It is the month of Maghar (mid-November to mid-December). In many places around the world, everything has become cold. The light is fleeting, the nights are long, and life slows down. In the natural world, too, begins a kind of slowness and dormancy, as plants become frost-covered and animals begin to prepare for hibernation. This is the season of pausing, of a thoughtfulness with which each day is passed, and of preparation for the eventual warmth that Spring will bring, distant as it seems.

Guru Nanak Sahib in Barah Maha says, this month is also good and ‘auspicious,’ this month also brings comfort and beauty, as long as the virtues of IkOankar (the One) are cultivated within. In the fickleness of changing seasons and temperamental weather, both in the external world and in our internal worlds, Guru Nanak Sahib reminds us that IkOankar is the only steady and eternal One.

We seek to connect with that One. In that seeking, we go through waves of connection, separation, and longing. We oscillate between these states.  We waver in our walking of this path towards the One, but still, we walk.

Guru Nanak Sahib reveals:

The virtuous seeker sings the virtues of IkOankar; and says, the stable Divine Spouse alone is endearing to me.

While the rest of the world will keep changing, in this weather, when things are cold and harsh, there is a reminder that we can become steady if we are able to savor the virtues of the steady and eternal One within. In that savoring, we connect with the One, the Spouse. In that savoring, we become like the One. In that savoring, we sing.

The beloved One is within, and so Love is within. We practice remembrance through singing—bursting forth with music and poetry that evokes feeling instead of cognition. We practice remembrance within the deepest chambers of the heart, where the flavors and tastes of that remembrance are welling up and being cherished.

In this season, we can care for these virtues of the One, cultivate them within, and be fulfilled by them. These virtues can nourish us even in the coldest months. They can bring us close to the One no matter our internal and external environments. We can chase away our sorrows. We can become permeated with devotion.

In the month of Maghar, Guru Nanak Sahib reminds us:

Devotion is not a deed that we do.
Devotion cannot be taught.
Devotion enters.

May we create the environment for Devotion to enter.
May we remember the steady and eternal One in this changing of seasons.
May the Wisdom-Guru guide us!