work. At the same time, they should recite Gurbani simultaneously within. As in case of medicine, certain precautions are required for health, during religious service, holy recitation with devotion is essential. The Gurbani says: “Be selfless during service, thus thou meets the Lord.” This divine statement enables us to sit in the service of the Lord and even makes the union with Him possible, because human heart becomes pure during service and comes to possess divine knowledge.

Baba Ji was involved in religious service for many years. He occasionally says that he wants to serve the people and the suffering human beings, but people do not let him involve in such service now and want him to propagate divine principles of the Guru all the time. Baba Ji often says that service involves divine intoxication. If one involves oneself in service with love and selflessness, he attains His bliss. Baba Ji says that miracles of service cannot be described in writing and can be realized only while doing service. If we perform selfless service, we attain a unique peace of mind. One has to lose oneself while performing service. If we serve the Guru with love and devotion, we earn goodwill of the Guru. There are many steps in religious service which can be completed only with dedication and devotion. For performing service, one has to lose one’s own self. Baba Ji gives six qualities of a true Sewak or the person involved in the service:

1. Deep faith
2. Complete dedication
3. Extreme selflessness, irrespective of profit or loss, respect or disrespect, pain or pleasure, heat or cold
4. Total lack of desire
5. Readiness for sacrifice, even of one’s head and
6. Lack of concern for worldly opinion.

Baba Ji has lived a life according to Khalsa tenets and keeps on advising people on the basis of his own experiments with this way of life. He once pointed out that he never spoke anything, which he had not experienced. The Gurbani says: “First Enlighten your mind, then explain to others” or “One who advises others and practises not, he takes birth and dies in futility.” The preachers, the saints and the scholars should learn from these sayings. They should first experience and then start advising others. In fact, the Guru himself assigns this duty to them when they are ready to do so. Whatever Baba Ji said during his holy discourses, he had experienced all that during his own life. He strictly followed the principles outlined by the Guru. He spent long years in religious service and spent time in meditation and holy recitation before he began to guide others. In fact, he had a divine heritage even of previous births, which enabled him to attain spiritual status. He often says that religious meditation of previous births helps a man in understanding the divine mystery. It falls to the share only of the fortunate few, while unfortunate people do not develop the desire of such realization. He is of the opinion that inner condition of holy men cannot be written in words or described in language. The people living in Kalyug or the machine age can learn a lot from sacred life of such holy men who show them the way to tread the path of life. The Gurbani says, “Even the Vedas cannot give the description of the saints”. We describe only what we hear. In fact, divine souls come to this world according to the Will of Lord. Such people try to live in seclusion, but they are discovered later or sooner. Bhai Vir Singh also expresses a desire to live and leave unnoticed. Such people leave their footprints on the sands of time and worldly people can avail themselves of their message through their preaching. Who are the perfect ones, who have a communion with the Lord? What have they come to the world for? What do they do on the earth? What have they to do? How have they to function? Nobody has the answers to these questions. Only they know all about these questions; we can know only the fraction of them. Such great men are in fact embodiments of the Lord. They live on the earth like human beings and perform duties assigned to them by the Lord. Only the fortunate ones can avail themselves of their divine messages while the unfortunate ones engage themselves in useless criticism, thus leading them to hell. We should, therefore, try to take real advantage of such men of God. They are always detached and care not for the foe or the friend, pain or pleasure, respect or disrespect. They keep on performing their duties irrespective of the worldly conditions. They are not jealous of anyone. They are like divine mirrors in which one can see ones own face in true dimensions. Such holy men spend many years of their life in religious service and divine meditation and teach the path shown by the Gurus to one and all.

Renunciation of Home Life

As ordained by the Providence, Baba Ji renounced his home to pursue the path of meditation and service. The members of the family became greatly worried about him and looked for him all around. They were able to bring him back to home once, but Baba Ji decided to renounce home life and left again. This happened many times but Baba Ji was adamant upon meditation and renouncing the comforts of home life. When his parents asked him to remain at home, he would tell them that he was obeying only the Will of the Lord. He told them that he was not meant for worldly life and was required to dedicate his life in the service of the Lord and the mankind. Great men are always different from common people. They have to enlighten the path of human beings. The Guru always wanted his committed devotees to work for religious enlightenment of the people and remove the shortcomings of common people so that they can live as good human beings. Thus, Baba Ji’s renunciation of home life was meant for making society truly religious and free from error.

Service of Sri Guru Granth Sahib

After the renunciation of home life, Baba Ji took upon himself the service of Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the manifest Guru of the Sikh Panth. Wherever he would go, he would tell the organizers to serve Sri Guru Granth Sahib according to the accepted conventions. He would tell them convincingly how to serve and respect the holy Granth. When he found that there was no suitable seat of rest for the holy Granth, he would tell the organizers to prepare a suitable seat where the holy Granth could be laid to rest. Wherever he went he would initiate proper service of Sri Guru Granth Sahib and propagate the Panth automatically. His love and respect for Sri Guru Granth Sahib became a model for others to follow. It was reflected in his words and deeds and people would follow the instructions given by him for the service of Sri Guru Granth Sahib.

Constant Recitation of Gurbani and Daily Prayers

Baba Ji always told his devotees that they should recite Gurbani and say daily prayers regularly. He would perform 100-125 recitations of Japuji Sahib. He would recite Sukhmani Sahib five times daily. Sometimes he would recite Sukhmani Sahib all along during the day and night. Sometimes, he would go to sleep while reciting Sukhmani Sahib and complete the recitation when he would wake up. He would recite Gurbani even in his dreams. While reciting Gurbani, he would be in a trance of spiritual feeling. He would perform recitation of Japuji Sahib, Chopai Sahib and Sukhmani Sahib many times. In many cases, even the baptised Sikhs do not recite the five banies regularly. We can understand the importance of recitation of Gurbani only from the great men like Baba Ji. It involves a great effort and spiritual temperament. By reciting Gurbani, such great men achieve union with the Lord and attain spiritual peace, love for mankind, detachment from home life and the pious living style. Besides daily prayers and Gurbani recitation, Baba Ji made convenient readings of Sri Guru Grant Sahib many times. We do become Sikhs but we do not develop the requisite love for Guru. We neither read Gurbani nor say our daily prayers. We seem to recite Gurbani under some compulsion while it is in deed a process of mystic love. We read Gurbani but do not practise it. We do not try to analyze or understand Gurbani. We do not realize that Bani is our Guru and we have to obey the Guru in our life. We have to practise Gurbani by leading a truthful life. Even after taking baptism we do not recite Gurbani regularly or lead a life according the edicts of Gurbani. To adopt a Guru is a decision of the soul which transforms our life. Without reading and practising Gurbani, we cannot have any spiritual growth. We become static in our worldly affairs and do not move towards God. Baba Ji not only recited Gurbani but also practised it in his life and thus became a saint. No wonder, people began to adore him from the depth of their hearts. Gurbani says: “Lord lives in him who treads the holy path, great men are not worried abut worldly appreciation”. However, they attain it with the blessings of the Lord. Wherever there is a flower, the fragrance spreads and moths come rushing around. The union of great men and the curious devotees is quite natural. One comes across a saint because of a good luck. It is the result of ones good deeds in the past. Consciousness of the past leads to love of and meeting with saints. We do not know how it happens, but great holy men are able to recognize their lovers who had a longing to meet them in their previous births. A perfect holy man can know minds of his curious devotees. The refuge of great men becomes possible only due to good deeds which create a devotion and desire for meeting the great souls. The unlucky ones keep repenting for their inability to seek blessings of such a great man. Gurbani says: “One meets a true saint because of one’s good deeds in previous births; this puts an end to darkness and enlighten a person forever.”

Meditation on the River Bank at Gurudwara Sant Bela Sahib

Gurudwara Sant Bela Sahib is situated on the bank of a river near Chunni in Ropar district. Baba Ji came here on the invitation of a devotee. Some devotees made a cottage for him on the bank with a door opening towards the river. Baba Ji got a pit dug in the cottage for his meditation. He kept on meditating here for two and a half year. Sometimes, he would spend a whole day in meditation among the willows near the river bank. Sometimes, he would come to the community kitchen to have his food. Sometimes, he would remain without food for days together. The devotees would often request him to come to the Gurudwara for holy gathering. If Baba Ji liked, he would go there otherwise he would remain silent and keep on meditating near the river bank. He would often supervise the five beloved ones during the duty of baptism. Wherever he went, he always took upon himself the responsibility of instructing the five beloved ones in baptism process. Sometimes, he would sit in meditation and would not get up for long. He would have many rounds of holy recitation and perform recitation constantly for five to seven hours. He would take little rest and sometimes slept only for two hours during the day.

Love of Devotees at Gharuan

Baba Ji had a large number of devotees at the town Gharuan, for his personality had a magnetic effect. The young and the old in the town revered him and addressed him Baba Ji. The children and the elderly people at Gharuan loved him immensely. Baba Ji was mostly there at the Gurpurb of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji. Holy singing (Kirtan) was held in the town and at the Gurudwara. The people of the area come from far and near to participate in the celebrations of the Birth Anniversary of the Tenth Master and Baba Ji’s presence would inspire them all the more. Since Baba Ji had spent his childhood here, he would love to take part in the celebrations here. The residents of Gharuan always loved him from the core of their hearts. Some of the residents of the town have been devoted to him for more than twenty years and have considered him a holy person since his very childhood. On the moonless nights, thousands of devotees come to the Gurudwara at Gharuan and Baba Ji spends time with them in holy interaction. The parents and relatives of Baba Ji also come to him not as relatives but as devotees. They never violate his instructions. Normally, a holy man has more followers outside his home town, but in this case, almost all the people of Gharuan are his followers. They respect him as a true saint and regard him as an ideal man who follows the tenets of Sikh Panth in their true form. It is often said that a holy man has an impact all over except the places of his early dwelling. On the contrary, all the relatives and class fellows of Baba Ji respect him very much and appreciate his divine knowledge. When he came from his year long meditation, as many as twenty-two truck loads of devotees from Gharuan came to see him.

Baba Ji’s life since his childhood has been full of spiritual experiences and his personality is modelled on the principles of Gurbani. Not much has been written about him. His long experiences in divine meditation will be presented before the devotees in the years to come. At present, a brief description of his meditation and service is being given. Baba Ji has not yet allowed us to give all the details of his spiritual sojourn.

Meditation at Sri Hazur Sahib

From Gharuan, Baba Ji went to Sri Hazur Sahib where he visited all the places connected with the meditation by the Tenth Master. He stayed at the Gurudwara of Mata Sahib Kaur for forty days. He sat in meditation during the nights on the sandy banks of Godawari and meditated upon his beloved Kalgidhar Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji. He was lost in meditation for forty days. He performed the recitation of Sri Guru Granth Sahib at the Gurudwara of Mata Sahib Kaur during the day and meditated on the banks of Godawari during the night. Under a divine commandment he came to Punjab and reached his place of meditation at Dhakki Sahib.

The blessed soil of Dhakki Sahib

At last a time came when Baba Ji came to bless the soil of Dhakki Sahib. Under divine commandments, the soil of Dhakki Sahib was blessed with his presence and meditation. Perhaps, this place had been waiting for a great holy man like Baba Ji to come here and transform it into a holy place for the devotees. It was nothing less than the miracle of a divine blessing which God alone knows or only a holy man with grand insight can understand. The worldly people cannot perceive these changes and remain ignorant of these divine happenings which take place to provide a new colour to the soil. Baba Ji came here under a divine commandment and was guided by the invisible force of the Lord. Baba Ji has often stated that he came here under the orders of the Almighty Himself. The prophecies of great men become as blessings to the places where they come to live. Only those great men sit on the holy seat, who are truly deserving and blessed. Baba Ji once said that he had seen this place of meditation once during his childhood and he was greatly excited to see it. Such realization comes to great holy men only under the instructions of the Lord. They do not reveal the secret of such divine commandments to the common people and appear to be ignorant of these mystic realizations before the common folk.

Baba Ji remained in secret meditation at Dhakki Sahib for long and did not ask for food or clothes. For about a week, he remained in meditation without eating anything. Sometimes, he would drink water from the nearby tank and people grazing their cattle would watch him in deep meditation at that place. Some curious person came and asked for his name. Baba Ji obliged him and told him that people would come to know about him gradually. Thus many people started bringing food for him while Baba Ji spent his time in meditation and holy recitation at that place. By and by, people came to know that Baba Ji was a blessed soul and many people became his devotees. Some of them even felt sorry that they had not recognized his greatness, but Baba Ji told them not to worry about it.

Open Meditation for Forty Days

At first, Baba Ji sat in meditation for three days, then for seven days, and then for forty days at a stretch in an open space. He made a fire before him to avoid cold. He kept on sitting near the fire all the night praying and meditating. Then, someone made a triangular enclosure for him near three trees and made a fire there for the protection of Baba Ji from cold. He meditated in the open space for forty days. On several days, he went without food and concentrated upon God all the time. There were snakes and scorpions moving around the place. However, these poisonous creatures did not harm Baba Ji who completed his long meditation fearlessly. His meditation was never broken during this period.

Forty Days’ meditation in a cottage

The children of village Maqsudran made a small cottage for Baba Ji, where a person could hardly sit or stand. It was covered with long grass. It had a small door made of willows. Baba Ji went inside this enclosure and remained in meditation for forty days there. He came out only after forty days. His body had become extremely thin but his soul had become highly enlightened. There were rain and storm during these days and there was even a hail storm. It was a difficult ordeal for Baba Ji which he successfully completed and came out of his meditation spiritually fulfilled.

Discovery by the People of Birth Place

The people of Gharuan had been looking or Baba Ji for some time. They came to Maqsudran and found him there. They requested him to come back to his birth place, while the people of Maksudran wanted him to stay there. People of Gharuan offered to make a pit for him for meditation. Baba Ji agreed to go with them, but a large number of people from Maqsudran accompanied him so that he might not be made to stay there for long. Baba Ji remained at Gharuan for some time. The people of Maqsudran succeeded in bringing him back after his stay there.

Return to Dhakki Sahib

Most of the people of Maqsudran who brought Baba Ji back belong to the locality Gurian Patti in the village. Wherever Baba Ji went, a number of devotees from Maqsusdran went with him so that they could bring him back for his permanent stay in their village. The residents of Gurian Patti played a key role in bringing Baba Ji to this place. They had to make a struggle with other devotees in order to bring Baba Ji.

Deep Meditation for Six Months

After his meditation for forty days, Baba Ji decided to sit in another meditation for six months. At first, he made some holy singing and then sat in detached meditation closing the door from inside. The devotees urged him to take food because they had become apprehensive of his safety. However, Baba Ji remained inside without accepting anything and wanted to complete his long meditation undisturbed. Many people were worried that Baba Ji would not withstand the hot weather during those days. He had put himself in a hot plate as a goldsmith puts his gold in a furnace for purification.

However, the Lord gave him strength and he was able to withstand this heat successfully. According to Gurbani the heat of season cannot harm a person, who is blessed by the Lord himself. Worldly people find it difficult to spend times in air-conditioned rooms during the hot weather, but holy men are not affected by any heat or adverse weather because they have got the strength of holy recitation and are blessed by God. Guru Arjun Dev Ji gave his supreme sacrifice sitting on a hot plate. He was able to withstand such hardship only because of the Name of the Lord. According to Gurbani cold or hot weather cannot harm a true man of God. Thus, Baba Ji completed his six month long meditation under intense heat. There was no light or fan in his cottage. It was difficult even to sit there. The devotees outside felt it difficult to sit even under fans, but Baba Ji sat in meditation inside the cottage under very difficult conditions without facing any problem. The devotees outside were greatly worried about him but Baba Ji spent six long months in meditation in a very small cottage. During these six months he would come out only once during the day for taking bath. During this time, many people would have a glimpse of him. After the bath, Baba Ji would go again inside the cottage and remain in meditation for twenty-four hours at a stretch. The residents of Gurian Patti installed a hand pump behind his cottage. Thus, Baba Ji spent six months there and came out for bath at the pump once during the twenty-four hours of the day. People gathered around this holy cottage where the residents of Gharuan started a community kitchen. There was a hole in the cottage from where a small amount of food was placed for Baba Ji everyday. Baba Ji would accept little food from it and would not sometimes touch food for many days. Nobody would go near the cottage. The people of Gharuan performed the service around the cottage for the entire six months period. Volunteers would come in turn for this purpose. At least after six month, the door of the cottage opened. Baba Ji had become very weak; his body was almost reduced to a skeleton. People brought Baba Ji outside, after some days Baba Ji became better. People of Gharuan wanted to take him back to the town, but the residents of Gurian Patti, Maqsudran did not agree to it.

Hard Meditation for One Year

Baba Ji remained among the devotees for two months after his long meditation. He wanted to go to meditation again in order to achieve union with the Lord. In Bachittar Natak, Guru Gobind Singh has described his meditation to realize the Lord. Baba Ji also wanted to meditate again to achieve the realization. Great holy men want to remain united with the Lord forever and do not want to come to the world, but they are sent there by divine commandment. Baba Ji decided to go on meditation for full one year in a small cottage sitting in a pit. He felt a unique detachment from the world and wanted to exercise complete control over his senses during this meditation. Closing the door of the cottage form inside, he again started a long spell of meditation. The devotees were helpless and tears rolled from their eyes because they were afraid about the well-being of Baba Ji. They also felt that they had to wait for one year to have a glimpse of Baba Ji. They were not sure of their own existence during this period. They were quite apprehensive, and they hardly realized that great holy man could undergo such meditations without any difficulty. The devotees are naturally worried, but the holy men know more of their physical and spiritual needs. Only a great soul knows the plans of divine law. During those days, there were widespread floods in Punjab. There was water all around in the village and the place near Dhakki. The devotees became worried about the well being of Baba Ji because the cottage was surrounded by water. Baba Ji remained in meditation there for full one year. The devotees remained outside making holy recitations throughout the day and night. They also prayed for the well being of Baba Ji who was meditating inside. They spent their days and nights outside the cottage with great difficulty.

Ultimately, the hard meditation of one year was also over. From the town Gharuan alone, twenty two trucks loads of devotees came on the occasion. The door of the cottage opened after one year. The parents of Baba Ji were in the forefront when the devotees brought him out of the cottage. Thousands of people gathered there. It was difficult to control the crowds. When they saw Baba Ji, they were ecstatic and raised loud slogans for him. It was a unique scene which cannot be described in words. Although Baba Ji’s body had become very weak due to long meditation, he was all right because of God’s blessing. His forehead was radiant with spiritual bliss. It appeared that the sun had risen there. Only the fortunate ones were able to have a glimpses of such a radiant image. Those who had a glimpse of Baba Ji felt spellbound. Baba Ji was slowly led towards Sri Guru Granth Sahib, where he paid obeisance by lying down. The onlookers were greatly amazed. There was a unique peace on his face and a deep love for Sri Guru Granth Sahib in his heart. He embraced Sri Guru Granth Sahib. This spectacle was indeed marvellous. Then Baba Ji was compelled to come to a specially erected stage from where people could have a clear glimpse of him. However, Baba Ji did not want to be there at the high stage. The religious singers performed holy singing of Gurbani and the devotees presented shawls to Baba Ji. Many devotees felt a unique transformation in them. Baba Ji’s body looked very weak but his soul was very strong. There was a divine light on his face. People were greatly affected by his hard meditation. Many of them became his strong devotees and admired him, but Baba Ji was far above any appreciation. The devotees distributed sweets and started community kitchen for the people. There was a large gathering on this occasion. Baba Ji was however reluctant to come before such crowds. He said that he did not want to come among the people like this and was only compelled to do so. However, he said that because of the good wishes of the people, he was able to spent a whole year in days. He had not seen the sun for full one year. After sometime, when his body again became agile he went to Gharuan, though a number of people of Gurian Patti and Maqsudran also went with him and brought him back. After this, Baba Ji expressed a desire to go on meditation for twelve years. However, the devotees requested him not to go on such a long meditation and Baba Ji acceded to their request. The devotees asked him that he could go on meditation for short periods. Thus, Baba Ji had continuous recitation and meditation for forty days several times. He told them that he did not do it all on purpose; it was due to his feeling of detachment and divine commandment that he had to meditate time and again. Once he was inside, the meditation spot he would forget about his physical needs and had a communion with the Lord. He did not know when to come out of the meditation place, but the devotees had their own calculations and gathered around the cottage on the appointed day. Sometimes, he would forbid the devotees to do so, but people could not resist gathering around his place of meditation.

Holy Singing

Baba Ji used to meditate in a pit and would come out in the evening for Kirtan or holy singing. Many devotees also gathered there. Sometimes, they would keep singing holy hymns throughout the night. Sometimes, Baba Ji would continue holy singing for 8-9 hours at a stretch and held night singing sessions on special occasions. The devotees would leave late in the evening. Baba Ji would continue holy singing all by himself and his musical instruments kept playing all the while spreading musical waves of the holy hymns all around. He would not perform holy singing for others but for himself. He had a never ending appetite for holy singing which would give him great spiritual peace. He would continue recitation of Sukhmani Sahib and involve other devotees as well. A continuous stream of Gurbani kept flowing around him all the twenty four hours of the day.

Continuous Recitation of Sri Guru Granth Sahib all alone

Once Baba Ji started continuous recitation of Sri Guru Granth Sahib at Gurudwara Akalgarh at Gharuan and completed the recitation of the holy Granth in 30-32 hours all by himself. His recitation of Gurbani was very sweet and fluent. Only once did he move out for the calls of nature. Otherwise, he would continue reading Sri Guru Granth Sahib without any break or difficulty.

Listening to Continuous Recitation of Sri Guru Granth Sahib in One Sitting

Sometimes, Baba Ji would listen to continuous recitation of Sri Guru Granth Sahib seated at one place. For the first time, he listened to the continuous recitation of the holy Granth at Dhakki Sahib in one sitting. Thereafter, he listened to continuous recitation at several places many other times. He would listen to continuous reading from 5 to 20 hours at a stretch on many occasions. He listened to continuous recitation of the holy Granth at Gurudwara Maliksar Sahib at Gharuan on the occasion of the Gurpurb of the Tenth Master. Thereafter, night long holy singing was held. He listened to holy singing for 7-8 hours at a stretch and made other devotees also sit along with him.

Fasting Meditation for Forty Days

On the occasion of Gurpurb of Sir Guru Nanak Dev, Baba Ji undertook meditation and fasting for 40 days. His meditation was completed on the day of Gurpurb. Holy singing continued all the night and Baba Ji was lost in a spiritual trance on this occasion. Only a true saint can experience and manifest the feelings on such an occasion. Kabir says, “If fragrance is distributed at night, those who sleep would not get it”. Baba Ji always had the spiritual experience of meditation and holy recitation and he was full of divine fragrance.