Category: New Paintings

“Whatever speaketh the animals, the fish and the birds, other than Hari they speak of no one else.”

– Guru Arjun Dev ji (Guru Granth Sahib, 262)

Sikh paintings of Guru Arjan Dev ji Maharaj have never radiated with so much spiritual energy as Bhagat’s original painting. Buy prints to express your love for Guru ji.

Artist’s Notes

This painting developed over time as the result of reading Guru Arjun Dev ji’s bani and feeling the emotions expressed therein. I was moved to tears by the love Guru Maharaj expressed for Akal Purakh Sahib so I just had to create this portrait of my Gurudev.

ਹਉ ਨਾ ਛੋਡਉ ਕੰਤ ਪਾਸਰਾ ॥ ਸਦਾ ਰੰਗੀਲਾ ਲਾਲੁ ਪਿਆਰਾ ਏਹੁ ਮਹਿੰਜਾ ਆਸਰਾ ॥1॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
I will never leave the intimacy of my Husband God. My Beloved Lover is always and forever colourful. He is my vital support. ||1||Pause||

– Guru Arjun Dev Ji, 761

ਨੈਣ ਅਲੋਇਆ ਘਟਿ ਘਟਿ ਸੋਇਆ ਅਤਿ ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤ ਪ੍ਰਿਅ ਗੂੜਾ ॥
With my eyes I have seen him, resting within each and every heart; my Beloved is the sweetest ambrosia.

– Guru Arjun Dev Ji, 924

ਹਮਰੀ ਗਣਤ ਨ ਗਣੀਆ ਕਾਈ ਅਪਣਾ ਬਿਰਦੁ ਪਛਾਣਿ ॥
He did not count any accounts of my past actions, after seeing my current nature.

ਹਾਥ ਦੇਇ ਰਾਖੇ ਕਰਿ ਅਪੁਨੇ ਸਦਾ ਸਦਾ ਰੰਗੁ ਮਾਣਿ ॥੧॥
He gave me his hand, saved me, and made me his own; forever and ever, I am enjoying happiness.
– Guru Arjun Dev ji, 619

I found myself listening to these shabads over and over as I painted. They filled me up with joy, peace and inspiration.

ਸਭ ਦਿਨਸੁ ਰੈਣਿ ਗੁਣ ਉਚਰੈ ਹਰਿ ਹਰਿ ਹਰਿ ਉਰਿ ਲਿਵ ਲਾਗੁ ॥
All day and night I chant the qualities of Hari, and in my heart, I become focused on the name of Hari, Hari, Hari.

ਸਭੁ ਤਨੁ ਮਨੁ ਹਰਿਆ ਹੋਇਆ ਮਨੁ ਖਿੜਿਆ ਹਰਿਆ ਬਾਗੁ ॥
Meditating on Hari, my body and mind are totally rejuvenated, and the garden of my mind has blossoms forth in lush abundance.
– Guru Ramdas ji, 849

Inspired by Guru Ram Das ji’s hymn, I painted a lush, flowering, garden, with free-flowing birds, as a metaphor for the state of Guru Arjun Dev ji’s mind.

Each element of the garden and each article that Guru Arjun Dev ji is wearing, has spiritual significance and is a symbol of spiritual ideas and of hymns from Guru Granth Sahib.

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“My salutations to the Adi Guru, to the Guru of all ages, to the True Guru, to the Guru Lord and Master.”

– Guru Arjun Dev ji (Guru Granth Sahib, 262)

My newest painting depicting Adi Guru – Guru Nanak Dev ji – is a reminder that through the Guru’s teachings we can illuminate the darkness in the mind. In this painting, Guru Nanak Dev ji carries and radiates Akal Purakh’s light, the way the sun radiates light and warmth on us all, and when we bathe in Guru Sahib’s warmth, we become warm ourselves.

Bhagat’s sikh art always captures sikh history and spirituality as authentically and as accurately as possible. His painting is a reminder to those beings, who are immersed in daily grind, to remember God at all times. Buy prints for inspiration to let God inside your heart.

The Sun is Consciousness
Adi Guru – Guru Nanak Dev ji is a mirror to my painting of Dashmesh Pita – Guru Gobind Singh ji. Guru Nanak Dev ji is portrayed with a Sun behind him whereas Guru Gobind Singh ji is portrayed with a Moon. Guru Nanak Dev ji tells us that both the Sun and Moon are made from the same Consciousness as we are, and that through the Guru’s teachings, this can be realized intimately.

ਰਵਿ ਸਸਿ ਦੇਖਉ ਦੀਪਕ ਉਜਿਆਲਾ ॥ ਸਰਬ ਨਿਰੰਤਰਿ ਪ੍ਰੀਤਮੁ ਬਾਲਾ ॥੪॥
In the Ravi, Sun, and in the Sassi, Moon, I see my Beloved’s light, totally all-pervading, totally one with everything.

ਕਰਿ ਕਿਰਪਾ ਮੇਰਾ ਚਿਤੁ ਲਾਇਆ ॥ ਸਤਿਗੁਰਿ ਮੋ ਕਉ ਏਕੁ ਬੁਝਾਇਆ ॥੫॥
By his grace, my mind has become immersed in him. My true guru has given me this understanding of my Beloved. (Guru Granth Sahib, 223)

Spiritual Mission
The first Guru of the Sikhs, Guru Nanak Dev ji was born in Punjab, in what is now known as Nankana Sahib, situated in modern day Pakistan. From a young age, he meditated a lot and in adulthood he set out to fulfill his purpose on Earth. Already trained as a trader, he travelled and traded, all the while spreading the message of Karta Purukh. He preached that to obtain the Creator one must learn to see the Creator inside oneself through devotional meditation.

Meditation Practice
Being a poet, a meditator and a teacher, Guru Nanak Dev ji described the process of meditation using rich metaphors and vibrant imagery.

In Pauri 38 of Jap ji Sahib, he writes –

ਜਤੁ ਪਾਹਾਰਾ ਧੀਰਜੁ ਸੁਨਿਆਰੁ ॥
Your ability to withdraw your Five Senses from the world is your Workshop. Your Patience makes you a Goldsmith.

ਅਹਰਣਿ ਮਤਿ ਵੇਦੁ ਹਥੀਆਰੁ ॥
Your Intelligence is your Anvil. Following the Vedas, Sacred Spiritual Texts, is your Hammer.

ਭਉ ਖਲਾ ਅਗਨਿ ਤਪ ਤਾਉ ॥
Blow through the Pipe the Fear of God, and increase the heat of the Body.

ਭਾਂਡਾ ਭਾਉ ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤੁ ਤਿਤੁ ਢਾਲਿ ॥ ਘੜੀਐ ਸਬਦੁ ਸਚੀ ਟਕਸਾਲ ॥
In your container of Love, pour in the molten gold that is Amrit, Timeless Quality of Consciousness, and mint the Gold coins of your Guru’s teachings.

ਜਿਨ ਕਉ ਨਦਰਿ ਕਰਮੁ ਤਿਨ ਕਾਰ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਨਦਰੀ ਨਦਰਿ ਨਿਹਾਲ ॥੩੮॥
Those who are looked upon kindly by their Guru, they find out how to do this method. And when they apply the method, they are liberated. (38)

Meditation is a process of withdrawing the senses from worldly distractions, and going inwardly with utmost patience and equanimity. In this timeless state of consciousness, you impress upon the intelligence of the mind, the teachings of the Guru and the Vedas, Spiritual Texts, to create something valuable, that is the minting of Gold Coins. The ‘Fear of God’ means to pay attention intensely and be awake and aware. This naturally increases bodily heat as many people who meditate sometimes notice.

Guru Sahib is describing a more advanced meditation practice however the whole process becomes easier when it is performed with love and devotion.

The Guru’s Teaching is Nourishment for the Soul
In this way, Guru Nanak Dev ji looks inwardly and sees the light of God inside, and he radiates this light into our lives through his teachings. He nourishes our soul the way the sun nourishes the trees, plants and all the greenery in the painting. He brings peace to our hearts and gives us wholesome rest in this tiresome world.