Affirmation for the Soul
by Snatam Kaur
The sun was beautiful, shining warmly on the Los Angeles neighborhood nestled between the two busy streets of Fairfax and Beverly. I was using some free time between recording sessions on my upcoming children’s album to take a walk. One of my favorite things to do is look at houses and lawns. It’s a fascination for me, really. I love to see beautiful homes and gardens, and in LA there are so many that it is just pure entertainment. As I walked, I was enraptured by the beautiful white roses climbing up white picket fences, the perfectly manicured lawns, the fancy gates with pathway lighting, the exotic orange flowers that look like flamingo heads, and the beautiful windows and stone-laden driveways. I wove in and out of the quiet streets for quite some time, feeling serene and meditative, and then I took a turn and suddenly found myself right in the middle of one of the busiest streets in LA. What a shock.
There was traffic whizzing by, people dashing in and out of shops, cars honking, and garbage pails overflowing. Everything seemed sped up. I decided to enjoy the city vibe for awhile and went into a few shops, a shoe store, an Italian gourmet shop, and an incense shop. It was all quite fun, noisy and loud.
Then I turned the corner again and returned to the quiet neighborhood, which was just a block away. A man helping his daughter ride her tricycle passed me, and the birds were chirping. It was fascinating how the neighborhoods could change so quickly from one space to the next. I began to think about this and realized that we as human beings have the power to project our energy as we wish and to create the space around us. The chaos of a busy street just a block away can be completely forgotten in a quiet peaceful neighborhood because that was the intention and projection of the residents.
In our own lives, we have the power to create our environments through our intentions and projections. The power of mantra is just that: through these sacred vibrations we are able to project the inner essence of our beings into our lives and in this way change the space around us.
Yogi Bhajan gave us a beautiful mantra in English. We are putting it on the children’s album I am recording, so I’ve been singing it quite a bit lately. The words are: “I am the Light of my soul, I am beautiful, I am bountiful, I am bliss, I am, I am.”
These words are so simple, and yet so powerful. Many of us believe that there is a Divine energy guiding us, but to believe that this Divine energy is actually inside of us is a profound realization. My meditation lately has been to reflect on the beauty of my own soul, to sit in relation to it and be with it. I began to realize that my soul has come through for me many times, and has led me to do great things. Yet somehow I wasn’t relating to it as much as I could. I found that meditating in relationship to my soul and honoring its presence within me is very refreshing. It gives me a deeper awareness and appreciation for my soul. I believe that the soul is inside each of us, vibrating and, in essence, waiting for us to relate to it. We tend to think of so many things outside ourselves, and to define our lives by looking to the outside. I am finding that the true beauty of living this life is to be in the presence of your soul, to recognize its divinity, and to live in its grace.
This positive affirmation of Yogi Bhajan’s is incredibly empowering. “I am beautiful, I am bountiful, I am bliss” are such positive affirmations. Some people find it hard to say such positive things about themselves. If you are anything like me, you are your own worst critic. In concerts we sing this affirmation, and sometimes GuruGanesha playfully challenges the audience, “Even if you don’t believe these words, just this once, pretend that you do, and see what happens!” While meditating on these words, I began to be aware of what I was saying, and the more I stopped focusing on my thoughts, and just went into the feeling of the words and allowed my mind to be still, the more the words had an impact. For me, the vibration causes a shift inside me on a very subtle level. So I’ll keep meditating, and let’s see what happens! Every day is different. I feel that the most powerful way to heal ourselves is through the words that we say to ourselves. I believe that there is no one else on the planet who has a more powerful effect on you, than you.
So I invite you to chant this mantra, this beautiful English mantra given to us by Yogi Bhajan. He knew the power of words and masterfully put these words together. The effect is very deep. Enjoy.
I am the Light of my soul, I am beautiful, I am bountiful, I am bliss, I am, I am
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Snatam Kaur singing "Gobinda Hari" live in concert:
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19 Responses to “Affirmation for the Soul”
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Snatam ji
Thank you.
Antonia
Heard your beautiful Gobind hari.You sang it with full heart and soul into it.Please keep up the good work.Your article has the essence of Sikhism in it.You have understood the main aim of this life is to unite us with ourselves that is our sacred soul which is inside us and which is just waiting to be completely absorbed in God that is indirectly leading to us only as we are a part of this big universe which is His form.We are really impressed with this realisation.Thank you for inspiring the needy souls…
beautifully said !!
inspiring !!
gurfateh
Such a parallel Universe Snatam Kaur ji.Wonderful metaphor as we do the Western Ragini Jatha here in USA+ transporting the experience of Shabd Guru into a more mainstream venue for people who are not Sikhs.
I used to love those neighborhood walks through the streets of LA all the years I lived there.
Walks in New York tend to be more brisk and I find that instead of looking around me at eye level, I actually have to crane my neck to look up and catch the incredible architectural beauty of many of the buildings.
The power of living and working in New York is that the beauty is not so apparent within the dense neighborhoods and fast moving streams of people.
Being guided to find the beauty within one’s self becomes imperative and makes for a very fertile ground of planting seeds of the Naam through Kirtan which I believe is the ‘new Yoga’.
beautifully said
Thank you for the note, Snatam ji. I needed to read this message of self-forgiveness. Much peace and love.
Snatam Kaur Khalsa ji u r “star” women in the khalsa panth. You r caring in the right way with ur nice voice to Guru Religious Song, our new Youth sikh genration.
are going rong side i hope ur peacefull voice will help for them.
Thanks
DSDhillon from Punjab
Hi Snatam Ji
“Waheguru ji ka khalsa waheguru ji ki fateh”
You are having fantic views of life also they way you describes it is really really has a big deal of impact trust me.
I started reading it and i read 3 times, I enjoyed reading it and thought what could be the Thinking of
a person who wrote it, I am totally impressed by your composition.
YOGI BHAJAN IS GREAT ARD SO ARE HIS FOLLOWERS
“I am the Light of my soul, I am beautiful, I am bountiful, I am bliss, I am, I am”
Awesome Awesome Awesome Awesome Awesome Awesome
can’t wait to see you perform live…. will definately make to your concert in Ashville on feb 29th.
Respected Snatan Kaur ji,
Very nice article.I read your article for the very first time and hope will continue reading your different articles.
I liked the way you started your article and connected it with your main theme.Thankyou and May God Bless You.
Snatam Ji,
After reading your article with delight I thought that I would go to sleep chanting silently this mantra and fell asleep peacefully. The following day was spent in shear bliss. For once I lived more than only few hours with the full meaning of let Go, let God. Everything was perfect just the way it was.
Thank you and lots of love to you.
rooh di tassali ho gai
WJKK WJKF SANGAT JI!
Firstly my sister Snatam Kaur ji.. u are a true inspiration and your beautiful voice really helps me feel at peace with my inner self.
below is a copy of a email i sent to a close friend-i think it will benefit all.. it’s in relation to ang 1110 sri gru granth sahib ji..
hi again lol – can you see what guru ji is depicting here.. guru ji is comparing this lifetime to a night.. that’s how quick it goes.. but also it is described as a night as we are not conscious and awake in the present moment.. we are trapped in ego which is a dream like state where we only relate to shapes and forms.. ie that’s we keep getting reincarnated, our mind has taken over and over pastlifes has inhabited a personality of it’s own. it has the same habits, likes,dislikes,judgmental attitude and hence separates itself from the rest of the world..it thinks that it is one identity and the world of people is another separate identity.. when really in essence we are one and the same..if it wasn’t for our soul/vibration/energy/being/conscioussness then everything around us is dead, ie is illusionary and made up in the mind..
as soon as we take away all the power from the mind(the false i/we),by stop thinking or giving attention to the illusionary past or the hopeful future we will be present in the ‘now’.. the mind hates this and will do everything it can to attack you and make you think of meaningless thoughts over and over.. but thats okay coz as long as you monitor your mind and the way it throws random images and thought at you, then that shows you are aware of what it is doing.. and you/soul/being/consciousness is the silent watcher and the more you get in the habit of staying present the more you will naturally start realizing your true inner being which is limitless..which results in you slowly taking the power back from the mind and all that mental noise,that voice in your head, or all those images,forms and shapes will start reducing.. when all noise stops in your head and you do not identify yourself with your past experiences or hopes of the future you will be in the present moment of ‘now.. where you are already complete,whole,egoless,oneness,conciousness,life breath.. the only reality in NOW, don’t give the ego anymore power by thinking of past and future as they DO NOT EXIST. do not waste your life breath which is NOW by giving reality to past events.. they are just old ‘nows’, past reality’s that simply just happened.. they were meant to happen,, past karma.. stop your karma by taking shelter at guru ji’s sharan and think and meditate in the now!!!
The second watch has begun; wake up, you unconscious being!
Protect your riches, O mortal; your farm is being eaten.
Protect your crops, and love the Lord, the Guru. Stay awake and aware, and the thieves shall not rob you.
waheguru the hukam says it all!! wake up from inside your temple body, the mind is stealing all your breath of life!! do not suffer anymore in anxiety, guilts of past.. hope for a satisfactory future, fear of what may become of you.. give it up!! protect your breath.. protect the ‘now’ the only reality there ever is.. your farm/breath where good seeds should have been sown have been stolen by the panj chor, they distract us with thoughts of past and future while they steal our creative limitless breath NOW.
Stay awake and aware, and the thieves shall not rob you.
STAY IN THE NOW GOOD FRIEND AND YOU WILL NO LONGER BE A SLAVE TO THE MIND.. INSTEAD THE MIND WILL BECOME A SLAVE TO YOU.. THE SPARK OF GOD
THROUGH MEDITATION ON WAHEGURU.. YOURSELF.. THE GEMS ARE WITHIN YOUAS GURU JI SAYS IN ANAND SAHIB – STOP LOOKING OUTSIDE FOR SALVATION OR COMPLETENESS – VIBRATE ON THE NAAM – THE SUPPORT OF THE UNIVERSE AND ALL BEINGS.. CONSCIOUSNESS
nothing is directed at you persoanlly, i’m just happy ‘being’ and just want to express myself to you.. wjkk wjkf
Snatam ji .Your music and its vibration is intense and has been a mitivation for me always.
Excellent description in the blog about creating peaceful space.I strongly agree with you..May the Guru bless you and the world with the same experience.This world will be a peaceful place.
God Bless. Keep it up !!!
Wahegru Ji Ka khalsa Waheguru ji ki Fateh.
Hi! satnam kaur
Waheguru ji ka khalsa ,waheguru ji ki fathe
please display your link on the mr sikhnet
Satnam ji,
what to say about your music… i am just speechless..your voice is so soothing that it really bring peace to my mind, i cant dscribe the feeling i have.
thanks…. thanks for every thing :-) hope that some day i will be able to meet you. my best wishes are always with you.
waheguru ji ka khalsa, waheguru ji ki fateh.
ssa g to all
I proud to be sikh……………..
This is an awesome in depth blog – so glad to have come across it – thanks!