This story is about the power we have as GurSikhs. You see, when we live the path of Sikhi, we wake up before the sun, bathe and chant the naam with every breath, work hard and do seva…. We are blessed in many ways, sooner or later we may even gain spiritual powers. There were some great Sikhs during the time of the Gurus who wanted to us their powers because they didn't like that Guru ji was imprisoned.
In the time of Guru Arjan Dev a Sikh named Bhai Jaitha ji was so devoted he was even selected to be in the Guru’s panj. And Bhai Pirana ji was another GurSikh in the panj. Bhai Jaitha and Bhai Pirana were there when Guru Arjan sacrificed himself for truth. They were the few to see Guru Arjan Dev ji undergo horrible torture. It was extremely difficult for them to witness, they could not tolerate it, "This evil man who is torturing you Guru ji, I can destroy him! Lahore is under his authority, why don’t I just destroy the whole place too! Isn’t that right Pirana?" "Yes. I will destroy the capital city Delhi too, that’s where his imperial authority comes from!"
But Guru Arjan Dev wouldn’t let them interfere and told them to sit and be quiet. It was very difficult but they obeyed and stood by while their beloved Guru went through the worst. They were with Guru ji until the very end. When they returned to Amritsar they told everything to the Guru’s son, "Guru Arjan has left the world by merging into the river. Sri Hargobind, oh handsome prince, you are the next Guru." "Guru Arjan Dev said you must be a warrior, raise an army, and bring justice to those who have done evil…"
The young Guru Hargobind promised to fulfill the orders of his father. Eventually he also went to Lahore to face the emperor. Before he left he instructed everyone to obey the elders like his mother, Mata Ganga and Baba Budha ji. Then Guru himself ended up imprisoned in a fort, even though it was voluntary, as you know from the Bandi Chhor story. Bhai Pirana and Bhai Jaitha were again infuriated, "How dare emperor Jahangir even think to have Guru ji locked up!" "We can not allow these insults to our Guru! Enough is enough!" "We have the power to punish this emperor ourselves…" "But we know the Guru will disapprove of us using our powers…"
At that time Baba Buddha ji arrived from Amritsar with a command from the Guru’s mother who said, "Do everything in your power to make sure my son is returned to Amritsar as soon as possible!"
So the Bhai Sahibs then decided that the best way to make sure the will of Mata Ganga ji was fulfilled would be to scare the emperor by transforming into tigers and scaring him to death. That night they transformed into tigers and snuck into the royal sleeping chamber. The emperor cried for help… and the Guru saved him from the tigers. The next night they again transformed into tigers and again scared the emperor.
His advisors didn’t believe there were real tigers, they thought he was sick so they called many doctors to heal him, but none of them could help. Then Bhai Jaitha disguised himself as a healer and himself met with the emperor, "Actually you are not sick. I know what is happening to you. In the night two tigers arrive and sit on either side of you…"
The emperor was amazed and asked how he knew that, "I am the student of a great master, I know many things. I also know that when you are in trouble Guru Hargobind saves you, otherwise the tigers would have already killed you. The emperor was again amazed and begged to know what he has to do to save his life, "You have held Guru Hargobind longer than you originally agreed. So you have lied to the Guru. That is why the tigers are coming for you. You must immediately have him released. You must go to the Guru, bow to him and beg for forgiveness. If you don’t release him today, the tigers shall end you tonight!"
Deeply scared emperor Jahangir ordered the guards at Gwalior fort for the immediate release of Guru Hargobind. Bhai Jaitha’s tricks worked. Bhai Jaitha went to see the Guru in the fort as usual. But Guru ji knew what was happening and he didn’t look happy with Bhai Jaitha… Guru Hargobind gave him a cup and commanded him, “Jaitha, get up, go fill this cup at the river.”
Of course he obeyed. The river wasn’t very far away. He left the fort, went to the river, filled the cup, came back, and brought it to Guru Sahib. Instead of drinking the water Guru ji told him, “Now… go and put the water back in the river.”...He was surprised,
Again he obeyed, went all the way back to the river, poured the water back in, and returned to his Guru who asked, “When you first filled the cup did you see if the river decreased in size?” "There is so much water in the river, no, I couldn’t see any change at all." Then Guru ji asked, “When you poured the water back did you see if the river increased in size?” "The cup is nothing compared to the river, it didn’t change at all." Guru Sahib explained, “The shakti, the power of the Guru’s house is always flowing like a river. The river of the Guru is always full, it cannot be increased or decreased.” Everyone started to understand why Guru ji had sent him on this errand. It was to give a lesson about using his power. Guru ji continued teaching him, “You have received a small cup of power from your faithful service, your seva... But even with that little bit… you decided to make a huge spectacle.” Then Guru ji reminded everyone that he could have done any number of miracles to free himself, “The power that you now have… came from the Guru’s house. Doesn’t this house also have the same power as you? Think in your heart…”
"Yes my Guru, I have the power to transform into a tiger, and I truly believe I could destroy the entire city of Delhi… but you… you have infinite more power than I have… and… you could have ended all of this at any moment if you wanted…" Guru ji said, “You must always have permission in order to use power and I have not given you that permission. Now you will have to face a consequence for going against the ethics of the Guru’s house and acting outside of permission.” "I understand… I will humbly accept any consequence I must face... I must also express that I did get permission. Mata Ganga ji had instructed Baba Buddha ji that we must do everything in our power to speed up your release. Baba ji had agreed with our strategy. However, you know best and I will accept whatever you wish."
Guru ji accepted the flow of God’s Will and said, “What can I do… I will not deny Mata ji and Baba Buddha… so you will not have a consequence… but… this is not how we should act.” Then Guru Sahib taught everyone the way of the saints, “The greatest glory is to have power and not use it. One must tolerate the intolerable… the saints praise those who obey the Divine’s Will.”
We all have our own strengths. Some of us are physically stronger than others, some of us are intellectually stronger than others, and some even have spiritual power that others don’t have. We must always remember that whatever our power is… it is like a cup of water in the presence of a river. It is not for us to control the flow of power. The Guru’s power, and blessing, has its own flow, it is for us to follow along with it and live under Guru’s command.
The Guru says,
ਅਚਰੁ ਚਰੈ ਤਾ ਸਿਧਿ ਹੋਈ ਸਿਧੀ ਤੇ ਬੁਧਿ ਪਾਈ ॥
By eating the uneatable and tolerating that what is not tolerable one obtains spiritual powers, from controlling those powers one obtains wisdom.