Maya, The Illusionary Unconconquerable Force - God Alone is the Savior

Who is the Brave man, Who has conquered the Five Most Powerful Passions (MAYA)?

Maya is the Most Powerful Delusionary Deceitful Force implanted in Man, which none can conquer, except the Creator Who created it, when He comes to the aid of His devotees.

God is the only Reality that exists, nothing else. The Universe and the creatures are merely His manifestations. Man has been created by God in His Own Image; he is composite of Divine Light (Jot), which is All Perfection and Creative, and is covered by by the Material Body, which is inert and comes to life by the Divine Light, its varied organs have varied needs and functions, creates varied feelings, emotions, passions and instincts brings about phenomenal changes in one's behavior and thinking and forms the Self or Mind of a Person.

Man's actions are invariably led by the feelings, emotions and instincts of his MIND. Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji in Rag Asa, p. 351 defines Mind's thinking, as "MUN KI MUTT, MATAGAL MUTTA" ( Human Mind behaves like the Intoxicated Elephant). THE DOINGS OF MIND IS THE BASIS OF THE WIDESPREAD DISCONTENT, SUFFERINGS AND UNSEEMLY DISORDERS IN SOCIETY.

Sri Guru Arjan Dev in Rag Blawal teaches us -

"Without the Lord, nothing is of any use. Man is totally attached to the Enticer Maya; she is enticing him. 1 . Pause .
He shall have to leave behind his gold, his woman and his beautiful bed; he shall have to depart in an instant. He is entangled in the lures of sexual pleasures, and he is eating poisonous drugs. 1 .
He has built and adorned a palace of straw, and under it, he lights a fire. Sitting all puffed-up in such a castle, he the stubborn-minded fool, what does he think he will gain? 2 .
The five thieves stand over his head and seize him. Grabbing him by his hair, they will drive him on. He does not see them, being a blind and ignorant fool; intoxicated with ego, he just keeps sleeping. 3 .
The net has been spread out, and the bait has been scattered (Temptations); like a bird, he is being trapped. Says Nanak, my bonds have been broken; I meditate on the True Guru, the Primal Being."

Also -

"See how Maya dances its devil dance and yokes every one to vice. She entices away even the sun and the moon. When her ankle-bells tinkle, she creates unnecessary upsetting in the mind. She sets herself on making myriad gestures putting humans under her magic spell to beguile any one except the Lord. ......Persons involved in strife get intoxicated with her magic wine and are tossed about as on the stormy waves of high seas. Only the Lord's Saints are saved, as they cut the knots of Yama's noose. So Nanak contemplates Him alone, Whose Name sanctifies even the sinners."
(Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, Rag Sarang, page 1231, Sri Guru Granth Sahib)
"When I resolve to do a thing, this Mammon does not allow it to mature. Whenever I intend doing some good act and want to lead a disciplined life, this Mammon makes it that it does not happen. She wears many guises and assume many forms. She makes me restless to wander in different and diverse places. (1)
She has become the mistress of my house and makes me homeless. If I make an effort to abide in my house, she grapples with me. (1) Pause.
She has been sent by God as an agent, right from the beginning of life on Earth. She has conquered Nine Regions, all the places and inter-spaces. She has not spared even the banks of streams, the sacred shrines, the yogis and the ascetics. People have become weary of reading Smiritis and Vedas, and attained no peace of mind. (2)
Where I sit, there she sits with me. In all the worlds, she has forcibly entered. By seeking paltry protection, I cannot protect myself from her. Tell me, my friend, from whom should I seek protection? (3)
Having heard of the Teachings of the Satguru (God in Man), I sought His help. The Guru has implanted God's Name within me as His instructions. I now abide in my own home and sing the Praises of the Infinite Lord. Nanak has met his Lord and has become carefree. The house is my own and she is my mistress. She is my hand maiden and the Guru has made me, the Lord's Courtier (His Own)."
(Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, Rag Asa, page 371, Sri Guru Granth Sahib)
"If we associate with the Guru (God's Light in us), we can discern the Truth and our strife can be brought to an end. He, the Lord Who pervades every heart, is our Master. (1)
No one can be liberarted by preacticing meritorious deeds, try he may, verily without the Guru's Light, darkness cannot be removed in him. One may deliberate on this and draw his conclusions (1) Pause.
Those who are blind due to their darkened vision and are completely devoid of intellect, what can one say of them? Without the Light of the Guru one cannot see the Path. Then how he leads his life? (2)
He calls false the truth, and does not know what is Truth. It is the wonder of this age, that a Blind one is called the seer! (3)
Those found sleeping in Maya are called Awakened. And those who see reality and are Awake, are called in sleep. Those who are leading a spiritual life are called dead ones, and the really dead ones (in love with Maya) are not mourned. (4)
Those who come to self realization, he calls them as lost ones, and those who go astray toward material world, are called coming to their selves. He calls another's property as his own and as regards what is his own, he does not like. (5)
What is sweet, he calls it bitter and the bitter he calls it sweet. He slanders those who are imbued with Lord's Love. Such is what I have seen in this Dark Age. (6)
He serves the handmaiden, but does not see the Master. By churning the pool of water, no one can get butter. (7)
O Nanak, one who realizes his own self, he finds God there, Who is Infinite and he becomes one with Him. One who gets such an understanding, I respectfully bow to him as my teacher. (8)
God pervades everywhere and is in all. It is He Who has deluded the mortals who go astray. This mystery one comes to understand, when His Grace dawns upon him. (9) 2.18"
(Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, Rag Gauri, Astpadi, page 229, Sri Guru Granth Sahib)
"Now my mind has snapped its contacts with the five *passions (lust, wrath, avarice, attachment and pride). My mind is in bliss on seeing the vision of God within me, and I find release from the five passions (1) Pause.
To reach the spot where God abides within me is very hard. Hard, too hard, to reach where the Treasure of God's Name can be found. This spot is guarded on all sides by the warring desires. It is a deep pit, whereto the hand of the mind does not reach. The companionship of the saintly persons helped me (my mind made the advance) and I robbed the pit (throwing aside the passions). (1)
I have now come upon the Inexhaustible Treasure (of God), the Priceless Jewel of His Name. Nanak says: When God became Merciful to me, then I began to drink mouthfuls of His Nectar Name. (2)"
(Sri Guru Arjan Dev Ji, Rag Sarang, page 1210, Sri Guru Granth Sahib)

* Guru Arjan Dev has defined the Five Instinctual Passions as under, which are the part of Invincible Maya -

  1. Attachment -

  2. "You are invincible hero of the battle field. You crush even the very powerful ones. You fascinate even the heavenly messengers, celestial musicians, gods, mortals, beasts and birds."
  3. Lust -

  4. "O Lust, you make the mortals land in hell and make them wander in many species. You steal the heart, pervade in the three spheres and destroy one's meditations, penances and virtues. For the momentary pleasure you provide, make the mortal poor and unsteady. You exist in all, high and low alike."
  5. Wrath -

  6. "O wrath, you are the root of all strife. Compassion does not ever arise, when you are there. You take sinful mortals in your power, when they dance like monkeys. In your association, man is debased and the Death Courier chastises him with various punishments."
  7. Avarice -

  8. "O Greed, you have clung even to the great and by your waves play many a prank.With your affliction, the persons run amuck and greatly wobble in various manners. You have caused persons to have no respect neither for the friends, nor for the faith, nor relations, nor mother and father. You make man do what he should not do. You make man eat, what he should not eat. You make him build, what he should not build. O, such is your reputation!"
  9. Pride -

  10. "O self conceit, the root cause of all sins. You are the sole cause of repeated births and deaths. You cause man to abandon his friends, hold fast to enemies and spread many illusions. You make mortals weary of their repeated comings and goings and undergoing much pain and pleasure to them. You make one wander in the terrible wilderness of doubt and contact supremely annoying and incurable ailments."
    (Guru Arjan Dev, Sehaskriti Sloks, page 1358, SGGS)
How can we rid ourselves of the effect of Maya? This is totally dependent on His Grace to bless us to live in the company of saints and learned ones to know the reality of the things, to love Him and live with Him by reflecting our mind on Him present within us (Sat Guru). With His Blessings we offer prayers to Him in all love and humility, and merge our tiny conscious self (Mind) in His All pervading Spirit in us. The two structures in this union become one, now it is all He and we live in Him. It is again stressed that it all depends upon His Will, when His Grace dawns on us and He blesses us with His Love, and we in remembrance of Him, find union. So long we remain ignorant of this hard reality and spend our life as self centered persons, we continue to fall from one pit to another pit. This all happens as He Wills, for it is He Who created both Good and Evil, and Evil is necessary to fight with, to evolve our personality. Evil glorifies Goodness. Evil serves the necessary purpose, and is according to His Will.

Guru Amar Das, the 3rd Nanak, in a Slok in Gujri Ki Var, page 510, SGGS, states -

"Maya is a she-serpent, which has allured and captivated the whole world. He, who runs after her and serves her, she devours him. The God-man is like a snake charmer, who tramples and crushes her under his feet. Nanak says: they alone are saved , who remain absorbed in the True Lord's love."

Guru Gobind Singh in his Composition Jaap, Pauri 15 teaches us -

"It is God, Who enjoys the material wealth of the world (Maya), as He is present in Complete Form in every creature. Since God is Formless (no material body), therefore, He does not allow Himself to be destroyed, while enjoying the worldly things."

God-men live with God present in them, thus they ever remain full of vigor and strength till the end of their earthly life; material things (Maya) and the age have no ill effect on them.

From the foregoing account, we can state that GOD alone exists in varied forms and is the only DOER. whatever god wills, that alone comes to pass. The Duality of the material body in Man, separates him from the Divine, and his Mind which has the material Base, gives him a separate entity and identity. Man's defective thinking and approaches lead him in doing illusionary acts, as what he thinks and aims at, invariably does not take place but the opposing results are attained. Still under false perception and in order to satisfy his Greed, takes on Politics as his creed, as he considers that the acquisition of the material POWER WILL ONLY SOLVE ALL HIS PROBLEMS. THE POWER HE RUNS AFTER, PROVES DESTRUCTIVE AND DESTROYS HIM TOTALLY.