#zikhr

SIMRAN DEFINED: Guru Mantras; Repetition of names or thoughts; in Sant Mat, the simran of worldly thoughts is controlled through the Simran of the Five Charged Names, repeated by an initiate throughout the day and when sitting for meditation as a means of collecting the thought currents at the Third Eye Center; also used as a password of sorts to higher planes and protection from Negative Power influences;

"To get connected with the Sound Current, we have to take support of Simran -- we have to take support of the Five Names that are given to us. And those will help us to get free from the nine doors and come to the Tenth Door." (Baba Ram Singh)

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Today I explore the origin of Five Names of Sant Mat (Panch Naam Mantra or Simran Words) and the connection to the Sant Dharam Das/Kabir Line of Masters (the People of the Anurag Sagar, a Kabir/Sant Dharam Das sacred text).

In some branches of Sant Mat and Radhasoami, part of the meditation instructions includes the use of five special names. These particular Five Names serve as the mantra -- sacred names used during meditation practice and simran/zikhr (remembrance).  These names appear in the Sar Bachan Poetry of Seth Shiv Dayal Singh, (Soamiji Maharaj, a.k.a. Sant Radhasoami Sahib, founder of the Radhasoami Satsang).  The consensus is that Seth Shiv Dayal Singh had been given instruction about the use of these Five Names or Panch Naam by his initiating guru Sant Tulsi Sahib.

These Five Names are in fact used by the Sant Tulsi Sahib satsang based in Hathras. Prof. David Lane, accompanied by Prof. Mark Juergensmeyer, recalling a visit to India and an encounter with Sant Prakash Das of the Sant Tulsi Sahib Ashram or Mandir: "...The Mahant we spoke with in Hathras (1978) said Tulsi gave out the Five Names.... He was part of Tulsi's lineage."

So, who was using the Panch Naam Mantra -- these Five Names -- prior to the time of Sant Tulsi Sahib? It's an important question as it may shed further light on the identity of Tulsi Sahib's guru and the origins of this spiritual path called Sant Mat. If Tulsi Sahib did not invent the usage of the Five Names himself, then it's rather likely he was continuing the practice he had learned at the feet of his own Sant Satguru, reflecting an even older tradition of Sants. It would be most informative to know the identity of this earlier Sant Mat path that represents the "people of the Five Names", if you will, those who had these names in their mystic vocabulary during earlier centuries.

The Panch Naam Words Traced Back to Kabir/Dharamdasi Texts

One of the Five Names is nowhere to be found in the Sikh world, however, the third name -- indeed all five of the names of Tulsi Sahib's Panch Naam mantra -- are to be found present in the Sant literature associated with Guru Kabir and Sant Dharam Das. I can not say with certainty when these Five Names were first adopted by a Kabir Sant Satguru (or Sant Dariya's Guru, Sant Dariya, or Sant Tulsi) as a mantra (simran words) in this Kabir line of masters, but I will say that these names, which are associated with the inner cosmology and Sound Currents of the Inner Regions according to the Sants are to be found in certain writings of the Kabir tradition, and in other Sant writings that make use of the literature of this Kabir tradition. The "people of the Five Names" and "the people of the Anurag Sagar" are one and the same community: the Dharamdasis (Sant Dharam Das line of masters). This is the source-group and Sant tradition for the Five Names that existed in India prior to the time of Dariya Sahib, Tulsi Sahib, and Seth Shiv Dayal Singh.

In Divine Love, Light, and Sound, At the Feet of the Masters,

James Bean

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(This is from a section of a meditation talk on how those who have fallen short of the goal of meditation but are nevertheless still devoted have the protection of the Satguru and will be given further opportunities to advance on the path on the inner planes or in the next life if they don't complete the journey back to Sach Khand during this life.)

"For those who have religiously done their meditation, at least for an hour, hour and a half, and try to follow the instructions of the Master, for such souls the Masters come at the time of death and take them to the higher levels of Par Brahm. And there They keep these souls for some time. And for those jivas, or those souls, who have done seva and who are otherwise not attached to any worldly desires, even if they have not meditated, for such souls the Saints take them straight to Sach Khand.

"It is the affection of the worldly matters and the love and attachments here, which will cause the Saints to keep the souls at the levels below Sach Khand.

"So, therefore, the Masters teach us to do Simran. Because, by doing Simran and contemplating within, gradually but surely, our attachments and our pull for these illusory, outwardly matters definitely is reduced. And, over a period of time, we start progressing within."

"So, the time is good. We should use this time for doing our Simran and Bhajan. So, let’s close our eyes and get connected with Simran and Bhajan." (Baba Ram Singh)

Helpful Guidance on Simran Practice, The Repetition of the Names

"Simran bestows happiness, peace and bliss, and leads us to a state of super-consciousness. The repetition of any name or names of God is called Simran. Through it an extraordinary current of consciousness enters the body...

"Repetition should be done with one-pointed attention, and in due course a stage is reached, when Repetition ceases and the form contemplated upon manifests itself. This is the culmination point of Repetition. Repetition and Contemplation can be done, both separately or simultaneously...

"Simran should not be done in haste. It should be done slowly and with love and devotion, the Names being repeated clearly and correctly. To do it in haste or to regard it as an unwanted task, or to go through it merely as a routine, leads nowhere. If the mind becomes lazy while doing Simran, or the attention turns towards sense pleasures, one should repeat the Names audibly for ten or fifteen minutes *, so that the mind’s attention reverts to the proper place.

"The results of Repetition will be in direct proportion to the love and faith brought to bear upon it. Carry out the Simran of the Lord with love and faith. His Names have a great power. When done with faith, one feels intoxicated with joy, with the result that he forgets his body and himself and is aware of the Presence of the Lord. How potent and blissful is the Name of God, for it creates in the devotee a fast-flowing current of bliss, peace and soul force, and he gets truly blessed. To do Simran, it is not necessary to give up the world and its tasks. Carry on your duties and still keep your attention fixed in Simran.

"If you wish to be filled with the Grace of God, then you should banish all else from your mind. Leave everything else aside and cherish the Name of the Lord alone in your heart. As soon as you empty your mind of all thoughts by means of Simran, you will find the way to the Lord’s mansion."

-- excerpted from the, REMEMBRANCE OR REPETITION (Simran or Sumiran) section of, Philosophy of the Masters (Gurmat Siddhant)

* One can briefly, if necessary, repeat the Names out loud if one will not be overheard, and then, once concentration is established, revert to mental repetition (manas jap).