Listen to this story, courtesy of Sikhnet:

Dhan Siri Guru Har Rai ji. May we see you in our mind’s eye, may we feel you in our heart’s heart!

Do you want to hear more about Guru Har Rai? Okay, I’ll tell you about his court. Guru Har Rai ji carried on the traditions of his Grandfather Guru Hargobind by walking the sacred path of the warrior-saint.

The Guru gives us simple and great teachings. Guru ji tells us,

“Wake up before the sunrise, take your cold shower, meditate on the Naam and think about giving. Speak sweetly, act with humility. Feel happy to use your own hands giving good to others.”

Like his Grandfather, Guru Hargobind, he kept an army of warrior-saints and kept in high spirits. He also hunted animals. You may ask, “why would he hunt animals when he couldn’t even hurt a flower?” (see the story: Har Rai ji the Gentle). Actually, he would hunt but he never killed an animal. Instead he would capture them, then give them medicine and heal them. Isn’t that a kind thing to do?

The animals were kept in the Guru’s beautiful gardens so they could also be part of the Sangat. When the time was right, the Guru would release the animals back to the wild. Like all souls, the animals were blessed to be near the Guru and his divine presence.

The Guru also had many fruit trees planted in the gardens. So the Guru’s court had fruit trees, animals of all kinds, and beautiful flowers and plants. Do you know what else the Guru’s court had? With great compassion Guru Har Rai opened hospitals, the best doctors were called to serve. People could come from all over and get healed of their different problems.

They could leave money and if they didn’t have any money they would get helped too. Of course they would be happy to serve in the Guru’s kitchen and serve the community in any way they were able.

Guru ji also collected and grew all the herbs for medicine. He grew herbs that no one else had. It became a great center of spirituality and healing. Guru’s healing center became famous throughout the land. Guru ji tells us,

“Sleep little, eat little, speak little… and you will come under the Guru’s guidance. Work hard and do good actions. Don’t show off but be great.”

Do you want to know what else was in the Guru’s court? It also had the Guru! The Guru’s court was full of the Guru’s divine teachings, which everyone listened to and learned how to live better. Guru ji tells us:

“Always search for the company of saints. Meeting with them, sing day and night and always. Fix yourself on the Shabd and merge your mind with the teachings of the True Guru.”

There, in the Guru’s garden, a person felt as if he or she were sitting in paradise. The Sikhs always love to listen to the Guru, and always serve others. Before Guru Har Rai, the Sikhs had to go to war, and after him many more wars happened. But during his time it was a very special time of healing. Healing and what else? And animals! And nature, and flowers and fruits. And langar and teachings. There was kindness and beauty and service too.

Most of all, there was lots of love.

There was so much love. All of it was because of love. There in the Guru’s garden, you felt as if you were in paradise. Don’t you wish you could live right now in a divine paradise like Guru Har Rai ji’s court? Wherever we are, we can make it more of a paradise, more like the Guru’s court. How can we do that?

We can plant trees! We can ride horses, shoot bows and arrows, exercise our bodies and always remember our warrior spirit! We can serve people, and heal them and give them medicine. We can plant flowers and be nice to animals. We can sing shabds. It already feels more like paradise doesn’t it? Imagine how great it will feel when we do these things!

Do you know what else we can do to bring the Guru’s court to us? I bet you already know the answer.

We can love.

We can love ourselves, our family, our friends, everyone we know, all the animals and plants, we can love the whole universe! You already knew that didn’t you. You also already know how to make wherever you are like the Guru’s court. You already know how to create paradise. Go ahead and do it!

Great, great is Guru Har Rai ji, may we see you with our minds eye. May we feel you in our hearts heart! Guru ji tells us,

“Even while absorbed in your hopes and wishes, do not be attached. Be carefree.”

Storyteller: M.S.S. Guruka Singh Khalsa

Court of Guru Har Rai Ji from SikhNet