Detachment from Maya, the Illusion

By Darshan Singh Grewal

The word Maya has diferent meanings for various individuals depending
upon their upbringing, culture and religious belief. Maya can be described
as merely money, world of appearances, or constant change. It is
illusion, which means that the whole world of !arma " birth, growth,
decay and death " is #ust one big dream, a magic tric$, which seems real,
but doesnt actually e%ist. It seems real only because of the slowness of
our eye and the &uic$ness of Gods hand.'
i#au supnw (ru py!nw ()sy #g $au #win *
ien m) $+u swco nhI nwn$ ibnu Bgvwn * ,-./01
,Ta$e this world as but a dream. God alone is true, nothing else is.1
2very now and then, as an act of grace or good fortune or whatever,
Gods hand slows down a little and even if it is #ust for a moment, we see
behind this magic, veil of Maya. It happens to people in every wal$ of life.
3or some, it changes their whole life. It may happen in a 4ash ,li$e love
for our ten Gurus1 or may ta$e years of faith, patience, meditation and
renunciation. 5hat we have to appreciate about Maya is that we can
never hold on to an illusion no matter how solid or promising it seems'
#g rcnw sB 67T h) #win lyhu ry mI& *
$ih nwn$ i8ru nw rh) i#au bwl7 $I BIi& * ,-./91
,:y friend, the world is an illusion; it is li$e a wall of sand and lasts not
long.1
In laymans language, Maya is attachment to worldly possessions "
money, property or status. In other words anything which ta$es man
away from 5aheguru, the <eal Being or (lmighty, is Maya.
The whole spiritual path is a discovery of how life wor$s; how the
universe operates; the essence is to remember that we are wal$ing
around in Maya and to honor the rules of the game. 5e are merely
players in =is great play. (ll that we usually call real $eeps slipping
through our >ngers, so how can it be real?
iehu #gu D7ey $w phwr * &) swcw mwin(w i$h ibcwir * ,--9@1
,The world is a mountain of smo$e. =ow do you believe it to be a
reality?1
It gets bac$ down to acting out the movie. (t a theater, what is up on the
screen is illusion " in the sense that if we tried to touch the actors, they
are not really there. The e%perience is not what it seems to be, but there
is still a plan, plot and design. The story ma$es sense and e%presses a
message. It is an illusion, but it is a carefully crafted one " lifeli$e. (ll the
e%istence ,including death1 is indeed an illusion but it is a precisely
designed and lawful illusion'
nh i$+u #nm) nh i$+u mr) * (wpn cil&u (wp hI $r) * ,/9-1
,Aothing is born, nothing dies. =e =imself appears in a multitude of
roles.1
Bur attachment to worldly possessions starts as soon as we ta$e birth on
this earth. 5e derive pleasures from these attachments and many times
we cry when these are ta$en away by virtue of our Karma. 3irst of all, our
mother becomes source of security and pleasure; then toys, teenage
love, marriage, home, bigger home, lu%ury cars, se% outside marriage,
old age, grand children, retirement and >nally death bed, with life"saving
devices'
ilv +uC$I lgI i&<snw mwie(w (mru vr&wie(w *
eyh mwie(w i#&u hir ivsr) mohu aup#) Bwau d7#w lwie(w * ,D/-1
(s soon as the child is born, his contemplation for Waheguru is bro$en;
in4uenced by worldly distractions, he becomes attached to greed and
desire. Eove for worldly possessions develops and grows, getting us
increasingly attached to the love of someone or something other than
the ultimate.
Ei$e Maya, detachmentFrenunciation also comes in diferent shapes and
siGes. The Brahmin youth at puberty, when initiated into his caste status
and given the sacred thread, is taught calmness and detachment. The
Buddha tried to teach men to loo$ only on the decay and death and
sufering inherent in e%istence on this physical plane. Guru Aana$ did not
teach us to go up to the mountains and meditate day and night. Because
this blissful peace is a temporary state; return to the world must follow,
so the &uest is not >nished. The Guru preaches'
i$r& $ro, nwm #po, v:f +$o
!irat !aro, Aaam 6apo, Candd +hha$o
,=onest living in a household life, meditation on the Divine Aame and
sharing with the needy.
This is similar to 6esuss call to be in the world but not of it. This is the
union of busy actuality with central tran&uility.
5e can live a natural family life and feel all the natural feelings of love
for our family. Being detached is not cultivating a cool, aloof and uncaring
feeling. It doesnt mean we wal$ away from our loved ones. It also
doesnt mean we leave behind all the beauties of this world. Being
detached is simply refusing to allow anything to disturb our inner state
and our inner harmony. Being detached doesnt mean getting rid of
anything, it #ust means not holding on. In simple language, it can be
termed as detached attachment.
:any of us have learned to believe in God to enrich us to such a degree
that we have too much and end up spending so much time and energy
ta$ing care of the legitimate things of life that we forget the Giver and
shower our afections on transient world, instead of the Waheguru.
It ta$es a lot of more dedication to serve Waheguru when we are
prosperous than it ta$es when we are desperate. It may not be true all
the times. Bne lives in a controlled environment, where worldly
temptations are ta$en away from him. Sometimes even then his ignorant
mind gets so caught up in the earthly things " his craving for wealth,
house, car, #ob, parties and women. Those past pleasures shared through
the >ve senses become more e%citing, sharper, more vivid and ta$e him
into a far away fantasy land. (nd what is such craving in the end but a
line of thin$ing, a series of mental images ......which becomes a wrestling
match in the middle of his meditation? Then he has to pray for its rescue
through this Shabad ,divine hymn1'
ig<hu &i# bn !:f #weI() cuin !weI() $:dw *
(#hu ib$wr n +ofeI pwpI mnu m:dw *
i$au +7tau $)sy &rau Bv#l iniD BwrI *
rw!u rw!u myry bITulw #nu srin &umHwrI * ,9II1
,2ven if we renounce our hearth and home and dwell in the forests, living
on roots, still the passions will not loosen their hold on us. =ow evil is our
lower selfJ =ow shall we be saved? =ow shall we swim across the
dreadful ocean? Save me, B you (ll"pervading Eord, I see$ )our refuge.1
Kleasure is satisfaction derived from the things and persons outside us.
=appinessFBliss is satisfaction derived from the core of the deepest being
inside us. Because we get pleasure through the >ve senses, hence it is
more e%citing and high"strung than the difused self"induced thoughts
and feelings which bring us happiness. In short, pleasure is of the body,
whereas something &uite immaterial and impalpable is the source of our
happiness.
There is a materialistic serenity and a spiritual serenity. The >rst comes
from the possession of money, property, position or afection. The other
does not come from outward possessions but from inwardness. The >rst
can be shattered at a single blow, i.e., earth&ua$e, 4ood, >re, divorce,
hurricane, car accident or some terminal disease. Ao pleasure which is
brief, sensual and fugitive is worth e%changing for e&uanimity and peace
not even if it is multiplied a thousand times during a lifetimes course'
$:cn isau pweI() nhI &oil * mnu dy rwmu lI(w h) moil * ,L/01
,By giving my soul I have purchased the :aster. The Eord cannot be
obtained by giving ones weight in gold.1
5e meditate and pray very hard for a few days " and then &uit. Then
when some disaster comes, we ma$e a mad attempt to pray on the
M5ordN, all the while realiGing that, for some reason, we are #ust not as
strong as we ought to be. There is no such thing as an overnight success
in the process of self"realiGation. <eal strength and real growth comes as
you consistently and constantly $eep the 5ord before your eyes, in your
ears and in the midst of your heart regardless of what comes or how you
feel. !eep adding to your faith, meditating on it, confessing it, seven days
a wee$.
2ventually, our faith will be stronger than one ever dreamt of. Great
things happen when we continually dwell on the grace of God. 3aith wells
up inside us. Kut Waheguru on your lips or perform Simran without the
movement of the lips while attending to worldly duties. )ou will soon
begin to e%perience the happiness within yourself. This world will become
heaven and this very world will appear to be the abode of God.
So ma$e your own heart the shrine of God because that is where God
lives. This can only happen if the e%perience springs forth inside. This
e%perience is hard to e%plain. Something happens in your spirit when you
$eep on repeating Waheguru, Waheguru, Waheguru. Bne doesnNt
understand how, but it does. )ou dont have to ma$e it happen; it #ust
happens and when this has ta$en place, then the world is nothing but a
play of consciousness'
s7r# i$ri% imly #l $w #lu h7(w rwm *
#o&I #oi& rlI s:p7rnu 8I(w rwm * ,9.@1
,The ray merges into the Sun, the drop merges into the ocean. The light
merges into the light and Kerfection is attained.1