Prayer from the Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry of Swami Ji Maharaj

Prayer from the Sar Bachan Radhasoami Poetry of Soami Ji Maharaj

Lord, your humble devotee
offers this prayer to you.
It is a wave of the ocean of love,
as the current of unbounded love
has welled up in my heart.
I stand before you in humble supplication:
why am I so disconsolate, my Lord,
when I am in your court, under your blessings!
There is no giver like you; you have carried
countless souls across the ocean of existence.
But this abandoned sinner is still awaiting her turn.

Just as a moonbird pines for the moon,
the pearl shell for the swaanti raindrops
and the peacock for the dark cloud,
I am restless, 0 Lord, for a glimpse of you.

You are the lamp, I am a moth.
In your flame
I have burnt my mind to ashes.
I have met the perfect adept in you, Radhasoami,
you have transformed this helpless insect,
as does a bhringi.
You are the sandalwood tree, I am a snake,
taking shelter in you has soothed my mind. *
You are the ocean, I am a wave,
from you I arose, in you I am finally merged.
You are the sun, I am a ray of light,
from you I emerged, to you I have returned.
You are the pearl, I am the string,
never am I really separate from you.

Shower your grace on me now, Radhasoami,
you are in every heart, my omniscient Lord!
You are the moon, I am subject to your power,
on you depends the ebb and tide of my soul.

I am a little child,
you are the father,
you are the mother,
day and night I play in your lap.

I have made my eyes into an arti tray —
I use my eyelashes for the flag **
and light the flame of my vision.
I pour the oil of my tears of love
and wave the arti tray before you.
The reverberating melodies of bell and conch resound
with the enchanting music of veena and flute.
The kingri is played to the beat of the mridang,
the dholak and the pakhawaj play on and on. ***
The nectar streams in through a thousand channels
while the sky revolves like a spinning wheel.

The arti is now in full swing,
with the swaying movements of the arti tray.
The glory of this moment is beyond description,
as all the devotees join in singing.
Diamonds, rubies and strings of gems and pearls
are given as offerings.
An abundance of fruit and flowers
is placed before Radhasoami
as he presides over the occasion.
Both my body and mind are absorbed in his love
as Radhasoami repeatedly casts loving glances at me.

I have now completed my devotion.
Give us the gift of your primal nectar, Radhasoami!
The banner of love flutters in the sky
as the thundering melody of Shabd
rolls down from Agam. ****
__________

NOTES:

* It is believed that poisonous snakes are attracted by the soothing fragrance of the sandalwood tree and coil around its branches. Soami Ji uses the metaphor to stress the point that in the company of Sants the mind is pacified and loosens its attachment to the world;

** Flag: A small triangular flag which is fastened to a small stick, generally a bamboo splinter, and erected before an image of a deity in the arti ritual;

*** The veena and kingri are stringed instruments; mridang, dholak and pakhawaj are different kinds of drums;

**** Agam: The Inaccessible Plane, Third Stage of Sach Khand;