`Your eyes are round and brown like two pieces of sweet-indian barfee , your lips are long and juicy like two strands of sweet-indian jelabees and your face is tempting me like a freshly made sweet-indian ras-mala-eee'.
-'No! No! No!', thought Vechara, it still doesn't sound right. He picked up the hand mirror once more and put on his charming expression, puckering his lips he smoothly tried again
-`Your lips are red roses, your eyes are the stars and your face is beautiful like the moon reflecting in the lake of my heart.'
-`Yes that's it, that's it, that's what I'll say to her, my darling, the love of my life, dearest Kamalee Kaur, just saying her name drives me insane.'
Vechara was in love. He was seventeen and his Kamalee was sweet sixteen. He'd only met her yesterday when he'd gone to collect the milk from her father's house. She was serving the customers, but the way she looked at him was ...it was, it was , it was indescribable. This was True Love, this was what the travelling folk singers sang and danced about whenever they passed through the village. Infact he felt like singing and dancing..and why shouldn't he so he stood on his bed and looked out of the window across the golden crops and sang................rather badly, but the dogs didn't mind and joined in with their howling.
Next morning he beautified himself with great care, but he spent so much time getting ready that when he reached Kamalee Kaur's house, there was a very long queue of customers. He joined the end of it, he couldn't see his Kamalee Kaur serving, because the big, burly farmers were blocking his view. He was moving from side to side so much that the old, skinny Baba in front of him turned around and said,
-`Be patient my son, all good things come to those who wait. My Holy Teacher has taught me patience is necessary to reach God. That's why I'm here to collect my Holy Teachers' milk, I'm learning patience and that's why I patiently turn this rosary in my hand and say God! God! on each bead.'
Vechara wasn't interested in an old man's rosary.......Kamalee, Kamalee was the only name in his heart. Kamalee was in his blood, Kamalee was in the sky, Kamalee was everywhere he looked. Kamalee was the reason he lived and to have a sight of her moon like face was all he was interested in.
-`Yes that's very interesting Baba ji, you carry on patiently turning your rosary but my heart is going to explode unless I get to see Kamalee.'
Vechara could wait no longer, he picked up his metal milk container and ran past all of the farmers, pushing past the little crowd he finally reached the front and his heart melted as Kamalee's smiling face completely filled his field of vision. He leaned forward to hand her his empty milk pot and as she leaned forward to collect it he quickly whispered ,
-`Um.....Errrr....Your lips are red moons, your eyes are the wind and your face is beautiful like the lake reflecting roses..............',
-`HURRY UP BOY' roared a farmer, `WE HAVEN'T GOT ALL DAY'.
Kamalee giggled at Vechara's attempt to flatter her, but she thought it was sweet and passing him the milk their hands touched, and in that moment was laid the foundation stone of their future life together as husband and wife.
Three hours later, the old, skinny Baba ji at the end of the queue reached the front, still patiently turning his rosary. There was no-one else around and the Baba ji asked Kamalee,
-`Dear child, I am a very old man, it is hard for me to stand for such a long time in the burning sun, yet you made me wait in the queue. But that boy Vechara Singh, you served him right away. He didn't have to wait in the queue, you didn't even charge him for the milk..............it's not fair that you treated him and me differently.'
Kamalee Kaur replied, `O Baba ji, how can you say such a nasty thing. He's my lover and for my lover their are no rules.'
The Baba ji's jaw dropped and his rosary fell out of his hand, `You are great my child, truly great for I have learned a great widom from you. All my life I've been turning this rosary boringly saying God! God! And wondering why God never opened His door to hug me to his chest. It's because I never loved God, if I was God's lover then they'd be no rules to keep me away from Him.'
(Based on an incident that happend to the saint Bulleh Shah).
MORAL OF THE STORY
Guru Amar Das Ji teaches us in Anand Sahib :
`Without the true love of devotion, the body is without honor. The body is dishonored without devotional love; what can the poor wretches do? No one except You is all-powerful; please bestow Your Mercy, O Lord of all nature. There is no place of rest, other than the Name; attached to the Shabad, we are embellished with beauty. Says Nanak, without devotional love, what can the poor wretches do? || 6 ||' (Gurbanee CD)
Vechara Singh and the Baba Ji both had one thing in common, neither had true love. Vechara loved Kamalee and Guru ji has taught us to love our spouse more and more each day, but Vechara never had any love for God. The Baba ji never had any love for God either, he was just turning the rosary like a clock that keeps on ticking without any feeling.
Guru Amar Das ji teaches us all to have the True Love of devotion for Waheguru ji. Just like Vechara thought of Kamalee all the time, when Waheguru ji is in our hearts and minds we will see Waheguru ji everywhere. Guru Amar Das ji then says that if we dont have this True Love of Devotion for God inside us then our body has no honour. We have wasted our life.
So dont waste your life, get up at amritvela (before 6am) and meditate on Waheguru! Waheguru! With love and do it every day without fail for hours and hours, just like Vechara thought about Kamalee all the time.
Posted by Harjit Singh Lakhan