Summary of 'Bani of Bhagats' By G.S.Chauhan 

Sri Guru Granth Sahib is a holy book. It contains the compositions of not only the holy preceptors or the Sikh Gurus, but also of the 15 great saints belonging to different states and religions. The only common link being that they were all highly Self-realized and worshippers of the Unmanifest Lord Saint Jaidev was from Bengal; saints Namdev and Trilochan were from Maharashtra. Saints Ramanand, Kabir and Ravidas were from Kashi now in Uttar Pradesh. Saint Pipa and Dhanna were from the Rajasthan. Shaikh Farid was from Pakpatan now in Pakistan. Most of the saints travelled over wide areas spreading the message of the Lord. They belonged to different states and times; therefore the language used by them is mixed with words from different languages and dialects. But the purport of their teachings is the same.

The compositions included in Sri Guru Granth Sahib have a universal approach. Their teachings are for everybody on this earth and for all ages i.e. past, present and future. The logic is simple. Since the Creator is Eternal and of the whole universe, teachings about Him i.e . "Brahm Gyan" or "Divine Knowledge" have naturally to be universal and eternal.

Guru Nanak Dev travelled far and wide from Assam to Mecca in Arabia and Sri Lanka to Tibet and beyond. In these journeys he met lot of holy persons and had discussions with them. The summary of these exchanges of ideas were recorded by him in his compositions like "Sidh Gosht", "Dakhani Oankar" etc. He also collected the works of the erstwhile saints during his travels as in the case of Shaikh Farid's compositions which were collected from his successors.

The saints were belonging to different religious schools in the beginning. Some worshipped Lord Krishna, some Lord Rama, where as some were Hath Yogis. But with their spiritual progress, all realized the Unmanifest Lord. Like saint Namdev was worshipper of Lord Vithal's statue in his earlier life but in the later life he saw Lord Vithal in everything and everywhere. Shaikh Farid was a Sufi saint. By including the compositions of the saints in Sri Guru Granth Sahib, Guru Arjun Dev has set an example of secular aspect of· Sikhism.

Sri Pramhansa Ramakrishna has said "A truly religions man should think that other religions also are paths leading to Truth. We should always maintain an attitude of respect towards other religions."

At many places, the compositions of Gurus are interpolated in the compositions of saints. This has been done by Guru Arjun Dev to either further clarify a point or to supplement information on issues raised by the saints. The Saints being very high souls, sometimes described their own difficult practices ("Sadhanas"). The worldly householders cannot follow them and may get discouraged. Guru Ji has assured the disciples at such places that they need not go to the extent described by the saints and suggested the practices within their capacity.

The 11 Bhatts, Baba Sunder ji and Rai Balwand and Satta the bards, were the disciples of Gurus. They were very learned and self-realized devotees. Guru ji included their compositions in Sri Guru Granth Sahib as these were also of very high spiritual value and explained very intricate problem on the spiritual path to help other devotees.

The compositions of saints are recorded in 22 ragas (musical meters) apart from Slokas and swayas. The total volume is very large. I have therefore tried to give brief life sketches of the saints and a few compositions to illustrate the range of ideas covered by them. Since no records are available about the exact dates and place of birth, parentage and their areas of activity for most of the saints, there are conflicting views expressed by different authors. I have tried to give the most accepted and logical details and avoided controversies.

Table Of Contents For 'Bani of Bhagats' By G.S.Chauhan

Preface vii

Swami Rama Nand Ji 1

Saint Kabir Ji 5

Saint Ravidas Ji 41

Shaikh Farid Ji 56

Saint Namdev Ji 71

Saint Jaidev Ji 89

Saint Trilochan Ji 94

Saint Sadhna Ji 99

Saint Sain Ji 102

Saint Pipa Ji 104

Saint Dhanna Ji 106

Saint Surdas Ji 110

Saint Parmanand Ji 113

Saint Bhikhan Ji 115

Saint Beni Ji 118

The Bhatts and their Compositions 124

Baba Sunder Ji 134

Rai Balwand and Satta, the Bards 137

About The Author of 'Bani of Bhagats' 

Born in 1933, Dr. G. S. Chauhan is an Electrical Engineer and had served Indian Railways for 34 years before retirement in 1991 as a General Manager. After retirement, he has fully devoted his time to the spiritual studies. Apart from classics like Bhagwad Gita, Bhagwad Puran, Upanishads, Adi Shankracharya's Vivekchudamani, Patanjali's Yog Sutras etc., he has obtained deep insight into the teachings of contemporary saints like Parmahansa Ramakrishna, Shri Vivekananda, Parmahansa Yogananda, Maharishi Ramana of Tiruvanamalai (Tamil Nadu), Swami Ram Das of Anandashram (Kanhagad, Kerala) and Swami Chinmayananda, etc.

Thus, the study of India 's great spiritual heritage had enabled him to see the teachings of Sikh Gurus in a unique perspective. According. to him the teachings of Sri Guru Nanak Dev and his successors can not be confined to a community, country or time. These are of universal, ageless and timeless nature . . Thus, they are most appropriate for the present tension ridden times.

The unique feature of Dr. Chauhan's interpretation of Gurbani is the thread of continuity he has established in both Japji and Sukhmani Sahib. According to him, both these priceless compositions form a complete course of instructions for evolving a layman into a fully self realized Jiwan Mukta.

Having travelled extensively, he well understands the spiritual needs of expatriate devotees as well those living in non Punjabi speaking states within India. The tri-lingual format adopted by him for translation of "Japji Sahib" (Hemkunt Press) is ideal for understanding the original Gurbani by readers of varied backgrounds. His English translation of "Sukhmani Sahib" is under print by Pingalwara. Amritsar. He has also translated "Bhagat Bani" with lives of saints into English which is also under print by (Hemkunt Press). His books are therefore ideal gift items for presentation to friends to introduce them to the spiritual philosophy of Sikh Gurus.