The Enchanted Land by Lane David

Author:Lane, David [Неизвестный]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Unknown
Published: 2014-06-18T21:00:00+00:00

“Listen to the secret sound, the real sound, which is inside you. The one no one talks of speaks the secret sound to himself, and he is the one who has made it all.”

--KABIR

The Wrestler

Very little is known in the West about the lineage of Radhasoami gurus at Tarn Taran, a small Sikh city about 20 miles outside Amritsar. In the Punjab, however, the satsang is well known and its following numbers in the thousands.

I had hoped for several years to meet the then current head of the sect, Sri Pratap Singh. But it was not until August 1978 that I boarded a bus for Tarn Taran (the name literally means "a raft which carries one over a large body of water"), a town most famous for its large golden gurdwara (holy Sikh temple). Once arrived there, I had to ask the local rickshaw wallas for directions to the ashram. Pictures of a saintly looking Sikh on display in many of the shops made me feel hopeful. Luckily I found an old rickshaw driver who knew the way to the spiritual center. At the front of the compound I met the ashram's gatekeeper whose knowledge of English was exceeded only by my five words of Hindi. We greeted each other with a clear and drawn out "Radhasoami." I was ushered into an open, rather empty looking courtyard. A few people, whom I took to be sadhus, were lying in some shade (the heat was 100 degrees and the humidity felt like 90 percent).

One of the first things I noticed in the ashram was a series of pictures of the different saints at Tarn Taran. Most noticeable, in the center of the back wall, was a picture of the founder Baba Bagga Singh. He had a powerful lion-like face. There were also photographs of Sant Deva Singh, the second master in the lineage, and of the late Jagat Singh of Beas.

It was around noontime when I saw Sri Pratap Singh. I liked him immediately. He has a large nose and a robust physique. While the saint of Tarn Taran and I conversed, Kishori Lal Maini, secretary of the Dera, acted as translator. We discussed the history of the group and I discovered that Bagga Singh was a disciple of Baba Jaimal Singh, one of the successors to the founder of Radhasoami. Bagga Singh founded his satsang at Tarn Taran in the early part of this century. After his death in 1944 Sawan Singh of Beas, who had been a close friend of the founder of the Tarn Taran satsang, appointed Deva Singh to carry on the spiritual work. The current head, Sri Pratap Singh, was installed by Maharaj Charan Singh after Deva Singh's death in the early 1960's. The Tarn Taran and Beas satsangs enjoy a friendly and unique association. The present leaders of the two centers are good friends, often seen together giving spiritual discourses.

Pratap Singh discussed with me the practice of shabd yoga and how one might succeed in listening to the inner sound.

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