Simranjeet Singh on Death, Rebirth and the Journey of the Soul

Episode overview

In this long-form Punjabi and Hindi conversation on the Super Talks podcast, host Raghav speaks with Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji, a Sikh teacher who has spent many years studying the scriptures. Over several hours they explore what the Sikh tradition and classical texts say about the moment of death, the journey of the soul afterwards, past lives, rebirth, kundalini, Anhad Naad, riddhi and siddhi, and the simple practice the guest keeps returning to: Naam.

Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji speaks with unusual clarity and calm. Throughout the conversation he repeatedly brings the discussion back to Naam Simran — not as a technique for producing unusual states, but as the central support in this age. He also speaks openly about his own long sittings, his first overwhelming inner experience in 2014, and the patience that preceded it.

This article is an English summary and reflection on what was discussed. It is not a verbatim translation, and it is not an endorsement or verification of the metaphysical claims made during the interview.

The body, the final breaths, and the knot below the navel

One of the earliest threads in the conversation concerns the physical and subtle process of dying. Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji explains, drawing on the language of Gurbani, that the body is described as water, wind, blood and bone — a temporary structure held together for a fixed number of breaths.

He refers to a knot or bond beneath the navel, where breath and shabad are said to be held. As the count of breaths comes to its end, this bond is described as opening. In his words: the knot opens, the physical and the subtle separate, and the breath and sound are no longer held here.

He also describes the inner sounds that are said to grow louder at the end of life, and how those with a basis in Naam are able to remain steady within that sound, while those without an established practice are described as frightened by it and pulled away.

These are traditional descriptions offered within a devotional framework. They are presented as teachings to contemplate, not as medically verifiable accounts of what happens at death.

Five messengers, karma and accountability

The interview moves into the imagery of the five messengers, or panch doot, described as present within every body. In this account, at the end of life the subtle mind and soul are taken and passed through fire and water and brought before Dharamraj for an accounting.

Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji describes the reckoning in terms of where our breaths were spent: in rajas, tamas or sattva. He says the record of how we lived is not a matter of our own narration but of what actually happened, and he offers a plain caution: it is not a person's claims about themselves that carry weight but the life they lived.

Whatever one makes of this imagery, its moral emphasis is unmistakable and thoroughly Gurmat: what we do matters, and we cannot talk our way out of how we have treated others.

The mind is not the body

A central claim in the conversation is that the mind is distinct from the physical body. Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji describes the body as sleeping and waking while the mind is continuously awake; what we call sleep is simply the mind moving on from the body and seeing its own forms.

He explains that the mind is neither male nor female but a luminous principle, carried on a subtle form of the five elements, which plays in this gross world during the day and in its own subtle world at night. Whatever the mind travels through, he says, it leaves its shape behind, and those shapes remain.

This understanding frames his later comments on past-life records: what we have lived through is described not as erased but as retained in the vast emptiness, in the space that Gurbani calls Sunn.

The world as a dream, and the meaning of maya

The podcast lingers on the question of what is real. Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji quotes Gurbani's teaching that the world is like a dream, and he explains it carefully. The world is not called a dream because it does not matter, but because it moves within illusion: we do not know where we came from, where we are going, or who we truly are. We love the play of the world so deeply that we continue to dream it both awake and asleep.

He adds a distinctive note: the same mind that dreams at night also dreams during the day. Its attachments carry over. And he points to Guru Nanak Sahib's description of the four ages — Satyug, Treta, Dwapar and Kaljug — asking pointedly who we think we are within it all, when we do not even know our own origin.

Naad, Pavan and the five elements

In the interview's most philosophical passage, Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji describes the emergence of creation from the One light. From the divine impulse, he says, two principles appear: Naad, the unstruck sound, and Pavan, the wind. From Naad come the subtle worlds; from Pavan, the gross elements of water, fire, earth and space — the five elements that make up this body and this world.

He uses this to explain why the sound current matters so much in his framework. The connection that was broken at birth, he says, was a connection to Naad. Through Naam and Gurbani, that connection is gradually restored.

His own experience in deep practice

Asked for something personal, Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji describes a night of long sitting. He explains that after many years of study alongside Naam, one day he sat around nine in the evening and continued into the early hours. Then, he says, it felt as though he was drawn out of the body, immersed in a vast light, and his mouth filled with sweetness, with no awareness left of anything else.

He is careful about how he frames it. It is not something that can be forced or demanded, he says. The Guru gives darshan when it pleases the Guru. Later he describes other settled changes: a natural ease, an inner sweetness, and a growing sense of the Divine presence within and without.

He also describes the process in plain language: no shortcuts, no bargaining. Study the Gurbani, recite the Guru Mantar, and let it come in its own time.

Kundalini, Sushmana, and the Guru Mantar

The conversation treats kundalini directly, and it is worth noting that this is a framework drawn from yogic vocabulary rather than from Sikh Gurmat. In this account, the Sushmana — the central channel, also called kundalini — is said to become dormant when the breath becomes unbalanced at birth. Meditation practice that awakens it is described as difficult, sometimes producing colours and bodily strain, and he does not recommend it.

His alternative is strikingly simple. He describes reciting the Guru Mantar, Waheguru, with the breath, in the way described as shwas gras. This gentle attention at the navel, he says, allows the subtle channel to awaken by itself, without pressure, over time. He mentions the signs he associates with this waking: the inner unstruck sound, a sweetness in the mouth, and a mind that becomes less turbulent.

Riddhi, siddhi and the caution around tantra

The interview does not avoid the uncomfortable topic of occult powers. Asked about tantra and siddhi, Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji acknowledges that such practices and abilities are described in the texts and historically existed. He also explains, simply and firmly, why Dharmic tradition discourages them.

His reasoning is this: power of any kind — tantric, financial, or social — increases tṛṣṇā, the thirst to be bigger. A person who uses such power to harm others carries the weight of that harm, and the path downward, in his description, is steep. He contrasts this with Naam Japa, which he says lifts the mind upward instead.

He also warns explicitly against using Naam itself as a tool for display or gain.

Past lives, records, and the future

On the question of whether one can know one's past lives, his answer is that the tradition regards it as possible within deep practice — and he is equally clear that it is not necessary. His own emphasis is on what seeing such records produces: not pride, but a sober recognition of how many births have already passed, and a renewed wish to be released from the cycle rather than to collect more experiences.

He also addresses the claim that the future can be seen. Yes, he says, in his framework it can be seen — but not changed. Only the Supreme Power holds the authority to change it; the practitioner becomes a witness.

Devlok, the 84 lakh births, and the value of human life

The conversation explores the traditional map of rebirth in detail: the realms associated with the three qualities, the 84 lakh forms of life, the realm described as Devlok for those who did good and practiced but did not fully realise, and the rare opportunity of human birth.

His practical conclusion is worth carrying away: the human form comes with the capacity for discernment, and that capacity is what makes Naam possible. As he puts it, in this age the support is Naam.

Higher souls, the Satguru, and Guru Nanak Sahib

Asked about figures such as Guru Nanak Dev ji and the Buddha, Bhai Simranjeet Singh ji explains his understanding of the graded descent of souls sent to help humanity when darkness increases in the world. He describes these as rare souls who come with a specific duty — Naam, teaching and the upliftment of others — and who return to their own source when the call comes.

He is careful not to reduce the Gurus to interesting personalities. Everything in this account leads back to the Satguru and the Shabad as the means of release.

Shiv ji, the devtas, and bowing before saints

The conversation also addresses two topics that often stir debate among Sikhs. On the presence of Sikhs at Shiv mandirs, he offers a measured explanation: devtas and sant-mahapurush are worthy of respect, and devotion offered to any form is, in his description, a matter of feeling. But Gurbani, he says, places final liberation in the Param Tattva alone, and it describes all such forms as messengers and creations of Akal Purakh. Respect is not the same as taking them as the destination.

On the recent controversy about bowing before saints, he is direct but gentle. He points out that Guru Granth Sahib ji itself speaks generously of the sant and the sadhu, and he notes that a Sikh bows to Guru Granth Sahib ji. He also says plainly that if someone's teaching promotes intoxication, exploitation, or immorality, a Sikh does not have to accept it. Both things can be held together: respect for sanctity, and discernment about conduct.

He adds a sharp and useful observation: those who criticise people for visiting a saint often say nothing about the same people queuing at a liquor shop.

A Gurmat-informed reflection

Some of what is described in this interview goes well beyond what can be checked. Descriptions of what happens after death, of past-life records, of realms and graded souls, and of waking the Sushmana are not medical or empirical claims. They are traditional accounts, offered inside a devotional tradition, and they should be received as such.

It is also important to be honest about vocabulary. Kundalini, chakras, siddhis and tantric practices belong to yogic and tantric streams, not to Sikh Gurmat. They can be discussed respectfully, but they should not be presented as Sikh teaching. In this interview the guest appears to agree with that distinction — he repeatedly returns to Naam and Gurbani as the foundation, and explicitly advises against pursuing the harder yogic route.

What remains, once the unverifiable parts are set aside, is a very grounded message and it is thoroughly Gurmat: the human form is precious and brief; the breath is counted; conduct matters; and in this age the support is Naam. Not visions. Not powers. Not status. Remembrance, honest living, humility, and Sangat.

A safety and discernment note

Spiritual practice affects people differently, and descriptions of dramatic inner experiences can create pressure to reproduce them or fear about what one is feeling. A few things are worth stating plainly.

Unusual sensations, changes in the sense of the body, loud inner sounds, vivid imagery, or feelings of leaving the body can have many possible causes. They are not reliable proof of spiritual attainment, and they are not a diagnosis of anything. If such experiences come with persistent insomnia, severe anxiety, confusion, disorganised thinking, frightening perceptions, low mood, or difficulty functioning in daily life, it is important to pause intense practice and speak with a qualified healthcare or mental-health professional. Spiritual guidance is valuable but does not replace clinical care.

Claims about death, past lives, kundalini, siddhis or the future should not be used to make decisions about health, medication, money, or your family's wellbeing. Do not use intense breathwork or other forceful techniques to produce states, and do not practise any technique with the aim of gaining power over others.

Questions for reflection

• What am I actually spending my breaths on?
• Does my practice make me more truthful, patient and compassionate, or merely more interesting to myself?
• Am I collecting experiences, or am I changing?
• Do I need to know my past lives, or do I need to live this one well?
• Where does my attention run when it is not held — and what does that reveal?
• Can I hold what I do not know, without forcing a conclusion?

A simple daily practice

Nothing in this interview asks for anything dramatic. It asks for steadiness.

Begin where you are. Sit quietly for a few minutes. Close the eyes, lift the face slightly, and recite Waheguru gently with the breath — without straining, without rushing, without watching the breath. When the mind wanders, return. Read or listen to Gurbani each day, with a translation or katha when the language is not familiar. Keep the company of Sangat. Do not use the practice to escape your responsibilities; use it to meet them better. And look after the ordinary supports of practice: sleep, food, movement, and rest.

As the guest says more than once: no shortcuts. The work is the practice, and the practice is return.

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