First of all it is important to know the meaning of Saibhan and then to understand it.
Meaning- ਸੈਭੰ or Siobhan means being by itself, self-existing or existing by itself and
Definition-The attribute Saibhan is an adjective and it means that the truth is self–existing, self- motivated and self-radiated. It did not come into existence by creation or procreation. Not that, it was not born, it was not created as well. It always existed and continues to exist in its own right. It never came into existence as it was always there. It exists by itself because it is the ultimate reality in “absolute terms”, beyond which there is nothing that is “more ultimate” than it is. It is the most reduced and the most sublimated form of the tangible reality, which is not reducible any further to anything else because it has reached the ultimate limit of sublimation. It is the ultimate cause of all creation; therefore, it exists eternally without a beginning and without an end.
Need for Internalizing- It is very difficult to internalize Guru Nanak’s concept of ‘saibhan’. It requires a lot of effort to comprehend an existence, which is permanently there without ever taking a birth and without ever meeting an end. The reason for it is that human beings and their minds are conditioned by the finite considerations of the finite world they are living in. They always see things coming into existence only by production and reproduction. They “see” nothing that exists, but was not created or procreated. For them there is apparently nothing in this world that does not change and is not subject to wear and tear. They are only exposed to a changeable reality, which is accessible to human perception within the framework of its own laws and limitations.
Production and Perception- Everybody knows that inanimate objects like chair, table, house, car, road etc. are made by man. The living beings belonging to various species like Homo sapiens, reptiles, avian, fish etc. are reproduced in various ways and they are born to die. Various forms of vegetable growth like algae, bushes, plants, trees, also sprout from known sources like protein, seed and graft. The rivers, mountains and lakes come into existence due to the objective operation of the geological and atmospheric factors, which are amenable to study and simulation in laboratory. The scientific theories about the origin of the universe tell that the celestial bodies like the Earth, the Moon, the Sun and the galaxies also came into existence as a result of a physical phenomenon called the Big Bang. This explosive event reduced the Super Nova to mega dust, which spread its clouds into the space, leading to the formation of astronomical objects receding in all directions with the velocity of light. Not one of these objects formed at the beginning of the universe is permanent or immune to change and destruction. Even the Sun is dying because it loses millions of tons of its content every second.
Stability beyond Instability- Entrapped in a world like this where everything is being somehow produced or reproduced by something else and where everything ultimately passes into oblivion, it is extremely difficult to visualize the stable core, which exists permanently by itself and stands beyond the law of causation. Only by deep concentration and sustained cranial effort, the mind may attain a conceptual clarity about the state of being of the ultimate reality. It is for this reason that despite unambiguous explanation by Guru Nanak, few people realize what he told. Most of his disciples see the truth as a personified superhuman, endowed with the faculties of kindness and benevolence, doling out lavish gifts to his faithful devotees while casting retribution and wrath at the non-believers. They derive only such interpretation from it as is easier for them to understand, believe and manipulate. No wonder they worship the ‘idol’ of their own conception, and not of the conception of Guru Nanak. Such scholars and devotees remain trapped in their own illusions and drag many others into the web of their faulty musings.
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Erring Observers- Thus, many of those who claim to go by science also err in understanding the Guru’s concept of the ultimate reality. Their empirical observation teaches them that creation is impossible without planning and designing which are the functions of mature human consciousness. Generalizing from this observation, they endow the ultimate reality with super human consciousness, which according to them has planned, designed and created an artifact of the size of the Universe in perfect minute detail. They rejoice at the outcome of their generalization and worship it for favors. Although generalization from the empirical facts of a phenomenon is an accepted scientific norm, yet its unguarded practice sometimes leads to incorrect inferences. The above generalization about creation is not valid because there is a catch in it. It has been empirically observed since time immemorial that the Sun arises regularly everyday in the morning. To infer from this that it will continue to rise forever in the like manner appears to be a valid conclusion. In fact, it is not. With heavy amount of daily dissipation, it is doomed to be a cold star one day like so many others in the space. It will never be seen rising again after the perpetual night that will follow its demise.
Empirical Verification Necessary- That no conclusion can be trusted as scientifically correct unless empirically tested and practically verified, is a fundamental tact in science. The concept of a self-existing eternal reality is a marvel of the genius of Guru Nanak for in it he upholds the value of this fact. It is perfectly in tune with the methodology of science as the latest discoveries of modern science have repeatedly endorsed the veracity of it.