Guru Nanak Dev Ji : Guru at Jagan naath puri

22. Guru at Jagan naath puri

After Golaghat Nagar and Dhanasri valley where cannibals inhabited in large numbers, the Guru went back to Gauhati. From there he proceeded to Shillong and to Silhet where an old Gurdwara stands in his memory. He then went to Dacca and on the way he passed through Calcutta and Cuttack and finally reached Puri. The temple of Jagan Nath, the Lord of the East, was one of the four most revered temples of the Hindus- the other three being Som Nath, Badri Nath and Vishwa Nath. It is said that Jagan Nath's idol was sculptured by the architect of the gods and it was installed at the temple by Lord Brahma himself. It was the anniversary of installation of the idol when Guru Nanak reached the temple. The Guru visited the temple not to adore their Lord but to teach the people that the worship of God was superior to the worship of the deity. It was the evening time and the priests brought a salver full of many lighted lamps, flowers, incense and pearls and then all stood to offer the salver to their enshrined idol-god. The ceremony was called 'Arti', a song of dedication. The high-priest invited the Guru to join in the god's worship. The Guru did not join their service which enraged the priests. On being asked the reason the Guru explained that a wonderful serenade was being sung by nature before the invisible altar of God. The sun and the moon were the lamps, placed in the salver of the firmament and the fragrance wafted from the Malayan mountains was serving as incense. The Guru, therefore, instead of accepting the invitation of the high-priest to adore the idol, raised his eyes to the heaven and uttered the following Sabad of Arti:

"The sun and moon, O Lord, are thy lamps; the firmament Thy salver; the orbs of the stars, the pearls enchased in it. The perfume of the sandal is Thine incense; the wind is Thy fan; all the forests are Thy flowers, O Lord of light. What worship is this, O Thou Destroyer of birth ? Unbeaten strains of ecstasy are the trumpets of Thy worship. Thou hast a thousand eyes and yet not one eye; Thou hast a thousand forms and yet not one form; Thou hast a thousand pure feet and yet not one foot; Thou hast a thousand organs of smell and yet not one organ- I am fascinated by this play of Thine. The Light which is in everything is Thine, O Lord of Light. From its brilliancy everything is brilliant; By the Guru's teaching the light becometh manifest. What pleaseth Thee is the real Arti. O God, my mind is fascinated with Thy lotus feet as the bumble-bee with the flower: night and day I thirst for them. Give the water of Thy grace to the sarang Nanak, so that he may dwell in Thy name." (Dhanasri Mohalla 1, Arti, Page : 663

According to the Puratan Janamsakhi, the Guru ended his first Udasi with the visit to Puri and returned to Punjab in 1506.





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				22. Guru at Jagan naath puri After Golaghat Nagar and Dhanasri valley where cannibals inhabited in large numbers, the Guru went back to Gauhati. From there he proceeded to Shillong and to Silhet where an old Gurdwara stands in his memory. He then went to Dacca and on the way he passed through Calcutta and Cuttack and finally reached Puri. The temple of Jagan Nath, the Lord of the East, was one of the four most revered temples of the Hindus- the other three being Som Nath, Badri Nath and Vishwa Nath. It is said that Jagan Nath's idol was sculptured by the architect of the gods and it was installed at the temple by Lord Brahma himself. It was the anniversary of installation of the idol when Guru Nanak reached the temple. The Guru visited the temple not to adore their Lord but to teach the people that the worship of God was superior to the worship of the deity. It was the evening time and the priests brought a salver full of many lighted lamps, flowers, incense and pearls and then all stood to offer the salver to their enshrined idol-god. The ceremony was called 'Arti', a song of dedication. The high-priest invited the Guru to join in the god's worship. The Guru did not join their service which enraged the priests. On being asked the reason the Guru explained that a wonderful serenade was being sung by nature before the invisible altar of God. The sun and the moon were the lamps, placed in the salver of the firmament and the fragrance wafted from the Malayan mountains was serving as incense. The Guru, therefore, instead of accepting the invitation of the high-priest to adore the idol, raised his eyes to the heaven and uttered the following Sabad of Arti: "The sun and moon, O Lord, are thy lamps; the firmament Thy salver; the orbs of the stars, the pearls enchased in it. The perfume of the sandal is Thine incense; the wind is Thy fan; all the forests are Thy flowers, O Lord of light. What worship is this, O Thou Destroyer of birth ? Unbeaten strains of ecstasy are the trumpets of Thy worship. Thou hast a thousand eyes and yet not one eye; Thou hast a thousand forms and yet not one form; Thou hast a thousand pure feet and yet not one foot; Thou hast a thousand organs of smell and yet not one organ- I am fascinated by this play of Thine. The Light which is in everything is Thine, O Lord of Light. From its brilliancy everything is brilliant; By the Guru's teaching the light becometh manifest. What pleaseth Thee is the real Arti. O God, my mind is fascinated with Thy lotus feet as the bumble-bee with the flower: night and day I thirst for them. Give the water of Thy grace to the sarang Nanak, so that he may dwell in Thy name." (Dhanasri Mohalla 1, Arti, Page : 663 According to the Puratan Janamsakhi, the Guru ended his first Udasi with the visit to Puri and returned to Punjab in 1506.

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