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I believe there is a key that allows us to swing open a door. What’s beyond the door? I’m not sure. But if I had to give it a word, I’d use the word ਅਨੰਤ (anant), or infinity. “The key to infinity,” it sounds like a movie. But what is infinity? What is ਅਨੰਤ? What lies beyond our door? We have no idea. Our minds aren’t able to comprehend infinity. Even the smartest scientists, the most powerful computers, can’t comprehend infinity. I urge you, dear reader, to try it yourself. Imagine the night sky stretching further than you can dream of. Imagine yourself hurtling through space and time, flying through the cosmos at the speed of light, your mind empty and full of bliss in a pure state of meditation. It doesn’t last forever, though. You need food, you need water, and most of all, you need a task to keep your mind at work. You see, we’re not built to understand infinity - we’re only built to feel it. Our minds only allow us brief, fleeting moments in which we feel infinite oneness. Moments when our minds are truly empty yet full of bliss, moments when we can feel the power of infinity.
In order to unlock the proverbial door, we must harness yet another force that we know nothing about. Yet another force, or perhaps a mystery, that the most powerful supercomputers can’t comprehend. There are a considerably large number of mysteries we don’t understand in our universe: gravity, the existence of demons and gods, the truth of how the human race began, to name a few. But, none of these are the mystery we must learn to harness. No, dear reader, the most incomprehensible yet most powerful mystery, what I propose is the key to our metaphorical door, is love.
Yes, you read that right. I believe love is the key to the door we seek to swing open. The power of which, by the way, is far more than our language allows us to describe. You see, humanity’s concept of love is found between husband and wife, mother and son, brother and brother. And, these are examples of true love, no doubt. But what of the love between man and his faith? Between a man and his Earth? Between a man and the rest of those who share his existence alongside him? You see, our chosen word, “love,” has manifested itself as a centered beam, with boundaries stretching no further than family. Boundaries that, despite their lack of logical existence, exist as strong as steel in our minds. Boundaries that, for whatever reason, we aren’t able to recognize the presence of.
Let me ask you one thing: where are the boundaries of your beam? Who, what, or where does your beam center on? For the vast majority of you, your answer is like mine; your beam’s boundaries extend no further than your family and a special friend or partner. There are others who receive bits and parts of your beam’s powerful light, but none that may enter the confines of the iron gates of those whom you share with either blood or soul.
But therein lies our mistake. When we think of those with whom we share blood, or share soul, we think of our families and closest friends and partners. But this is inherently false. We may share genetics with our families, we may share the intricacies of our individual souls with a select few, but blood and soul themselves run through the veins and hearts of every human being ever to exist! We share our experience of existence in this universe, the same ਇਕ (Ik; eternal oneness), with every other human, every other being on our planet. The most famous athletes, the most successful businessmen, the most downtrodden homeless share existence with YOU. They possess the same blood, the same soul, the same internal drives as YOU. Why have we allowed ਮਾਇਆ (maya; worldly distractions) to shift our focus away from the ਇਕ that connects us all?
Take a moment with me to imagine, dear reader, what could change if we expanded our concept of love to include everyone, and everything, that shares existence with us in this world. Not those whom we share genetics or the intricacies of our individual souls, but those with whom we share the universal collective soul of existence. Imagine what could happen if the iron gates that bind our individual love beams were stripped away, so that the beautiful, bright light was finally free to become unlimited, unbounded, and absolutely unstoppable. Perhaps there would be no more hate. No more suicide. Wars would no longer be waged for economic and political reasons, but against those who stop others from recognizing and striking down their own iron gates. We would stop categorizing the people we meet as either good or bad, and instead look on them as parts of ourselves we do not yet know. The world would no longer be about the success of the individual; it would be about the success of the collective, and the infinite love which powers this.
So, yes, dear reader, that brings us back to our metaphorical door. The door to Infinity, the rare, fleeting feeling we can’t understand but is felt during special moments of meditation. Infinity, the beautiful yet fragile state of mind that we all yearn to immerse ourselves in. Infinity, the limitless consciousness of existence, only accessible when submitting ourselves to love. But this love is not the love of just our family, or just our friends. No, this is the love of everyone and everything with whom we share existence. Everyone and everything with whom we share the blood running through our veins, and the soul residing within our heart. To swing open the door, to soak ourselves in infinity, it requires the demolition of the iron gates that bind our beams of love. To feel the most incredible feeling of ਅਨੰਤ for more than just a few seconds at a time, it requires us to master the art of love. But make no mistake; this is no easy feat. In fact, it is the noble work of an entire lifetime, the only journey that can’t be completed with luck, or with cheating and dishonesty. No, dear reader, this journey is the truest, most pure journey in all of existence, and so it is only natural that it is the most difficult. Only once we embark on this journey can we begin to unlock the door, and look out into the great beyond. Only then can we transcend the triviality of life and death, and simply just exist. Only then can we feel infinity. Only then can we feel ਅਨੰਤ. Or in other words, only then can we feel ੴ.
About the Author
Mohkm Singh
Mohkm Singh is currently an undergraduate student at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. Being an avid tabla player, Mohkm loves doing and listening to keertan as well as by contributing to fixing social injustices and world problems however he can to feel a sense of oneness. Mohkm believes that the fundamental concepts of Sikhi are oneness and love, and especially in today’s world with everything from social media to politics trying to divide us, we should use open mindsets and respectful discussion to come together and inspire love. He also loves learning about the role Sikhi plays in people’s careers, and how different people use Sikhi to inspire them in their daily pursuits. Besides playing tabla, you’ll always find Mohkm either on the basketball court or outdoors hiking and embarking on adventures, and you’ll be hard pressed to find him without a crazy laugh dancing on his face.
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