Editor's Note: Tomorrow we celebrate the birthday of Guru Harkrishan Sahib ji, the child Guru. It is said that Guru Harkrishan's presence was like the sun right before it peaks over the horizon. Though it is small it still bring beautiful light to the whole sky. His body was small yet his spiritual presence was immense. In honor of this great Guru we are reproducing a story from our audio story section. To listen to the audio click here. If you are further interested, for free, you can download the audio, download the app, print the black and white images for coloring. Also note that with today's youth who are usually over-exposed to screens, listening to audio can be a great way to keep their imagination alive as they create their own images. Read below for the story of the Power of Guru Harkrishan ji:
Have you ever heard of Super-powers before? Not super-powers from TV or the movies but real people who have super powers. Perhaps you've heard of people who could raise someone from the dead or be able to stop the rain from falling, or make gold appear out of thin air... All over the world there have been many people who could do these kind of things... in real life. This is a story about the greatest superpower of all, It’s inside of us. The seventh Guru had two sons. The older one was called Baba Ram Rai, and he was very smart. The younger one was called Baba HarKrishan, and he was very sweet with a divine light. Both the boys were reading from the teachings, the Adi Granth and they looked so innocent and so devoted.
Someone asked the Guru, “Great Guru, both of your children are very handsome, they’re both very intelligent, and both are very spiritual & humble. How can you possibly decide which one will be the next Guru?” Guru ji came with him to where the two boys were and told him to do a test as the boys were reading from the Adi Granth. “Take a needle to the table where they are reading the Granth Sahib. Try to poke the needle into the wood of that table. If it is read with love everything will become soft and the needle will easily go in.” "yes Sir, Wahe Guru!" And the man replied, "yes Sir, Wahe Guru!"
So the man saw the younger son, Baba HarKrishan, reading, “Ik Ongkar, SatGurPrasaad, slok Mahula Panjvaa..." Baba HarKrishan read with great devotion and love. As the boy was reading the man came to the wood table and slowly put the needle there. It went in, smoothly, as if the wood was made out of wax! And the Guru said, "HarKrishan my son, please explain to everyone the meaning of what you just read." Then Guru HarKrishan replied, “Yes father, God is in every heart! Once the heart remembers it’s home it is happy and we are God...”
Baba HarKrishans explanation filled everyone with bliss. People were blown away. Then the older brother Baba Ram Rai took the seat and started reading the same section, “Ik Ongkar, SatGurPrasaad, slok Mahula Panjvaa...” RamRai read very beautifully and sweetly too. As he was reading the man tried to pull the needle out of the wood... "Let me just, uhhh hummm uhh, it wont come out!" But it was stuck, it wouldn't come out! The wood had gone back to being hard, just like normal.
The Guru said, "Ram Rai my son, please explain to everyone the meaning of what you just read." And Ram Rai replied, "Yes father, his section was rather eloquently explaining something you may well want to understand. The chatrik bird is famed for it’s particular behavior......" Baba Ram Rai's explanation was very convincing and everyone was so impressed. Guru ji then asked the boys to read another random section, which they did. Baba HarKrishan started reading, “Ik ong kār sat nam karṯa purakẖ nirbẖao nirvair akal murat ajuni saibhang gur parshad jap aad sach jugaadh sach hai bhee sach nanak hosee bhee sach". This time the man tried to take out the needle out of the wood and smoothly, it came out without any effort, he said, "Huhahah, Wahe Guru! Wahe Guru! How did this happen? It is so beautiful! Wahe Guru!"
How did the wood melt? Why did it become soft like wax? Why could the needle only come in or out when Baba HarKrishan read? No one else seemed too sure which of the boys would be the next Guru but a few people now knew. They saw with their own eyes which of the boys had more love. Later it became known that Baba RamRai had spiritual powers. He could read minds, he knew about people’s past lives, he could make correct predictions about when someone would die, he could become weightless & he could make jewels appear out of thin air, he could make himself invisible so one one could see him, and many many other things. Many people were amazed at him and thought he was a great holy man, but they were only looking on the outside, they weren't looking on the inside.
Baba HarKrishan’s love was his super power. His miracle was inside. When someone is loving it just melts your heart. HarKrishan’s love melted many people’s hearts, it melted everything around, it melted everything he touched, it even melted wood. Baba Harkrishan became the next Guru, when he was 5 years old. He became Guru HarKrishan, the child Guru. Can you imagine a 5 year old boy being a great leader of people? Guru HarKrishan was truly a great leader. And true power is something you never see, it lives inside.
