大象传媒

Good morning. Many of us will be travelling great distances to be at home with our families and loved ones over the festive period. The great exodus still has a few days to go, but I know that some people are already getting anxious about planning for the journey, wondering whether there will be train delays or a replacement bus service due to engineering works, what time to get to the airport, whether there鈥檚 enough antifreeze in the car and a spare tyre in the boot, or just working out how to pack everything into the bags and cases and where to grab some food along the way. The speed and methods of travelling have transformed beyond recognition over the last few hundred years, but the nature of travel and how to prepare for it remains relatively unchanged. Guru Arjun Dev, the Fifth Sikh Guru, gave careful thought to the precarious nature of travel in medieval times, and he composed a prayer of thanks in the late 16th Century which reflected that sense of anxiety that many of us have when we depart for a long journey. It describes how the Creator is always keeping an eye on us and giving us the protection that we crave. In his prayer, Guru Arjun Dev says 鈥淚 have meditated on the Almighty in my heart, and I have returned home safe and sound. Everybody is contented, and the perfect Guru has saved me. Oh Saints, my God is forever merciful. The Almighty takes no account from their devotees, but protects them as their children. I have clasped the Almighty鈥檚 name to my heart, and they have arranged all of my affairs. The perfect Guru was pleased and blessed me, and now, Nanak will have no further suffering.鈥澛� Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh.