Perhaps I am getting a bit grumpy and cynical in my old age.
A solicitor friend of mine suddenly seemed to have a religious awakening, spending all his life, till now, in a faithless oblivion.
He abruptly asked me how could Guru Gobind Singh be God when he actually killed people?
I replied that he was wrong on both counts.
(a) Guru Ji never claimed to be God and in fact he made it clear that anyone who worships him as such would invoke his displeasure.
(b) The term ‘kill’ is wrong. He fought and sacrificed his ALL for the maligned and the downtrodden. He took, head on, forces far beyond in numbers than his followers. He stood as a shield between the Mogul emperor, aided and abetted by the hill rajas, and the weak, downtrodden people of Punjab. Guru Ji did not kill, he meted out justice.
Does God kill? Who am I to answer that question! No one knows what the Supreme Being plans and does. But, He did create the universe and people come and go. They take birth, they live and they die. This is His Leela. Is he ‘killing’ us after our lease of life is over. It will be extremely naive for me to engage in this sort of talk.
I gave the same advice to my friend and suggested he should read the scriptures and history and only then come to any conclusions. He went quiet, either because he saw some validity in my thoughts or just didn’t want to prolong the conversation. Only he knows. He has in the past accepted some of my suggestions. I am hoping to find out in due course.
2 September 2016