Guru Nanak says, "I absolutely love my Guru. For it does not even take him an instant to infuse divinity into ordinary humans."

And Guru Angad responds,  "Even if 100 moons grew, and 1000 suns rose, without the Guru it would be pitch dark."

The Guru Granth Sahib has many such conversations between enlightened beings.  It is wonderful to be sitting amidst these conversations. 

Here is a recording of this shabad. I completed this composition as part of celebrating Guru Nanak's 550th birth anniversary.  I really love the groove the Guru inspired me to create for this composition.  This is one of the shabads where I have played the bansuri myself:

Here is a recording of my daughter singing this shabad with me. I think she is 6 years in this video:

While I primarily use these, I have used studios to record with different microphones (Neumann, AKJ), software (Ableton, Pro Tools) and keyboards. I love buying good quality sampled instruments that can be played using my keyboard as a MIDI controller; my favorite piano is Eagle from Steinberg (part of Halion 6). 

While a lot of people who ask me this question want to replicate what I do in my studio. Its not the equipment that makes a difference. In fact, you can get much better equipment than this (and I have recorded with really good equipment in amazing studios, but to me it didn't make a difference). Its really the voice training and the love that goes into the singing, listening, production and mixing. Similar results as I obtain can be obtained just by hard work and perseverance, not necessarily using the equipment that I use.  

Here Emily Dickinson praises craziness; she says if an eye is discerning enough they would see the divinity in madness. It reminds me of Kabir saying “I know I am crazy, but I am yours my love!” in Jo Haun Baura. 

The Ādittapariyāya Sutta (Pali, "Fire Sermon Discourse") or, more simply, Āditta Sutta is a discourse from the Pali Canon, popularly known as the Fire Sermon. In this discourse, the Buddha preaches about achieving liberation from suffering through detachment from the five senses and mind.

The Fire Sermon was given by Buddha to 1,000 priests who were followers who wished to achieve enlightenment. Fire in this context representing desire.

"Then The Blessed One, having dwelt in Uruvela as long as he wished, proceeded on his wanderings in the direction of Gaya Head, accompanied by a great congregation of priests, a thousand in number, who had all of them aforetime been monks with matted hair. And there in Gaya, on Gaya Head, the Blessed One dwelt, together with the thousand priests. And there The Blessed One addressed the priests:

'All things, O priests, are on fire. And what, O priests, are all these things which are on fire?'

'The eye, O priests, is on fire; forms are on fire; eye-consciousness is on fire; impressions received by the eye are on fire; and whatever sensation, pleasant, unpleasant, or indifferent, originates in dependence on impressions received by the eye, that also is on fire.'

'And with what are these on fire?'

'With the fire of passion, say I, with the fire of hatred, with the fire of infatuation; with birth, old age, death, sorrow, lamentation, misery, grief, and despair are they on fire.'

'The ear is on fire; sounds are on fire...the nose is on fire; odours are on fire...the tongue is on fire; tastes are on fire...the body is on fire; things tangible are on fire...the mind is on fire; ideas are on fire...mind-consciousness is on fire; impressions received by the mind are on fire; and whatever sensation, pleasant, unpleasant, or indifferent, originates in dependence on impressions received by the mind, that also is on fire.'

'Perceiving this, O priests, the learned and noble disciple conceives an aversion for the eye, conceives an aversion for forms, conceives an aversion for eye-consciousness, conceives an aversion for the impressions received by the eye; and whatever sensation, pleasant, unpleasant, or indifferent, originates in dependence on impressions received by the eye, for that also he conceives an aversion. Conceives an aversion for the ear, conceives an aversion for sounds...conceives an aversion for the nose, conceives an aversion for odours...conceives an aversion for the tongue, conceives an aversion for tastes...conceives an aversion for the body, conceives an aversion for things tangible...conceives an aversion for the mind, conceives an aversion for ideas, conceives an aversion for mind-consciousness, conceives an aversion for the impressions received by the mind; and whatever sensation, pleasant, unpleasant, or indifferent, originates in dependence on impressions received by the mind, for this also he conceives an aversion. And in conceiving this aversion, he becomes divested of passion, and by the absence of passion he becomes free, and when he is free he becomes aware that he is free; and he knows that rebirth is exhausted, that he has lived the holy life, that he has done what it behooved him to do, and that he is no more for this world.'

Now while this exposition was being delivered, the minds of the thousand priests became free from attachment and delivered from the depravities.

Here Endeth the Fire-Sermon.

ਸਭ ਕੀਮਤਿ ਮਿਲਿ ਕੀਮਤਿ ਪਾਈ ॥ 

सभ कीमति मिलि कीमति पाई ॥
Sabẖ kīmaṯ mil kīmaṯ pā▫ī.
All the appraisers met and made the appraisal.


ਗਿਆਨੀ ਧਿਆਨੀ ਗੁਰ ਗੁਰਹਾਈ ॥
गिआनी धिआनी गुर गुरहाई ॥
Gi▫ānī ḏẖi▫ānī gur gurhā▫ī.
The spiritual teachers, the teachers of meditation, and the teachers of teachers -


ਕਹਣੁ ਨ ਜਾਈ ਤੇਰੀ ਤਿਲੁ ਵਡਿਆਈ ॥੨॥
कहणु न जाई तेरी तिलु वडिआई ॥२॥
Kahaṇ na jā▫ī ṯerī ṯil vadi▫ā▫ī. ||2||
they cannot describe even an iota of Your Greatness. ||2||


ਸਭਿ ਸਤ ਸਭਿ ਤਪ ਸਭਿ ਚੰਗਿਆਈਆ ॥
सभि सत सभि तप सभि चंगिआईआ ॥
Sabẖ saṯ sabẖ ṯap sabẖ cẖang▫ā▫ī▫ā.
All Truth, all austere discipline, all goodness,

ਸਿਧਾ ਪੁਰਖਾ ਕੀਆ ਵਡਿਆਈਆ ॥
सिधा पुरखा कीआ वडिआईआ ॥
Siḏẖā purkẖā kī▫ā vaḏi▫ā▫ī▫ā.
all the great miraculous spiritual powers of the Siddhas -

ਤੁਧੁ ਵਿਣੁ ਸਿਧੀ ਕਿਨੈ ਨ ਪਾਈਆ ॥
तुधु विणु सिधी किनै न पाईआ ॥
Ŧuḏẖ viṇ siḏẖī kinai na pā▫ī▫ā.
without You, no one has attained such powers.

ਕਰਮਿ ਮਿਲੈ ਨਾਹੀ ਠਾਕਿ ਰਹਾਈਆ ॥੩॥
करमि मिलै नाही ठाकि रहाईआ ॥३॥
Karam milai nāhī ṯẖāk rahā▫ī▫ā. ||3||
They are received only by Your Grace. No one can block them or stop their flow. ||3||

ਆਖਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਕਿਆ ਵੇਚਾਰਾ ॥
आखण वाला किआ वेचारा ॥
Ākẖaṇ vālā ki▫ā vecẖārā.
What can the poor helpless creatures do?

ਸਿਫਤੀ ਭਰੇ ਤੇਰੇ ਭੰਡਾਰਾ ॥
सिफती भरे तेरे भंडारा ॥
Sifṯī bẖare ṯere bẖandārā.
Your Praises are overflowing with Your Treasures.

ਜਿਸੁ ਤੂ ਦੇਹਿ ਤਿਸੈ ਕਿਆ ਚਾਰਾ ॥
जिसु तू देहि तिसै किआ चारा ॥
Jis ṯū ḏėh ṯisai ki▫ā cẖārā.
Those, unto whom You give-how can they think of any other?

ਨਾਨਕ ਸਚੁ ਸਵਾਰਣਹਾਰਾ ॥੪॥੨॥
नानक सचु सवारणहारा ॥४॥२॥
Nānak sacẖ savāraṇhārā. ||4||2||
O Nanak, the True One embellishes and exalts. ||4||2||