HIS AMAZING KUDRAT
The Gurus and Bhagats have used the word kudrat many times in Gurbani.
Originally, the word kudrat is of Arabic origin and it means the Power and Might of God.
In Turkish, in addition to the above, it also means the Omnipotence of God.
In Persian, kudrat denotes Divine Power, Potency to Create and Destroy, Supreme Authority of God, Creation, the Universe, all Nature.
There is overlapping of these meanings of kudrat in the three languages stated above. In Gurbani the word kudrat has been used in all three shades and meanings of these languages.
His kudrat, His Infinite Creation, and the underlying Divine Potency which resulted in His kudrat is to be viewed with vismaad i.e. awe and wonder. In Japji Sahib Guru Ji expresses this three times.
“Kudrat kavan kaha vichar; variyan na jaavan ek vaar.”
Guru Ji goes further and says, You are Formless, I bow to You, and Your Nature is always “Salamat,” Safe and full of Blessings. “Jo Tudh bhave sayee bhali kar; Tu sada Salamat Nirankar.”
At SGGS Angg 521, Guru Ji says “bissam bhaye bismaad dekh kudrat Teriya.”
Again, at Angg 563, Guru Ji declares.
“Tu Achraj kudrat Teri Bisma.”
At Angg 48, He is said to be Aware of everything that occurs in His kudrat.
“Aape vekhay sunne Aape hi kudrat kare jahaan.”
At Angg 143, Guru Ji says, apart from Fashioning all Creation, He also weighs their conduct and writes their destiny.
“Aape kudrat saaj ke Aape kare bichaar.”
At Angg 1280,
“Aape jagat upaaiye ke kudrat kare vichaar.”
He is not separate from His Creation. He does not reside in some seventh heaven, and drive Creation from there. Guru Ji says He resides in His Creation.
“Kudrat kar ke vaseiya soye.”
In every colour and form, indeed in every pore of Creation, He is the Life Force.
“Kudrat varte roop aur rangaa.” (Angg 376)
His Jote (Noor) is in all mortals.
“Aval Allah Noor Upaiya kudrat ke sabh bandhe.” (Angg 1349)
His Creative Potency is so Wonderous that He can Create forms in an instant.
“Anik roop khin me kudrat dhaarda.” (Angg 519)
He is Imperishable, Abhinasi and so is His Naam. All Creation however is perishable. He is referred to as Eik (One). Anything perishable is referred to as “doye,” second or two.
In Asa Ki Vaar, Guru Ji says “Aapine Aap Saajiyo Aapine Rechiyo Naao; Doye kudrat saajiye kar Aasan Ditho Chaao.” (Angg 463)
We must always acknowledge that it is His kudrat, and live in shukrana. If we lay claim to any part of His kudrat, it transforms into mamtaa for maya. To claim “this is mine, this is mine” is disastrous.
“Jab lagg meri meri kare tab lagg kaaj ek na sare.” (Angg 1161)
When the selfish grip on His kudrat is released, He Himself completes all tasks.
“Jab meri meri mitt jaaye; tab Prabh kaaj saware aaye.” (Ang 1161)
His Kudrat works with unerring precision.
In our small solar system, we find the planets, spin on their own axis and rotate around the sun at fixed speeds in almost circular motion.
If one of the planets were to become slower, or increase its speed, the spiral effect would destroy the entire solar system.
In the rotation of the planets on their own axis, Venus rotates backwards, yet He has put in such precision in His Kudrat, that the entire planetary system operates flawlessly.
Gurbani tells us that His Kudrat operates “tako taak,” precisely, without missing a beat.
At Angg 464, Asa Ki Vaar:
“Sabh Teri Kudrat Tu Kadar Karta Paki Naee Pak; Nanak Hukme’ Andar Vekhay Vartay Tako Taak.”
At Angg 1042, Guru Nanak Dev Ji declares that the Lord operates unseen with Perfect Precision in His Kudrat and we must observe, and be aware that He is the One operating and driving flawlessly His Kudrat.
“Gupt Pargat Har Ghat Ghat Dekho Vartay Taak Sabaiaya.”
His subtle working in His Kudrat becomes a learning for all of us and can inspire inventions. At Angg 141, Guru Nanak Dev Ji encourages us to look and to draw inspiration at His Flawless Workings in His Kudrat.
“Nanak Sach Dataar Sinakhat Kudrati.”
It was by looking and observing His Kudrat, that led to the invention of the radar as the radar sweep had to cover all objects going in one direction, and also in the opposite direction.
All creatures in His Kudrat have been made with precision and are masterpieces of engineering and physics. The most efficient use is made of matter and energy.
A small bird, will have a wing span with just enough to easily carry its weight, fly for certain distances, and the muscles within will effortlessly flap the wings with synchronized precision. Apart from inspiration, Guru Nanak Dev Ji has told us to look upon His Kudrat with awe and wonder – Vismaad.
As one browses through the net, you will find loads of inventions which were inspired by observing and reflecting upon His Kudrat.”
I list here a few examples where observation of His flawless Kudrat, gave humanity many of its inventions.
In 1941, a Swiss engineer, Mestral went to the woods with his dog. When he went home, he found burdock burrs stuck to his clothes and his dog’s fur. He decided to observe the burrs under a microscope and noticed tiny curvy hooks. From his observations of Nature, His Kudrat, Mestral created a fabric fastener we all know as Velcro.
A biologist studied a drawing of a humpback whale and thought the artist had made a mistake. Instead of protruding from the back of the fins, the bumps ran along the front edge in the drawing.
He decided to check further, and was astonished to note that the artist was right.
The row of warty ridges created tiny vortices which helped the fin to cut through water. It explained the outstanding agility of the humpback despite its size.
He added similar rows of bumps to turbine blades, and found that they reduced drag and noise and efficiency increased manifold.
The Canada based Whalepower Corporation has changed the shape of turbines around the world.
Maple seeds twirl in the air as they fall from trees. Their rotor like design creates a lift with their spinning allowing them to travel much further from the tree.
Lockheed Martin adapted this design for a single rotor drone. It had such a simple design with only two moving parts which enabled it to be easily miniaturised and is being developed for reconnaissance purposes in the U.S.
Bees buzz about a lot. When they return to the hive, they instinctively know what job needs to be done where they are and whatever other bees are doing around them. U.S. based Regen Energy adapted this swarm logic to improve the efficiency of energy grids. Instead of using a central system to redirect power loads, the company places load controllers at various places. They communicate by wireless and decide where power loads need to be redirected.
In His Kudrat, gravity has an unseen pull. A U.S. company has placed tiny sensors into blankets. These sensors exert a gentle pressure which calms the nervous system.
At Angg 938, Guru Nanak Dev Ji gives many answers to the Sidhs. They had posed questions to Guru Ji as to how one could remain detached from the attractions of the world. Guru Ji gave two examples.
First example was the lotus flower, and the other was of the duck. Both lived above water, and did not drown in it.
Similarly, if one lodged the Shabad in his suratt, he would remain detached from the world ocean, and cross over with the Guru’s Grace.
“Jaise jalh me kamal niralm murgayee neh sanne; suratt Shabad bhav sagar tariye Nanak Naam vakhaane.” (Angg 938)
Apart from the above, the lotus flower imagery is used extensively in Gurbani.
Scientists discovered that the surface of the lotus flower dispels dirt and water, and this self cleaning quality was dubbed the lotus effect in 1977.
In 1999, the German building company Sto, released an outdoor paint called Lotusen. When dried, the paints microtexture mimics the surface of the lotus leaf to repel moisture and dirt from exteriors.
Camouflage is used as a survival tactic by the military and by hunters. Camouflaged clothing and apparatus comes from observing chameleons, polar bears and other aspects of His Kudrat.
Plant leaves harvest energy from the sun. Princeton University took biomimicry further by adding leaf like folds to solar cells. Findings revealed that the leaf like cells generated 47% more electricity than those without folds.
Mosquitoes inspired the needles used in injections. A mosquito proboscis can easily penetrate human skin, often without the human noticing. An anaesthetic like substance in mosquito saliva helps them make their bite less painful. It was His Kudrat that inspired the design of microneedles and the use of mild gentle anaesthetic while using injections.
Sikorsky helicopters were designed in imitation of the flawless design and maneuverability of dragon flies. The flight system of these insects is a wonder of superb aeronautics.
There are so many other daily appliances we use which were inspired by observing His Marvellous Kudrat.
Gurbani tells us
“Teri Kudrat Ko Kurban.” (Angg 624)
Gurfateh
Manjeet Singh
November 28th, 2022.
