Swamiji TV

Other links



Podcast details

Belonging

The Master reveals God.

A devotee spent years in deep devotion to his Master, praying for his grace and vision. One day, both his Master and God stood before him. He faced a dilemma: whom to greet first? If he greeted God first, his Master might feel slighted. If he greeted his Master first, God might seem jealous. He asked his heart for the immediate answer. The insight arose: true gratitude is to the Master, for the Master is the one who reveals God. This recognition comes only from truly having a Master. Without it, one is lost.

"I am thankful to my Master; my adoration is to you, because you showed me Govinda."

Filming location: Vép, Hungary

Gurū Nānak Sāhib once composed a very beautiful poem. He was a devotee utterly devoted to Gurū Govind Singh. Through this devotion, he ultimately reached God, Bhagavān. For many, many years, he adored his Master. He meditated upon him, prayed for his mercy, prayed for his darśan, and prayed for the kṛpā of Gurudeva. For him, his Master was always first. One day, it happened that both figures suddenly stood before him: his Gurū and Govinda. Now he must greet them and bow down. But to whom should he bow first? It is not an easy choice. If he greets God first, his Master might think, "My whole life, I was first for him. Now God is here, and he pushes me aside." If he greets his Master first, then perhaps God will feel jealous. "His whole life he was waiting for Me. Now I am here, and he does not pay attention to Me first." What a dilemma! What is to be done? It is not like putting one hand on one leg and the other hand on the other leg. So he asks within his own heart for an answer to solve this problem, pleading, "Please show me the right way." This is a question of immediate insight, you know; it does not take minutes of pondering or fast thinking. He said, "Gurū Dev and Govinda, both are standing in front of me. To whom should I bow down first?" That was the question, and the answer arose from within him: Bhalī hari gurū aparī govinda dīyobhata. "I am thankful to my Master; my adoration is to you, because you showed me Govinda." Therefore, you are the first one. This kind of recognition comes only from truly having your Master. Otherwise, even if you have a Master, you are like one running lost in the forest, separated from the group. So you should know: where do you belong?

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

The text contains hyperlinks in bold to three authoritative books on yoga, written by humans, to clarify the context of the lecture:

Email Notifications

You are welcome to subscribe to the Swamiji.tv Live Webcast announcements.

Contact Us

If you have any comments or technical problems with swamiji.tv website, please send us an email.

Download App

YouTube Channel