24by7Article.com | What Does Satnam Mean?

In this article with Gurus kindness, I will try and tell you "The Truth, The whole Truth and nothing but the TRUTH, so help me God!"

On Guru Nanak Jis travels he met a group of holy men high up in the mountains. Through years of meditation and yogic practices they had mastered many supernatural powers. When Guru Nanak ji came to them they tried to impress him with their powers. To show how great they were. Once they had finished their display, they challenged Guru Nanak to show off his powers. The great Guru said the following in the words of Bhai Gurdas Ji the sikh scholar of the time of the Gurus.

Baba Nanak said, O respected Holy Man! Please listen to the Truth that I utter.
Without SATNAM (The Name "Truth") I have no other miracle.
I may wear the clothes of fire and build my house in the Himalayas.
I may eat the iron and make earth move to my orders.
I may expand myself so much that I could push the earth.
I may weigh the earth and the sky against few grams of weight.
I may have so much power that I push aside anybody just by saying.
But without SATNAM (The Name "Truth"),
all these powers are momentary like the shadow of the clouds.

Bhai Gurdas Var 1

A blessed Gursikh Bibi ji told us that she was blessed with divine vision of Dhan Dhan Guru Gobind Singh ji a few weeks ago (Jun 04). She said that she could hear the Khalsa all chanting SAT SAT SAT SAT.... Why was it that Guru Gobind Singh Ji wanted her to know that "SAT SAT SAT" was being chanted in the realm of Truth SACH KHAND where his divine vision came from?

It is interesting that 300 years into Sikhism that the majority of Sikhs associate only chanting of "WAHEGURU WAHEGURU" with Guru Gobind Singh ji and not "SAT SAT SAT". Only a handful of holy people that I am aware of including Harbhajan Singh Yogi USA, Dya Singh Australian Muscian, Sant Sheesha Singh India still promote SATNAM.

Otherwise, the word "SATNAM" seems to have been buried under centuries of different traditions within Sikhism introduced by countless religious leaders. Nowadays it gets translated as the TRUE NAME. And often WAHEGURU is added afterwards, so "SATNAM WAHEGURU" gets translated as the TRUE NAME IS "WAHEGURU".

However the phrase SATNAM WAHEGURU does not appear in Guru Granth Sahib Ji. To get to the real meaning of SATNAM we have to dig deeper. The following verse by Guru Gobind Singh Ji confirms what Bibi ji experienced:

Guru Gobind Singh Ji writes the following Dohira that is sung at the end of the "Sikh Artee".

"Aisay chand partaap tay
dayvan badhi-o partaap
teen lok jai jai karai
rarai NAAM SAT jaap"

After exalting Ad Shakti (God the Primal Power)
All divine beings were exalted.
The three worlds resounded with Hail ! Hail !
and the name (NAAM) of Truth (SAT) was repeated (JAAP).

When you rip away all the outer layers of Sikhism, underneath the uniform, the image, the history, the strange language and ceremonies you are left with a simple seed that it all started from. That seed is called "Sat Naam". Two words SAT and NAAM

NAAM:

Gods presence is everywhere, supporting all things at all times - in todays language we could say the energy structure of the whole Universe. That presence of God, of Supreme Light Energy Being is called the NAAM by the Indian mystics and Sikh Gurus.

Other people call it by different names and dont always associate it with God. New age people and Reiki practioners call it "Life Force", Indian Yogis call it the "Prana" , Chinese martial artists and monks call it "Chee", Christians call it "The Holy Spirit". Essentially it is the presence of God inside us and supporting absolutely everything.

SAT:

Means TRUTH. Meaning all we see around us is temporary, even we are just here like a spark emerging from a fire and disappearing after a second. The only permanent thing is Gods presence. So Gods original primal name that He chose for Himself was "TRUTH" or SAT.

The concept of Naam had been around well before Guru Nanak Jis time. But that "life force" or "energy" was not always associated with God. What Guru Nanak ji did was put SAT infront of Naam. He emphasised that this Naam was not just an energy or life force, but actually the prescence of God, of TRUTH, of SAT.

KIRTAM NAAM KATHA TERE JIHBA, SAT NAAM TERA PURA POORBLA
The tongue describes You using (various) praise names (eg HAR, WAHEGURU, RAM etc),
but the name "Truth" (SAT NAAM) is YOUR OWN original primal name.

Guru Ram Das. SGGS Ji 1083

Guru Nanak Ji teaches that God was in deep meditatation for an incredible amount of time (36 AGES). And He broke this deep meditation by uttering a word - a vibration - what nowadays we might think of as the BIG BANG. When God gave the first vibration to start the Creative process He effectively said "I am God, I am SAT (Truth)". Guru Nanak Ji wrote this down as "Ik Oankar Sat Naam" meaning "One God Named "Truth".

GURPRASAD

What God wants us to do is to go into deep meditation (smadhi) inside ourselves and join HIM in HIS deep meditation. When Guru Nanak entered the state of deep meditation (smadhi), he was blessed by God directly. God gave Guru Nanak Ji two things to give suffering humanity:

a) the SAT NAAM mantra blessed by God (called the "Gur Prasadi Naam") and

b) humility.

And like one candle lights another, Guru Nanak Ji would bless people with these two things.

Although the popular chant of "SATNAM WAHEGURU" does not appear in Gurbani, the following verse does appear twice. And describes perfectly what Guru Nanak Ji was doing - giving the NAAM of SAT with GUR PRASAD - Gods blessing that was coming through him.

"IK OANKAR SAT NAAM GURPRASAD||"
One God Named "Truth" by Gods Grace.

With Gods grace (Gur Prasad) the Sikh would meditate on the mantra SATNAM in utmost humility.

NAMASKAAR GURDEV KO SATNAM JIS MANTER SUNAYEA
I bow to Guru (Nanak) who announced the mantra of "SAT NAAM".

Bhai Gurdas Ji. Line 1 var 1.

The major objection I have heard as to meditating on SATNAM is that Bhai Gurdas also writes at the end of the first var, that WAHEGURU is the GUR MANTR, by repeating which ego is erased.

Yes , no doubts that Sikhs at the Gurus times did repeat "WAHEGURU WAHEGURU" as well. It was the Gur Mantra, it was important for erasing the ego. But it is not the NAAM. Bhai Gurdas ji does not write that WAHEGURU was the NAAM. WAHEGURU was not the GUR PRASADI NAAM that Siri Guru Granth Sahib Ji refers to.

"IK OANKAR SATNAM GURPRASAD||"
One God Named "Truth" by Gods Grace.

Repeating the Gur Mantr of "WAHEGURU WAHEGURU" will if done correctly help to erase ego. But at some point after that a person needs to be blessed with Gods Graceful Name of Truth - Gurprasadi Naam.

And that blessing comes through the holy ones. The whole of Siri Guru Granth Sahib ji praises the holy ones again and again. SACH KHAND is run by the holy ones. And you only enter SACH KHAND with the blessings of the holy ones.

Look at Baba Nand Singh Ji he meditated by himself for many years as a child. Then Guru Gobind Singh Ji came to him in a vision and told him to go and learn from Baba Harnaam Singh Ji. Even Guru Gobind Singh Ji being Guru, told Baba Nand Singh ji to go and serve the holy one and to learn Siri Guru Granth Sahjib ji from him.

And thats what he did, and thats where he got GUR PRASADI NAAM from. The first thing Sant Harnam Singh ji made Baba Nand Singh ji do was 150,000 repititions on Mool Mantar - which is effectively the longer version of Ik Oankar Satnam.

This is how Gods Gurprasadi Game works.

Dust of your feet,
Preeto