HOW TO BECOME HAPPY?

Who does not want to be happy? But mere wishing for it will not solve the purpose. These steps if taken in the right spirit, are sure to bring happiness in our life.
• Oneness with our work: The people who do not perform their duties well, can never be happy. Is it reasonable to think that a student who is careless at his studies or a teacher not dedicated to his profession is worthy of expecting happiness? Only those people who do their work, however small, with single-minded devotion, deserve true happiness. How true are the following words of an eminent educationist, Dr. D.R. Vij , “ Be one with your work, enjoy doing it and see what happens. I assure you, you will yourself tell me the secret of happiness and success.”
Shirdi Sai Baba has put the same truth in the following words, “ Duty is God; Work is Worship; Even the tiniest work is a flower placed at the feet of God.” Work, when done whole heartedly becomes a form of worship. In the words of Swami Vivekananda, “ Whatever you do, devote your whole mind, heart and soul to it. I once met a great Sanyasi, who cleansed his brass cooking utensils making them shine like gold, with as much care and attention as he bestowed on his worship and meditation.”
Work and happiness are inseparable. In the words of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, “Happiness and work are really wedded together, for there can be no true happiness without the feeling that one is doing something worth while.”
• Helping the Needy: By working hard when we achieve something, we should not keep it to ourselves but should help others who are lagging behind in health, wealth, education and other necessities of life. This will be a true Service to Humanity. Only an egoless and selfless person can do such a pious job. Hard work alone can make a person a specialist and an expert who achieves stupendous success in his specific area of work. In the philosophical language he may be called ‘Good’ in his respective field, but if by shedding his ego he becomes humble and selflessly serves the mankind, he will virtually become an image of God.
The same truth is revealed in these words of Sri Sathya Sai Baba, “ There is no difference between Good and God. The selfish existence in the world is nothing, it is zero. If a good man gets above his egoism, one zero of good is dropped and he attains godhood.”
• Striving for Improvement: The glory of a person who takes the first two steps is sure to resound in the entire universe. This is a very delicate stage and he may fall into the grip of laziness. To come out of this, instead of considering himself perfect, he should strive for improvement because their always remains a room for it. These priceless words of Swami Yogananda provide a valuable piece of advice in this regard: “ When you are told you are good, you should not relax but should try to become even better. Your continuous improvement gives happiness to you, to those around you and to God.”
• Faith in God’s Grace: For all our achievements, we should give full credit to the Almighty Lord for nothing is possible without His eye of grace. We get abundant happiness when sense of doership leaves us. All our virtues are bestowed upon us by God as He is the sole repository of virtues. The following words of Swami Ram Tirtha if remembered well, will provide us a constant protection against ego, a great hazard in the path of happiness: “O Lord, it is not my Labour,
but your Favour that matters.” - HARGUNPREET SINGH.

MIRACLE OF LORD'S FAVOUR & MY LABOUR

As one of the toppers of Ninth class, when I stepped into Tenth class of Budha Dal Public School , Patiala, in April 2003; Medical reports brought the most agonizing fact to surface that I was in the tight grip of Leukaemia i.e. Blood Cancer. 22 weeks Intensive Treatment including Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy followed by a 3-year Maintenance Phase was given at PGIMER, Chandigarh. My treatment was completed in 2007 and I was declared fit and administration of drugs was stopped. As a precautionary measure I still visit P.G.I. for regular check-ups after every 6 months. Heavy intake of aggressive medicines render me too weak to appear in the Matriculation examination in March 2004. My father wanted me to take complete rest during the entire period of treatment but I did not want to lose one more precious academic year of my life. On my insistence he got me admitted in tenth class of Govt. Model Sr. Sec. School Pheel Khana, Patiala. Though my bad health did not allow me to attend the school regularly but whenever I went to school, I got my problems solved in vacant periods of my worthy teachers. With grace of Lord and blessings of all my teachers and elders, I scored 78.46% marks in tenth class. I also stood first in my school in +1 and +2 classes of Humanities group. After that in July 2007, I got admission in Bachelor’s degree of Multani Mal Modi College, Patiala where I made a Hattrick by standing 1st in my College in all the 3 years of my Graduation. In April 2010 Examination, I got 77.13% marks in B.A. Final year and total of 75.13% (First division with Distinction). Now I am doing M.A. Journalism and Mass Communication in Punjabi University, Patiala. Besides my stupendous and extraordinary achievements in academics, I also got First prizes in District, State and National Level Calligraphy, Drawing and Painting, Turban-Tying and Essay-writing competitions related to Gurubani and Bhagwad Gita. I had the honour of standing first among the candidates of Govt. Schools in ‘All India Essay Writing Competition’ organised by United Schools Organisation Of India in Aug, 2006. ‘Jeevan Shakti Award’ for the year 2008 was awarded to me by Sahayta Cancer Sahyog Society Chandigah in recognition of my miraculous achievements despite a horrible disease. Last year in Sep. 2009, I won the first prize in State Level Essay Writing Competition related to the life of Shaheed Bhagat Singh organized by ‘Shaheed Bhagat Singh Vichar Munch, Ludhiana. Spiritual atmosphere at home and my firm faith in God helped me tremendously in fighting the most dreadful disease with a positive outlook towards life. During my ailment, I studied the lives of great men, listened to the spiritual discourses of the holy men belonging to different religions on various T.V. channels. I shared the knowledge thus gained by writing more than 200 inspirational articles which were published in the special issues of prominent Punjabi Newspapers. A compilation of 108 such articles was published in my first inspiring book ‘Museebtaan Ton Na Ghabrao’. I have experienced that a problem when faced in the right way proves a blessing in disguise. - HARGUNPREET SINGH.

PARTIALITY & INEQUALITY IN DISTRIBUTION OF HONOURS OR PRIZES IN OUR COUNTRY

"ਖੇਡੋਗੇ ਕੁੱਦੋਗੇ ਬਣੋਗੇ ਨਵਾਬ, ਪੜ੍ਹੋਗੇ ਲਿਖੋਗੇ ਹੋਵੋਗੇ ਖਰਾਬ।", These words are true in today's context as in our country, there is a great partiality & inequality in distribution of prizes. About 95% of honours and prizes worth lakhs & crores of rupees are given mostly to the players or sports persons and the people related to Art and Culture like writers, poets, painters and intellectuals etc. who play an essentiial role in inspiring, educating & awaring the masses, are always neglected. Every field whether it is Sports or Arts is great & respectable, where one field strengthens our physique and body; the other field, strengthens our psychology, character & behaviour. Government keeps on making the rich sports persons more richer by again & again honouring them with lakhs and crores of rupees, but people related to Literature & religion are never given much economic & moral support or encouragement by our State or Centre governments. Where in Sports, only the person who plays the game is benefitted from it; but a great writer or poet brings revolution & awareness in the whole society. If we see at the school, college or University level, various financial benefits and honours like Role of Honour & College Color are mostly provided to the Sports students, who are generally careless and poor in their studies and never attend classes regularly. This is one of the main reason why our young generation don't like to study Literature, Religion, Ethics and moral values, as they know very well that there are not much chances of getting economic benefits in these subjects. This inturn, reults in materialistic & individualistic approach among the students who only want to earn huge amount of money, whether by moral or immoral ways. Hence, this kind of approach hinders the human happiness, peace and self control, and increases anxiety, tensions, negative competition and finally various mental and physical problems. Therefore, these problems become a big barrier & obstruction in our country's progress, peace & social growth. So, we all should think seriously upon this issue.... - HARGUNPREET SINGH.

WE SHOULD INTROSPECT OURSELVES FOR A MINUTE.....

ਫਰੀਦਾ ਚਾਰਿ ਗਵਾਇਆ ਹੰਢਿ ਕੈ ਚਾਰਿ ਗਵਾਇਆ ਸੰਮਿ॥



ਲੇਖਾ ਰੱਬ ਮੰਗੇਸੀਆ ਤੂੰ ਆਂਹੋ ਕਿਹੜੇ ਕੰਮਿ॥ - ਬਾਬਾ ਸ਼ੇਖ ਫਰੀਦ ਜੀ।


{ FARIDA CHAAR GVAAYA HANDH KAEY CHAAR GVAAYA SAMM ; LEKHA RABB MANGESIAA TUN AAHON KEHDE KAMM - BABA SHIEKH FARID JI.} Here in this shabad or sermon, Baba Farid Ji says that 4 parts or half of the day is lost by man in wandering here and there in unending search of more & more money, in other materialistic things & individualistic pleasures of life; and other hours of the day are spent & lost in sleeping and resting..... After the end of this journey of life, God will call for your account, and ask you, Why u came into this world, Why you took birth as a human being? just for doing useless, inhumane, sinful & immoral acts, instead of doing some good & kind acts of Service & Welfare?...... So, we should all think and introspect for a minute whether we all are walking on the right path of honesty, goodness and truth or just wasting our valuable and precious time of this life....- HARGUNPREET SINGH.

WHAT WE SEE, SO WE BECOME....

Some people say that we should not keep pictures of Gurus as this is Manmat, but according to me anything related to Gurus is Gurmat.... A piece of Art is deeply related to Spirituality & Divinity and Everything and every kind of Art has a great effect on our mind & psychology….. It's true that pictures of Sikh Gurus are not real & authentic but being an art lover and winning several prizes in drawing competitions, I personally feel that some of the great portraits & paintings of Sikh Gurus by great artists like Sobha Singh, Tarlok Singh, Amrita Shergill, Devinder Singh etc. put great impact on our eyes and mind and we feel soothing, peaceful & enlightened…..

That’s why Darbar Sahib(Golden Temple) and almost all the Gurudwaras & religious places all over the world have museums and art galleries….. Many old religious scriptures & writings are also comprised of many paintings & drawings of Gurus.... We should not think the particular picture as our Guru and should only believe in Shabad Guru i.e Guru Granth Sahib but for increasing our faith and especially for the children these photos are very inspiring, beneficial & motivational…..

When I was a child of 1 or 2 years and even was unable to speak properly I always used to see the picture of Guru Gobind Singh ji by Sobha Singh on wall in front of me and I still believe that that picture of Guru Maharaj has played a great role in instilling the religious & spiritual faith and beliefs in early days of my life….. If all Sikh children are taught about the Sikh history and sacrifices by our great martyrs like Bhai Taru Singh ji, Bhai Mani Singh ji, Baba Deep Singh ji, Baba Banda Singh Bahadur ji, Bhai Mati Das ji, Bhai Dyala ji and many other thousands of martyrs, with pictures or animation, it will have a long lasting effect on children's mind; but sad thing is that today a Sikh child takes interest in watching misleading actors & singers and listen to their cultureless and worthless songs, which are playing a negative role in taking away our youth from Sikhism.....

Morever inspite of placing & putting the photos of actors, players, corrupt political leaders and singers if we put religious pictures in front of us it will be more fruitful….. Somebody has said ‘What we see, so we become’, which means that if we see good things it will have a good impact on our mind & if we constantly see bad things it will have the worst impact….. Therefore, it depends on us what we like to see and Everyone is free to do whatever he likes or wants..... - HARGUNPREET SINGH.

BE HOLY ON HOLI!

Holi is the great festival related to our golden past and significant cultural heritage of our country and this should be celebrated not by using strong dark colours and damaging each other's skin or eyes & doing immoral & unethical practices under the shelter of it's name; but by becoming holy, awakened & leaving all bad habits and negativities behind us....

According to Gurbani: "ਲਾਲ ਰੰਗੁ ਤਿਸ ਕਉ ਲਗਾ; ਜਿਸ ਕੇ ਵਡਭਾਗਾ ॥ ਮੈਲਾ ਕਦੇ ਨ ਹੋਵਈ; ਨਹ ਲਾਗੈ ਦਾਗਾ ॥੧॥

ਪ੍ਰਭੁ ਪਾਇਆ ਸੁਖਦਾਈਆ; ਮਿਲਿਆ ਸੁਖ ਭਾਇ ॥ ਸਹਜਿ ਸਮਾਨਾ ਭੀਤਰੇ; ਛੋਡਿਆ ਨਹ ਜਾਇ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥" means that the person who is exceedingly fortunate is graced and dyed with the red colour of Beloved God's love; and this colour doesn't get dirty ever, nor any stain or blot can occur on it which could damage it. He attains his peace-giving Lord and automatically meets Him. The Lord sinks into his soul and then he can not leave & stay without Him.... - HARGUNPREET SINGH.

SOME FAMOUS SAYINGS OF THE GREAT ACHARYA RAJNEESH (OSHO)

*How can one become enlightened? One can, because one is enlightened. One just has to recognize the fact.
*Enlightenment is the understanding that this is all, that this is perfect, that this is it. Enlightenment is not an achievement, it is an understanding that there is nothing to achieve, nowhere to go.
*Yes, when you see for the first time, a great laughter arises in you - the laughter about the whole ridiculousness of your misery, the laughter about the whole foolishness of your problems, the laughter about the whole absurdity of your suffering.
*Meaning is man-created. And because you constantly look for meaning, you start to feel meaninglessness.
*You come to the master only in deep humbleness, because learning is possible only in humbleness. You have come to surrender, not to perform, not to manipulate, not to impress.
*When I say that you are gods and goddesses I mean that your possibility is infinite, your potentiality is infinite.
*You become that which you think you are. Or, it is not that you become it, but that the idea gets very deeply rooted and that's what all conditioning is.
*The day you think you know, your death has happened - because now there will be no wonder and no joy and no surprise. Now you will live a dead life.
*The modern mind has lost all capacity to wonder. It has lost all capacity to look into the mysterious, into the miraculous - because of knowledge, because it thinks it knows.
*If you can become a mirror you have become a meditator. Meditation is nothing but skill in mirroring. And now, no word moves inside you so there is no distraction.
Don't seek, don't search, don't ask, don't knock, don't demand - relax. If you relax, it comes. If you relax, it is there. If you relax, you start vibrating with it.
*God is a synergetic experience. Science can never reveal it, philosophy can never come to it - only a poetic approach, a very passive, very loving approach, can.
A really religious person has no theology. Yes, he has the experience, he has the truth, he has that luminosity, but he has no theology.
Life is not a tragedy, it is a comedy. To be alive means to have a sense of humor.
Be less of a judge and you will be surprised that when you become a witness and you don't judge yourself, you stop judging others too. And that makes you more human, more compassionate, more understanding.
Know the whole world is nothing when it is compared to knowing your own inner mystery of life.
*Drop the fear. Fear was taken up by you in your childhood, unconsciously. Now consciously drop it and be mature. Then the life can be a light which goes on deepening as you go on growing.
*Intelligence is a natural phenomenon -- just as breathing is, just as seeing is. Intelligence is the inner seeing; it is intuitive. It has nothing to do with intellect. Never confuse intellect with intelligence, they are polar opposites. Intellect is of the head; it is taught by others, it is imposed on you. You have to cultivate it. It is borrowed, it is something foreign, it is not inborn. But intelligence is inborn. It is your very being, your very nature.
*Become more and more innocent, less knowledgeable and more childlike. Take life as fun - because that's precisely what it is!
*To be alone is the only real revolution. To accept that you are alone is the greatest transformation that can happen to you. - HARGUNPREET SINGH.

ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦਾ ਚੈਂਪੀਅਨ :ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ

ਜੋ ਸ਼ਖ਼ਸ ਉਸ ਪ੍ਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੀ ਨੇਅਮਤ ਨਾਲ਼ ਨਵਾਜ਼ੇ ਸੁਖਾਂ ਦਿਆਂ ਰੰਗਾਂ ਸਮੇਤ ਦੁਖਾਂ-ਤਕਲੀਫ਼ਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਵੀ ਉਹਦੀ ਰਜ਼ਾ ’ਚ ਬਖ਼ਸ਼ਿਆ ਅਮੁੱਲ ਸਰਮਾਇਆ ਜਾਣ ਕੇ ਖਿੜੇ ਮੱਥੇ ਆਪਣੀ ਹਿੱਕ ਨਾਲ ਲਗਾਉਣ ਦਾ ਜਜ਼ਬਾ ਰਖਦੇ ਹੋਣ, ਉਹਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਹੌਸਲੇ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੀ ਵੱਡੀ ਤੋਂ ਵੱਡੀ ਮੁਸ਼ਕਲਾਤ ਦੀ ਗਰਮੀ ਅੱਗੇ ਵੀ ਕਦੀ ਬਰਫ਼ ਵਾਂਗ ਨਹੀਂ ਖੁਰਦੇ।ਸਗੋਂ ਕਈ ਵਾਰ ਅਜਿਹੇ ‘ਅਮੁੱਲੇ ਦੁੱਖ’ ਉਹਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੀਆਂ ਰਾਹਾਂ ’ਚ ਡੱਕੇ ਬਨਣ ਦੀ ਬਜਾਏ ਕਾਮਯਾਬੀ ਦੀਆਂ ਲਾਮਿਸਾਲ ਮਿਸਾਲਾਂ ਬਣ ਕੇ ਉਭਰਦੇ ਹਨ।

ਜੇਕਰ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਜਿਊਣ ਦੀ ਅਟੁੱਟ ਜ਼ਿੱਦ ਹੋਵੇ ਤਾਂ ਸਾਹਮਣੇ ਆਈ ਮੌਤ ਵੀ ਆਪਣਾ ਰਾਹ ਬਦਲਣ ਲਈ ਮਜਬੂਰ ਹੋ ਜਾਂਦੀ ? ਇਸ ਪੇਚੀਦਾ ਸਵਾਲ ਨੂੰ ਤਾਂ ਜਿਵੇਂ ਉਹਨੇ ਸੋਹਲ ਉਮਰੇ ਹੀ ਹੱਲ ਕਰ ਲਿਆ ਹੈ।ਸਿਰ ’ਤੇ ਸੋਹਣੀ ਦਸਤਾਰ, ਅੱਖਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਐਨਕ ਅਤੇ ਮੋਢੇ ਨਾਲ਼ ਲਮਕਾਇਆ ਕਿਤਾਬਾਂ ਦਾ ਭਰਿਆ ਝੋਲਾ ਲਈਂ ਜਦ ਉਹ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਯੂਨੀਵਰਸਿਟੀ ਪਟਿਆਲਾ ਦੇ ਪੱਤਰਕਾਰੀ ਅਤੇ ਜਨ-ਸੰਚਾਰ ਵਿਭਾਗ ਨੂੰ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ ਤਾਂ ਰਾਹਾਂ ’ਚ ਦਰਖ਼ਤੋਂ ਡਿੱਗੇ ਪੱਤੇ ਵੀ ਉਹਦੇ ਕਦਮਾਂ ਦੀ ਨਿੰਮ੍ਹੀ-ਨਿੰਮ੍ਹੀ ਠਕਠਕਾਹਟ ਨੂੰ ਸੁਣ, ਆਪਣੇ ਕੁਮਲਾਏ ਦਿਲਾਂ ’ਚ ਮੁੜ ਸਬਜ ਹੋਣ ਦਾ ਖ਼ਿਆਲ ਪੁੰਗਰਾਊਣ ਲੱਗ ਪੈਂਦੇ ਹੋਣੇ।ਅਜਿਹਾ ਹੈ ‘ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ’।

ਇਹ ਉਹੀਓ ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਹੈ ਜੋ ਅਕਸਰ ‘ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਟ੍ਰਿਬਿਊਨ’ ’ਚ ਪ੍ਰਕਾਸ਼ਿਤ ਆਪਣੇ ਪ੍ਰੇਰਕ ਪ੍ਰਸੰਗਾਂ ਜ਼ਰੀਏ ਮਹਾਨ ਸ਼ਖ਼ਸੀਅਤਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਬਾਤਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਆਪਣੇ ਅਲਫ਼ਾਜ਼ ’ਚ ਪਰੋਂਦਾ ਹੋਇਆ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੀਆਂ ਰਾਤਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਰੁਸ਼ਨਾਉਣ ਦੀਆਂ ਜੁਕਤਾਂ ਦੱਸਦਾ ਹੈ।ਉਹ ਤਾਂ ਖ਼ੁਦ ‘ਪ੍ਰੇਰਕ ਪ੍ਰਸੰਗ’ ਹੈ, ਖ਼ਾਸ ਕਰ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਲਈ ਜੋ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੀਆਂ ਤਕਲੀਫਾਂ ਦੇ ਲੰਮੇ ਮੀਲ ਪੱਥਰਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਦੇਖ ਉਹਨੂੰ ਪਾਰ ਕਰਨ ਦੀ ਬਜਾਏ ਥੱਕ, ਅੱਕ ਜਾਂ ਹਾਰ ਕੇ ਬੈਠ ਗਏ ਹਨ।1 ਅਪਰੈਲ, 2003 ਦੀ ਉਹ ਹਲੂਣਾ ਦੇਣ ਵਾਲ਼ੀ ਤਿੱਖੀ ਦੁਪਹਿਰ ਨੂੰ ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਦਾ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਭੁੱਲਾ ਸਦਕੈ ਜਦੋਂ ਡਾਕਟਰੀ ਮੁਆਇਨੇ ਪਿੱਛੋਂ ਇਹ ਗੱਲ ਸਾਹਮਣੇ ਆਈ ਕਿ ਦਸਵੀਂ ਜਮਾਤ ’ਚ ਪੜ੍ਹਦੇ 15 ਵਰ੍ਹਿਆਂ ਦੀ ਇਸ ਅਲੜ੍ਹ ਉਮਰ ਦੇ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ ਦਾ ਸਾਰਾ ਸਰੀਰ ‘ਬਲੱਡ ਕੈਂਸਰ’ ਦੀ ਲਪੇਟ ’ਚ ਆ ਚੁੱਕਾ ਹੈ।ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਨੂੰ ਜਦੋਂ ਇਸ ਨਾਮੁਰਾਦ ਬਿਮਾਰੀ ਦਾ ਪਤਾ ਲੱਗਾ ਤਾਂ ਉਹਨੇ ਇਸ ਅੱਗੇ ਗੋਡੇ ਟੇਕਣ ਦੀ ਬਜਾਏ ਆਪਣੇ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਦਾ ਇਹ ਕਹਿ ਕਿ ਹੌਸਲਾ ਵਧਾਇਆ ਕਿ ਜੇਕਰ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ’ਚ ਇਨਸਾਨ ਸਚਾਈ ਨੂੰ ਸਵਿਕਾਰ ਕਰ ਲਵੇ ਤਾਂ ਉਸ ਨਾਲ਼ ਜੂਝਣ ਦੀ ਤਾਕਤ ਵੀ ਮਿਲ ਹੀ ਜਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ।ਮਾਸੂਮੀਅਤ ’ਚ ਆਪ ਮੁਹਾਰੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਮੂੰਹੋਂ ਕਿਰੇ ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਲਫ਼ਜ਼ਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਪੁਗਾਉਣ ਲਈ ਤਕਰੀਬਨ ਸਾਢੇ ਤਿੰਨ ਵਰ੍ਹੇ ਉਹਨੂੰ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ, ਪੀ.ਜੀ.ਆਈ. ਵਿਖੇ ਕੈਮੋਥਰੈਪੀ ਤੇ ਰੇਡੀਓਥਰੈਪੀ ਜਿਹੇ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਕੋਰਸਾਂ ’ਚੋਂ ਲੰਘਣਾ ਪਿਆ ।ਇਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਕੋਰਸਾਂ ਦੀ ਪੀੜ ਨੇ ਉਹਨੂੰ ਬੇਸ਼ਕ ਜਿਸਮੀ ਤੌਰ ’ਤੇ ਬਹੁਤ ਹੀ ਕਮਜ਼ੋਰ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤਾ, ਪਰ ਉਹਦਾ ਹੌਸਲਾ ਜਿਵੇਂ ਦਿਨ ਬ ਦਿਨ ਮੌਤ ਨੂੰ ਹਰਾਉਣ ਦੀ ਹਰ ਫਰਲਾਂਗ ਪਾਰ ਕਰਨ ਨਾਲ਼ ਵਧਦਾ ਹੀ ਜਾ ਰਿਹਾ ਸੀ।ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਨੇ ਆਪਣੀ ਬਿਮਾਰੀ ਦੇ ਬਾਵਜੂਦ ਦਸਵੀਂ ’ਚੋਂ 78.46 ਫ਼ੀਸਦੀ, ਬਾਰ੍ਹਵੀਂ ’ਚੋਂ 74.6 ਫ਼ੀਸਦੀ ਤੇ ਬੀ.ਏ. ’ਚੋਂ 75.13 ਫ਼ੀਸਦੀ ਅੰਕ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕਰਕੇ ਲਗਾਤਾਰ ਆਪਣੇ ਅਦਾਰੇ ’ਚ ਪਹਿਲੇ ਸਥਾਨ ’ਤੇ ਰਹਿੰਦੇ ਹੋਏ ‘ਤੰਦਰੁਸਤ ਸਰੀਰ ਵਿੱਚ ਤੰਦਰੁਸਤ ਮਨ’ ਦੀ ਬਜਾਏ ‘ਤੰਦਰੁਸਤ ਚਾਅ ਵਿੱਚ ਤੰਦਰੁਸਤ ਰਾਹ’ ਜਿਹੀ ਨਿਵੇਕਲੀ ਨੂੰ ਸਿਰਜਿਆ।

ਸ਼ਹਿਰ ਪਟਿਆਲਾ ਦੇ ਅਰਜਨ ਨਗਰ ’ਚ ਰਹਿੰਦੇ ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਦਾ ਕਮਰਾ ਉਹਦੇ ਦਿਲ ਤੇ ਸੁਭਾਅ ਵਾਂਗ ਬਹੁਤ ਵੱਡਾ ਅਤੇ ਸ਼ਾਂਤ ਹੈ ਪਰ ਉਹਦੇ ਇਨਾਮਾਂ-ਸਨਮਾਨਾਂ ਦੀ ਤਾਦਾਦ ਜਿਵੇਂ ਉਹਦੇ ਵੱਡੇ ਕਮਰੇ ਨੂੰ ਵੀ ਬੌਣਾ ਕਰ ਦਿੰਦੀ ਹੈ।ਹੁਣ ਤੱਕ ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਸੁੰਦਰ ਲਿਖਾਈ, ਚਿੱਤਰਕਾਰੀ, ਦਸਤਾਰ ਸਜਾਉਣ ਤੇ ਲੇਖ ਲਿਖਣ ਦੇ ਮੁਕਾਬਲਿਆਂ ’ਚ ਤਕਰੀਬਨ 60 ਤੋਂ ਵੱਧ ਰਾਜ ਤੇ ਰਾਸ਼ਟਰੀ ਪੱਧਰ ਦੇ ਪੁਰਸਕਾਰ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕਰ ਚੁੱਕਾ ਹੈ ਤੇ ਉਹਦੇ 200 ਤੋਂ ਵੱਧ ਲੇਖ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਅਖ਼ਬਾਰਾਂ ਦਾ ਸ਼ਿੰਗਾਰ ਵੀ ਬਣ ਚੁੱਕੇ ਹਨ।ਇੱਥੇ ਹੀ ਬਸ ਨਹੀਂ ਸਗੋਂ ਇਲਾਜ ਦੌਰਾਨ ਵਿਹਲੇ ਸਮੇਂ ਉਹਨੂੰ ਸਾਹਿਤ ਪੜ੍ਹਨ, ਗੁਰਬਾਣੀ ਸੁਨਣ ਤੇ ਮਹਾਨ ਸ਼ਖ਼ਸੀਅਤਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਗੱਲਾਂ ਜਾਣਨ ਦੀ ਅਜਿਹੀ ਚੇਟਕ ਲੱਗੀ ਕਿ ਉਹਨੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਧਿਆਨ ਨੂੰ ਬਿਮਾਰੀ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਅਵੇਸਲਾ ਕਰਕੇ ‘ਮੁਸੀਬਤਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਨਾ ਘਬਰਾਓ’ ਇੱਕ ਕਿਤਾਬ ਵੀ ਲਿਖੀ।

ਹਰਗੁਣਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਨੂੰ ਨਵੀਂ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੀ ਨਵੀਂ ਸਵੇਰ ਮਿਲੀ ਹੈ ਜਿਸ ਦੀ ਰੌਸ਼ਨੀ ’ਚ ਉਹ ਭਵਿੱਖ ਦੀ ਕਿਤਾਬ ’ਤੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਸੁਫ਼ਨਿਆਂ ਦੀ ਕਲਮ ਨਾਲ਼ ਇੱਕ ਹੋਰ ‘ਨਵੀਂ ਸਵੇਰ’ ਦੀ ਇਬਾਰਤ ਲਿਖਣ ਦਾ ਯਤਨ ਕਰ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ।ਅਜਿਹੀ ਨਵੀਂ ਸਵੇਰ ਜਿਸ ਦੇ ਨਿੱਘ ’ਚ ਕਿਸੇ ਵੀ ਕੈਂਸਰ ਪੀੜਤ ਨੂੰ ਸਰਕਾਰੀ ਦਰਾਂ ’ਤੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਕੀਮਤੀ ਹੰਝੂ ਵਹਾਉਣ ਲਈ ਲਾਚਾਰ ਨਾ ਹੋਣਾ ਪਵੇ।ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦੇ ਗ਼ਮਾਂ ਦੀ ਸ਼ਾਮ ਥੋੜੀ ਲੰਮੇਰੀ ਜ਼ਰੂਰ ਹੋ ਸਕਦੀ ਹੈ ਪਰ ਅਜੇ ਤੀਕ ਕੋਈ ਅਜਿਹੀ ਸ਼ਾਮ ਨਹੀਂ ਆਈ ਜਿਸ ਤੋਂ ਅੱਗੇ ਸਵੇਰਾ ਨਾ ਹੋਵੇ।ਮੌਤ ਨੂੰ ਮਾਤ ਪਾਉਣ ਵਾਲ਼ਾ ਤੇ ਦੁਖਾਂ ’ਚ ਵੀ ਮੂਹੋਂ ਉਲਾਂਭੇ ਭਰੀ ‘ਹਾਏ-ਹਾਏ’ ਕੱਢਣ ਦੀ ਥਾਂ ਸ਼ੁਕਰਾਨੇ ਭਰੀ ‘ਵਾਹੁ-ਵਾਹੁ’ ਉਚਾਰਨ ਵਾਲ਼ਾ ਜ਼ਿੰਦਗੀ ਦਾ ਇਹ ਚੈਂਪੀਅਨ ਜਿਵੇਂ ਉਮੀਦਾਂ ਦੇ ਬੁਝਿਆਂ ਚਿਰਾਗ਼ਾਂ ਨੂੰ ‘ਜਗਦੀ ਸ਼ਮ੍ਹਾ’ ਦੇ ਖ਼ੁਆਬ ਦਿੰਦਾ ਹੋਇਆ ਬਸ ਇਹੋ ਆਖ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੋਵੇ:

ਦਿਲ ਨਾ ਊਮੀਦ ਤੋ ਨਹੀਂ, ਨਾਕਾਮ ਹੀ ਤੋ ਹੈ
ਲੰਮੀ ਹੈ ਗ਼ਮ ਕੀ ਸ਼ਾਮ, ਮਗਰ ਸ਼ਾਮ ਹੀ ਤੋ ਹੈ।

-ਵਿਕਰਮ ਸਿੰਘ ਸੰਗਰੂਰ
ਪ੍ਰਕਾਸ਼ਿਤ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਟਿ੍ਬਿਊਨ 26/03/2011 ਸੱਜਰੀਆਂ ਪੈੜਾਂ