'Such a Guru is found by great good fortune'

Last week I came across a Shabad, which is written by Dhan Dhan Guru Arjan Dev Ji Maharaaj. The Shabad is from Pannaa 803 and given below,

bilaaval mehalaa 5
Bilaaval, Fifth Mehl:

bhoolae maarag jinehi bathaaeiaa
He places the one who strays back on the Path;

aisaa gur vaddabhaagee paaeiaa 1
such a Guru is found by great good fortune. 1

simar manaa raam naam chithaarae
Meditate, contemplate the Name of the Lord, O mind.

bas rehae hiradhai gur charan piaarae 1 rehaao
The Beloved Feet of the Guru abide within my heart. 1Pause

kaam krodhh lobh mohi man leenaa
The mind is engrossed in sexual desire, anger, greed and emotional attachment.

ba(n)dhhan kaatt mukath gur keenaa 2
Breaking my bonds, the Guru has liberated me. 2

dhukh sukh karath janam fun mooaa
Experiencing pain and pleasure, one is born, only to die again.

charan kamal gur aasram dheeaa 3
The Lotus Feet of the Guru bring peace and shelter. 3

agan saagar booddath sa(n)saaraa
The world is drowning in the ocean of fire.

naanak baah pakar sathigur nisathaaraa 438
O Nanak, holding me by the arm, the True Guru has saved me. 438

The Shabad talks about contemplating on the Lord and various examples are given of how Guru Sahib Ji helps us in worldly situations. For example, how our minds are engrossed in sexual desire, anger, greed and emotional attachment (kaam, krodh, lobh, moh and hankar), and Guru Ji by breaking these bonds has liberated me from all this.

What really hit me about this particular Shabad was the following tuks (lines),

bhoolae maarag jinehi bathaaeiaa
He places the one who strays back on the Path;

aisaa gur vaddabhaagee paaeiaa 1
such a Guru is found by great good fortune. 1

Guru Sahib Ji is so compassionate, loving and forgiving that They put our strayed souls back on the right path, even though the only reason we have strayed in the first place is because of our own mistakes and ‘manmat’. We are extremely lucky to have found Guru Sahib Ji who no matter what helps gets and us back on the path. There are so many out there who are oblivious as to what Sikhi is about, who have no idea who our Guru Sahibs are and what They have done for us; for mankind. Those of us who do have Guru Ji in our lives are exceptionally lucky, because as Guru Arjan Dev Ji has said ‘such a Guru is found by great good fortune’.

This reminds me of an example of Guru Ji’s compassion is the Sakhi of the Chalih Mukte.

Forty of Guru Gobind Singh’s men deserted him at Anandpur. They were afraid to
die, afraid for their lives, desperate and starving. They were so concerned with their own survival, that they willing wrote and signed a letter denouncing their Guru. When they arrived home, rather than finding wives joyful for their return,
happy that they were alive, what did they find? Wives who were appalled that they had deserted Guru Gobind Singh. These 40 Sikhs were reunited with Guru Ji after He successfully escaped Chamkaur on 7 December 1705. After escaping from Chamkaur Guru Ji re-entered battle with the Mughals on 29 December 1705, where these 40 Sikhs entered battle with Guru Ji once again, under the auspicious leadership of Mai Bhago. All of these 40 Sikhs were martyred in the battle that ensued and one of these Singh’s named Bhai Maha(n) Singh asked Guru Ji to tear up the denunciation letter he had written in agreement with the other Singh’s, Guru Ji happily tore up the letter and named these 40 Sikh’s, the 40 Liberated Ones (Chaali Mukte). There was already a pool situated at this place where Guru Ji said the Singh’s had attained liberation, which was called ‘Khidrana da Tab’ or the pool of Khidrana, which was then renamed Muktsar, due to the heroics of the 40 Sikhs.

Guru Ji forgave even those who had left Them in a time of need, as the tuk says,

‘aisaa gur vaddabhaagee paaeiaa 1
such a Guru is found by great good fortune. 1’