Guru Angad Dev ji visited his hometown of Harike one day. This place was close to Nange di Saran, Mukatsar. He knew many people in that village and they came to see him when they heard of his arrival. Guru ji set up his living area, along with the Sikhs that were with him. Many Sikhs came along with Guru ji. The people of the village heard of the glories of Guru ji and were amazed that the boy from their village was now seated on the throne of Guru Nanak Dev ji. Guru ji’s friends came to see him. They bowed and sat down. The leader of the village, the Sardar, the Chaudhary heard that Guru Angad Dev ji used to live in the village nearby and that he had become the Guru. The Chaudhary said: “he used to live here and now he has many powers.” When Guru ji was about 14 years old, his village was raided by Balochis (people from Baluchistan). Guru ji and his family then moved to Khadoor after that. The Chaudhary wanted to come and see Guru ji, so he sent a servant to inform Guru ji that the Chaudhary was coming. Guru Angad Dev ji was all-knowing and thought to himself: “the Chaudhary has a lot of wealth and is proud of his assets.” Guru ji asked the Sikhs to bring a stool for the Chaudhary’s sitting. The Sikhs went and brought a stool and placed it next to Guru ji’s bed. They placed a sheet on top of the stool for respect. The Chaudhary then came along with his men, walking proudly, wearing his plumed Dastaar and golden jewellery. Everyone came and bowed to Guru ji. The Chaudhary saw the stool and realised it was for him. He didn’t go towards the stool, but instead, he sat on the same bed that Guru ji was sitting on. He was full of pride being the Chaudhary. He was a fool and didn’t know the greatness of the Guru. He thought he was higher, being the Sardar. Guru ji saw him but didn’t say anything. He was speaking to his friends that had come to see him. The Chaudhary sat for a little while and then went back home. He didn’t understand the greatness of the Guru. He didn’t even bow. After he left, the Sikhs said to Guru ji: “this person was quite the fool. It was not right for him to sit on the same bed that you were sitting on. He didn’t even look towards the stool. After signalling him, he still went and sat on to your bed. He did not know what respect is.” Guru Angad Dev ji heard the Sikhs and made a comment in passing: “his beds and stools won’t survive; he won’t have anything left soon. He disrespected the throne of Guru Nanak Dev ji. The greatest kings can’t even survive after disrespecting the throne of Guru Nanak Dev ji. People who respect the great saints, they become great.” The Chaudhary’s wealth, assets and his glory began to diminish day by day to the point where he had nothing left. Guru ji then returned to Khadoor.
Guru ji’s personality was very calm. He was never stressed. Just as the water does not drench the lotus; Guru ji lives in the world but does not indulge in it. He remains unaffected by all the huff and puff of the world. He does not say good or bad about anything. He would stay focused on the bliss of the Aatma, Akaal Purakh. People who follow the “Baran reet” (the traditions of the castes: Brahmins: reading and teaching Vedas; encouraging and receiving donations; encouraging and performing yagnas. Kshatriyas: learning the Vedas, giving donations, holding yagnas, protecting the public. Vaishyas: learning the Vedas, giving donations, holding yagnas. Shoodras: to serve the other 3 castes. The 4 Ashrams- Brahamachaari- to remain chaste and learn the education from a Guru; Ghrist – to marry, have kids and earn a living; Baanprast- living in the forest and then Sanyaas- renunciation), they did not come to see Guru ji in the Sangat. Guru ji treated all castes the same. Everyone ate out of the same dishes, there weren’t any different types of dishes for the higher castes. There were only clay dishes. Guru ji was unaffected by castes and did not care for their traditions. They used clay dishes for Langer and the Brahmins did not like that. The Brahmins and Kshatriyas that held a fanatical view did not come eat in the Langar. They had bad karma; it was their loss. Guru ji did not care for their preferences. Guru ji did the Bhagti of Prema Bhagti (love). He did the Prema Bhagti of the Parmeshwar. He preached the Prema Bhagti as the highest. Guru ji was fearless and didn’t care what others said. For this reason, that Guru ji didn’t follow the Baran Reet, the fanatics did not come close to the court. They only bowed from a distance. They did not listen to the teachings and the wisdom of the Guru. The Sangat of Guru Nanak Dev ji would come from far and wide and have their wishes fulfilled.
There was a Chaudhary that lived in Khadoor. He had never heard of Prema Bhagti. He would drink alcohol and say bad things to everyone. The Chaudhary came down with epilepsy. He would get really worried when he had a seizure. He heard about the glory of Guru Angad Dev ji and came to see him. He told Guru ji about his illness: “I have heard that you are very gracious and everyone sings your glories. I have an illness which I ask for you to cure. I will then have faith in the glories that people say about you.” Guru ji heard the Chaudhary and said: “if you were to stop drinking alcohol, your seizures would go away and you will be cured. If you were to begin drinking again after I tell you not to, the next seizure will take your life.” The Chaudhary bowed to Guru ji and went back home. He let go of alcohol and was cured. He stayed happy after that. Till the time he didn’t drink, he was happy and peaceful. After a while, he lost his faith due to a vile mind and forgot the Guru’s words. Even though he witnessed the miracle of his cure, he lost faith. One day, a dust storm came and it began to rain. The weather got cold due to the rain. The wind was pleasant though. It was evening. The rain and smell created a pleasant ambiance with pleasurable temperatures. He had the wish to drink alcohol and called for it. The alcohol affected him as soon as he drank it. He became drunk. He went to his balcony to admire the rain and the weather. He looked towards the house of Guru Angad Dev ji and shouted out from his own home: “Oh Tappa (Saint)! Look! I have not followed your command. I am drinking and the rain is beautiful. How could I resist alcohol in such beautiful weather? I am happy like this.” Guru ji heard the Chaudhary’s words and smiled. Guru ji said: “I had told you what to do. You will need to be prepared for the seizures to return. I had tied the seizures with my command. Now that the command is not there, there is nothing stopping them.” In a matter of seconds, the Chaudhary was hit with a seizure and fell from his balcony. His head hit the ground hard and it split open. He died right away. His relatives then came and cremated his body. The Chaudhary was a fool and filled with ego. He was making fun of Guru ji and died right away. He was shameless and went to hell for doing so.
There was a servant in the Sangat that would live there and not do any seva. He wouldn’t even do seva after someone would tell him to. He would do things that Guru ji would tell him though, but not if anyone else told him to. One day, Baba Bhudda ji said to him: “it is best to stay in the Sangat of the Guru. Spend your time doing seva and Simran. This lazy body of yours is of no use. When you die, nobody will touch your body.” The person responded: “I will only do things that Guru ji asks me to do. I do not listen to anyone else. This is my determination.” A long time passed since the time Baba Bhudda ji talked to him. One day, he was sitting with Guru ji and said: “Guru ji, it has many days that you haven’t asked me to do anything.” Guru ji responded: “go and burn in fire. This is your seva.” The servant heard Guru ji’s command and headed towards the jungle to collect firewood. He gathered the firewood and lit a fire. As the fire began to roar, he got scared. There then came a thief running with his loot from somewhere. The thief asked the servant: “what are you doing?” The servant answered: “I have been commanded by Guru ji to burn in the fire, but I cannot do it.” The thief momentarily destroyed his ego and said: “I am a sinner. If I burn in this fire, my sins would be washed away. I will pay you with my loot in return for following the command of the Guru.” The servant got greedy seeing the loot and agreed to the transaction. The servant took the loot and money; the thief jumped into the fire and burned to death. A vessel came from heaven to take the thief’s soul. He was seated in the vessel with great respect for following the Guru’s command. He resided in heaven with happiness. By following the Guru’s command, his sins were washed away. The servant began to walk towards his home but the people who were chasing the thief came and saw the Sikh with the loot. They took him to the police. The people demanded that the loot be returned to them and that the Servant be hung for his crime. The police hung the servant right away as he was caught red-handed with the loot. The fool died without earning the words of the Guru. Those who have faith in the Guru and listen to his commands, they achieve a very high status. Those who fall prey to their greed and forego the command of the Guru, die and go to Hell. The Gurmukh achieves a lot of blessings while following the Guru’s words, with faith and devotion. The Manmukhs follow Sikhi but it gives the opposite result when they follow their greed. Look at the glory of the Guru’s words: the unfaithful Sikh was hung and the thief went to heaven.