BABA JAIMAL SINGH & HIS JOURNEY (Part 7)
Because Baba Jaimal Singh took a strong stand against the Indian
tradition of idol worship, there is apparently one picture ever taken
of him, and there were no sketches made. This much, however, is known
about him. He was generally rather shy and quiet, and didn’t argue
with people. If somebody was off base with a remark he would usually
say nothing unless asked. A committed celibate, he never married nor
had children. He was a committed vegetarian, with his primary diet
being milk.
Stories abound regarding Jaimal’s lessons on humility and
silence. More than one disciple made the mistake of talking about
their inner experiences or flaunting spiritual powers and, after
several admonitions, found the inner door closed, sometimes for
years. Perhaps the most famous account is of a pundit who received
Naam initiation, but was not having what he considered to be profound
inner experiences. He repeatedly begged Jaimal to give him some inner
experience, to show him the inner regions, and Jaimal in turn
repeatedly declined, saying the strain would be too great. Finally
one day Babaji finally relented and, on the banks of the Beas River,
he
“...asked the pundit to sit down in meditation, and focused his
gaze upon him. The pundit’s soul was forcibly drawn up into the
higher realms. When Baba Ji, by his own Will, brought it back to
physical consciousness, the pundit fell sobbing at his feet. “I
thought my life was being wrenched out of me, and a million lightnings
fell upon my head. Oh Sir, forgive me my foolishness. We mortals are
indeed unworthy.”
The pundit spent the last three years of his life deeply immersed in
spiritual practices.
Another story along these lines is of a disciple, Moti Ram, who
begged Jaimal to give initiation to his friend, Hukam Singh. Again,
Jaimal declined several times, saying Hukam Singh’s karmas did not
permit it. Moti Ram persisted and Jaimal relented, but insisted that
his carriage prepared to leave and a train ticket be booked for
immediate passage back to Beas. He spent the next two weeks with a
high fever, which finally abated. When asked about it, he said that
Hukam Singh’s karmas had ordained seven lifetimes of extreme
suffering, which were now essentially abated.
However, the most important initiation Baba Jaimal Singh gave
occurred in October 1894. While visiting a town on one of His Satsang
tours, he and Bibi Rukko (one of his first and closest satsangis) saw
a tall Sikh gentleman walking by. Jaimal remarked to Bibi that this
fellow was the reason they had come to this village. Bibi replied
something to the effect of, “What do you mean you ‘came for him’. He
doesn’t even notice you.” Jaimal essentially replied, “Don’t worry.
In four days, he will be at Satsang.” Sure enough four days later,
Sawan Singh – having heard that a great holy man was in town – sought
out the satsang. Jaimal immediately connected Sawan’s soul with the
timeless essence of Shabda, and answered his numerous questions. On
October 15, 1894, he gave Sawan Singh initiation.
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