Dr. Partap Singh, the 96-year-old grandfather of Gurnail Singh, a noted Urdu translator, has come to see Maharaj ji. He reads a letter inviting Maharaj to visit Patiala to give a lecture at Patiala Public School in September. His ancient hands shake wildly but his mind is strong, and he somehow reads out the wildly fluttering letter. He also says he has found a very old book in Urdu on Guru Gobind Singh and wants to present it to Maharaj after photocopying it. He says no one knows who wrote it.

            Then Maharaj ji and Dr. Partap Singh speak with each other about decline in character in Punjab, with problems such as alcoholism growing. Maharaj says,

Guru Gobind Singh created such an atmosphere that there was no need to speak of these things then. He made it very clear: “Read scripture to hold your mind to that.” Now minds are empty and different ideas can enter. People are taking bad food into their mind. If character is gone, you cannot get it back.

After Guru Gobind Singh contemplated Mahakal, the Lord of Death, and brought hukam from God, weak people became strong, brave, of very high character. He said, “I have no enmity, no fear. I speak what Maharaj tells.” But now people have no time for the words of God.

 Gurbani is Light, under which our destiny becomes high. The history of our people’s character is so great, showing how to keep one’s thoughts strong, with compassion. Spiritual power is not to be mis-used. It is for compassion for people.

If a person always lives with God, there is one’s own thought but then His thought cuts across it. We don’t stop wrong action—He stops it. He says, “No! Don’t do this.” There is no bravery in us. It wasn’t because of bravery that I sat in tapasya as a youth—He was so strict.

He said, “Go bow at Darbar Sahib (the special room of Guru Granth Sahib).” [He showed me that] Guru Hargobind came and did Chaur Sahib [waved yak-hair whisk over the scripture with reverence] in such a way that lions were killed. How else to explain to an illiterate person like me how much to respect Gurbani [the revealed words enshrined in the scripture]? 

Another time my eyes were watering. The hukam came to clean all the pages of Guru Granth Sahib. When they cleaned Guru Granth Sahib, they found a tiny speck there. Once that was removed, my eyes stopped watering. Then my feeling about Guru Granth Sahib became so strong—that we should respect it by all means.

            Gurnail Singh’s wife asks Maharaj, “Didn’t you ever marry? Weren’t you interested in marriage?”

            Maharaj replies,

Twenty-four hours a day songs were coming from me in love and praise for Him [Guru Gobind Singh]. My state was neither mad nor sane. It was not a matter of bravery on my part. It was all Him.

Dr. Partap Singh remarks, “Rumi used wine as a metaphor for divine intoxication, but no one understands.”

Maharaj says, “The time is coming when people will understand all these things.”