Bhagat Pipa Ji
BHAGAT
PIPA,
one of whose hymns is incorporated
in the Guru Granth Sãhib,
was
a prince who renounced his throne
in search of spiritual solace. He
was
born at Gagaraun, in present-day
Jhalawar district of Rajasthãn,
about AD 1425. He was a devotee of
the goddess Bhavãni whose
idol
was enshrined in a temple within
the premises of his palace. The
goddess,
it is said, once told him in a
dream to visit Kãshi (Vãrãnasi)
and receive initiation from Rãmãnand.
Pipã went
to Kãshi, but Ramãnand
refused to see him in his gaudy
robes.
Pipã cast off his royal
apparel and put on a mendicant’s
garment. He returned home after
initiation and began to live like
an ascetic.
At his invitation Ramãnand
visited Gagaraun, and the raja
lent
his shoulder to the palanquin
carrying him in a procession. Pipa
now finally
decided to give up his throne and
retire to a life of seclusion and
meditation.
He wept to Dwarkã (Gujarãt)
where Lord Krishna, after the
Mahãbhãrata war, had
spent the last years of his life.
All
the twelve wives of.Pipa insisted
on accompanying him, but he took
along
only one, named Sitã, who
was of a pious temperament. He
selected
a cave for his residence from
where he daily walked through a
tunnel to
the temple of Krsna on the sea
coast. The temple is still a
popular place
of pilgrimage. and a fair is held
there annually in Pipa’s
memory.
After what he thought was a
personal encounter with the Lord,
he gave
up idol-worship. He and his
companion-wife started living in a
jungle.
After a period of penance, he set
out roaming about the country
to
serve the common people. He, along
with his wife, sang hymns and
prayers
of his own composition and
collected money to be distributed
among the
poor. He fed the mendicants and
treated them as God’s chosen
ones.
From an idol-worshipper (saguna
bhakta) Pipã became a
worshipper
of the Formless One (nirguna
devotee). As he says in his hymn
in the Guru
Granth Sãhib, the body
itself is the Supreme Being’s
temple
(káiau deval). One need not
make stone images of Him and burn
incense
or light candles in front of them.
Two collections of Pipa’s
sayings are known to exist, namely
Shñ
Pipa ji Bani and Sarab Gutaka,
both in manuscript form. Pipã
Math,
a monastery in Dwãrkã,
honours his memory.
Shabad by Bhagat Pipa
Within the body, the Divine Lord is embodied.
The body is the temple, the place of pilgrimage, and the pilgrim.
Within the body are incense, lamps and offerings.
Within the body are the flower offerings. || 1 ||
I searched throughout many realms,
but I found the nine treasures within the body.
Nothing comes, and nothing goes;
I pray to the Lord for Mercy. || 1 || Pause ||
The One who pervades the Universe also dwells in the body;
whoever seeks Him, finds Him there.
Pipa prays, the Lord is the supreme essence;
He reveals Himself through the True Guru.
Extracted from
Gurbani De Racheta by S Abnashi
Singh and Gurvinder Singh.
Published by: Gaganmai Thaal
International,Jandiala
Guru,Amritsar