Friday October 31st 2008

English Translation

RAAG SOOHEE, FIFTH MEHL, FIRST HOUSE:

ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU:

The actor stages the play, playing the many characters in different costumes; but when the play ends, he takes off the costumes, and then he is one, and only one. || 1 ||

How many forms and images appeared and disappeared? Where have they gone? Where did they come from? || 1 ||

Pause ||

Countless waves rise up from the water. Jewels and ornaments of many different forms are fashioned from gold. I have seen seeds of all kinds being planted – when the fruit ripens, the seeds appear in the same form as the original. || 2 ||

The one sky is reflected in thousands of water jugs, but when the jugs are broken, only the sky remains. Doubt comes from greed, emotional attachment and the corruption of Maya. Freed from doubt, one realizes the One Lord alone. || 3 ||

He is imperishable; He will never pass away. He does not come, and He does not go. The Perfect Guru has washed away the filth of ego. Says Nanak, I have obtained the supreme status. || 4 || 1 ||

Page 735

Thursday 30 October 2008

English Translation

RAAG RAAMKALEE, FIFTH MEHL, SECOND HOUSE: 

ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU:The four Vedas proclaim it, but you don’t believe them. The six Shaastras also say one thing. The eighteen Puraanas all speak of the One God. Even so, Yogi, you do not understand this mystery. || 1 ||

The celestial harp plays the incomparable melody, but in your intoxication, you do not hear it, O Yogi. || 1 || Pause ||

In the first age, the Golden Age, the village of truth was inhabited. In the Silver Age of Traytaa Yuga, things began to decline. In the Brass Age of Dwaapur Yuga, half of it was gone. Now, only one leg of Truth remains, and the One Lord is revealed. || 2 ||

The beads are strung upon the one thread. By means of many, various, diverse knots, they are tied, and kept separate on the string. The beads of the mala are lovingly chanted upon in many ways. When the thread is pulled out, the beads come together in one place. || 3 ||

Throughout the four ages, the One Lord made the body His temple. It is a treacherous place, with several windows. Searching and searching, one comes to the Lord’s door. Then, O Nanak, the Yogi attains a home in the Mansion of the Lord’s Presence. || 4 || 

Page 886

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

English Translation

AASAA, ELEVENTH HOUSE, FIFTH MEHL:ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU:

The actor displays himself in many disguises, but he remains just as he is. The soul wanders through countless incarnations in doubt, but it does not come to dwell in peace.|| 1 ||

O Saints, my friends and companions, without the Lord, Har, Har, you shall perish. Joining the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, sing the Glorious Praises of the Lord, and win this precious treasure of human life. || 1 || Pause ||

God has created Maya of the three qualities; tell me, how can it be crossed over? The whirlpool is awesome and unfathomable; only through the Word of the Guru’s Shabad is one carried across. || 2 ||

Searching and searching endlessly, seeking and deliberating, Nanak has realized the true essence of reality. Meditating on the invaluable treasure of the Naam, the Name of the Lord, the jewel of the mind is satisfied. || 3 || 1 || 130 || 

page 403-404

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

English Translation

GUJRI, FIRST MEHL:

O Dear One, I am not high or low or in the middle. I am the Lord’s slave, and I seek the Lord’s Sanctuary. Imbued with the Naam, the Name of the Lord, I am detached from the world; I have forgotten sorrow, separation and disease. || 1 ||

O Siblings of Destiny, by Guru’s Grace, I perform devotional worship to my Lord and Master. One whose heart is filled with the Hymns of the True Guru, obtains the Pure Lord. He is not under the power of the Messenger of Death, nor does he owe Death anything. || 1 ||

Pause ||

He chants the Glorious Praises of the Lord with his tongue, and abides with God; he does whatever pleases the Lord. Without the Lord’s Name, life passes in vain in the world, and every moment is useless. || 2 ||

The false have no place of rest, either inside or outside; the slanderer does not find salvation. Even if one is resentful, God does not withhold His blessings; day by day, they increase. || 3 ||

No one can take away the Guru’s gifts; my Lordand Master Himself has given them. The black-faced slanderers, with slander in their mouths, do not appreciate the Guru’s gifts. || 4 || God forgives and blends with Himself those who take to His Sanctuary; He does not delay for an instant. He is the source of bliss, the Greatest Lord; through the True Guru, we are united in His Union. || 5 ||

Through His Kindness, the Kind Lord pervades us; through Guru’s Teachings, our wanderings cease. Touching the philosopher’s stone, metal is transformed into gold. Such is the glorious greatness of the Society of the Saints. || 6 ||

The Lord is the immaculate water; the mind is the bather, and the True Guru is the bath attendant, O Siblings of Destiny. That humble being who joins the Sat Sangat shall not be consigned to reincarnation again; his light merges into the Light. || 7 ||

You are the Great Primal Lord, the infinite tree of life; I am a bird perched on Your branches. Grant to Nanak the Immaculate Naam; throughout the ages, he sings the Praises of the Shabad. || 8 || 4 ||

Page 505-506

Monday 27th October 2008

English Translation

SORAT’H, FIFTH MEHL:

Children, spouses, men and women in one’s household, are all bound by Maya. At the very last moment, none of them shall stand by you; their love is totally false. || 1 ||

O man, why do you pamper your body so? It shall disperse like a cloud of smoke; vibrate upon the One, the Beloved Lord.

|| Pause ||

There are three ways in which the body can be consumed – it can be thrown into water, given to the dogs, or cremated to ashes. He considers himself to be immortal; he sits in his home, and forgets the Lord, the Cause of causes. || 2 ||

In various ways, the Lord has fashioned the beads, and strung them on a slender thread. The thread shall break, O wretched man, and then, you shall repent and regret. || 3 ||

He created you, and after creating you, He adorned you – meditate on Him day and night. God has showered His Mercy upon servant Nanak; I hold tight to the Support of the True Guru. || 4 || 4 ||

Page 609

Sunday, October 26, 2008

SHALOK, THIRD MEHL:

O Nanak, without meeting the True Guru, the world is blind; in blindness, it does its deeds. It does not focus its consciousness on the Word of the Shabad, which would bring peace to abide in the mind. Always afflicted with the dark passions of low energy, it wanders around, passing its days and nights burning. Whatever pleases Him, comes to pass; no one has any say in this. || 1 ||

THIRD MEHL:

The True Guru has commanded us to do this: through the Guru’s Gate, meditate on your Lord and Master. The Lord and Master is ever-present. He rips away the veil of doubt, and installs His Light deep within. The Name of the Lord is Ambrosial Nectar – take this healing medicine! Enshrine the Will of the True Guru in your consciousness, and make the Love of the True One your self-discipline. O Nanak, you shall be kept in peace here, and hereafter you shall celebrate with the Lord. || 2 ||

PAUREE:

He Himself is the vast variety of Nature, and He Himself makes it bear fruit. He Himself is the Gardener, He Himself irrigates all the plants, and He Himself puts them in His mouth. He Himself is the Creator, and He Himself is the Enjoyer; He Himself gives, and inspires others to give. He Himself is the Lord and Master, and He Himself is the Protector; He Himself is pervading everywhere. Servant Nanak speaks of the greatness of the Lord, the Creator, who has no greed at all. || 15 ||

page 554

Saturday, October 25, 2008

SHALOK, THIRD MEHL:

No one goes away empty-handed from the True Guru; He unites me in Union with my God. Fruitful is the Blessed Vision of the Darshan of the True Guru; through it, one obtains whatever fruitful rewards he desires. The Word of the Guru’s Shabad is Ambrosial Nectar. It banishes all hunger and thirst. Drinking in the sublime essence of the Lord brings contentment; the True Lord comes to dwell in the mind. Meditating on the True Lord, the status of immortality is obtained; the Unstruck Word of the Shabad vibrates and resounds. The True Lord is pervading in the ten directions; through the Guru, this is intuitively known. O Nanak, those humble beings who have the Truth deep within, are never hidden, even if others try to hide them. || 1 ||

THIRD MEHL:

Serving the Guru, one finds the Lord, when the Lord blesses him with His Glance of Grace. Human beings become angels, when the Lord blesses them with true devotional worship. Conquering egotism, they are blended with the Lord; through the Word of the Guru’s Shabad, they are purified. O Nanak, they remain merged with the Lord; they are blessed with the glorious greatness of the Naam. || 2 ||

PAUREE: Within the Guru, the True Guru, is the glorious greatness of the Name. The Creator Lord Himself has magnified it. All His servants and Sikhs live by gazing, gazing upon it. It is pleasing to their hearts deep within. The slanderers and evil-doers cannot see this glorious greatness; they do not appreciate the goodness of others. What can be achieved by anyone babbling? The Guru is in love with the True Lord. That which is pleasing to the Creator Lord, increases day by day, while all the people babble uselessly. || 4 ||

Page 850

Friday 24 October 2008

English Translation

AASAAVAREE, FIFTH MEHL, THIRD HOUSE:

ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU:

My mind is in love with the Lord. In the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, I meditate on the Lord, Har, Har; my lifestyle is pure and true. || 1 ||

Pause ||

I have such a great thirst for the Blessed Vision of His Darshan; I think of him in so many ways. So be Merciful, O Supreme Lord; shower Your Mercy upon me, O Lord, Destroyer of pride. || 1 ||

My stranger soul has come to join the Saadh Sangat. That commodity, which I longed for, I have found in the Love of the Naam, the Name of the Lord. || 2 ||

There are so many pleasures and delights of Maya, but they pass away in an instant. Your devotees are imbued with Your Name; they enjoy peace everywhere. || 3 ||

The entire world is seen to be passing away; only the Lord’s Name is lasting and stable. So make friends with the Holy Saints, so that you may obtain a lasting place of rest. || 4 ||

Friends, acquaintances, children and relatives – none of these shall be your companion. The Lord’s Name alone shall go with you; God is the Master of the meek. || 5 ||

The Lord’s Lotus Feet are the Boat; attached to Them, you shall cross over the world-ocean. Meeting with the Perfect True Guru, I embrace True Love for God. || 6 ||

The prayer of Your Holy Saints is, “May I never forget You, for even one breath or morsel of food.” Whatever is pleasing to Your Will is good; by Your Sweet Will, my affairs are adjusted. || 7 ||

I have met my Beloved, the Ocean of Peace, and Supreme Bliss has welled up within me. Says Nanak, all my pains have been eradicated, meeting with God, the Lord of Supreme Bliss. || 8 || 1 || 2 ||

Page 531-532

Thursday 23 October 2008

English Translation

SORAT’H, THIRD MEHL, FIRST HOUSE, TI-TUKAS:ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU:

You always preserve the honor of Your devotees, O Dear Lord; You have protected them from the very beginning of time. You protected Your servant Prahlaad, O Dear Lord, and annihilated Harnaakhash. The Gurmukhs place their faith in the Dear Lord, but the self-willed manmukhs are deluded by doubt.

|| 1 ||

O Dear Lord, this is Your Glory. You preserve the honor of Your devotees, O Lord Master; Your devotees seek Your Sanctuary.

|| Pause ||

The Messenger of Death cannot touch Your devotees; death cannot even approach them. The Name of the Lord alone abides in their minds; through the Naam, the Name of the Lord, they find liberation. Wealth and all the spiritual powers of the Siddhis fall at the feet of the Lord’s devotees; they obtain peace and poise from the Guru. || 2 ||

The self-willed manmukhs have no faith; they are filled with greed and self-interest. They are not Gurmukh – they do not understand the Word of the Shabad in their hearts; they do not love the Naam, the Name of the Lord. Their masks of falsehood and hypocrisy shall fall off; the self-willed manmukhs speak with insipid words. || 3 ||

You are pervading through Your devotees, O Dear God; through Your devotees, You are known. All the people are enticed by Maya; they are Yours, Lord – You alone are the Architect of Destiny. Overcoming my egotism and quieting the desires within my mind, I have come to realize the Word of the Guru’s Shabad.|| 4 ||

God automatically does the work of those who love the Name of the Lord. By Guru’s Grace, he ever dwells in their minds, and He resolves all their affairs. Whoever challenges them is destroyed; they have the Lord God as their Savior. || 5 ||

Throughout serving the True Guru, no one finds the Lord; the self-willed manmukhs die crying out in pain. They come and go, and find no place of rest; in pain and suffering, they perish. But one who becomes Gurmukh drinks in the Ambrosial Nectar, and is easily absorbed in the True Name. || 6 ||

Without serving the True Guru, one cannot escape reincarnation, even by performing numerous rituals. Those who read the Vedas, and argue and debate without the Lord, lose their honor. True is the True Guru, and True is the Word of His Bani; in the Guru’s Sanctuary, one is saved. || 7 ||

Those whose minds are filled with the Lord are judged as true in the Court of the Lord; they are hailed as true in the True Court. Their praises echo throughout the ages, and no one can erase them. Nanak is forever a sacrifice to those who enshrine the Lord within their hearts. || 8 || 1 ||

Page – 637-638

Wednesday, October 22

RAAG SOOHEE, THE WORD OF SHAYKH FAREED JEE:

ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU: Burning and burning, writhing in pain, I wring my hands. I have gone insane, seeking my Husband Lord. O my Husband Lord, You are angry with me in Your Mind. The fault is with me, and not with my Husband Lord. || 1 ||

O my Lord and Master, I do not know Your excellence and worth. Having wasted my youth, now I come to regret and repent. || 1 || Pause ||

O black bird, what qualities have made you black? “I have been burnt by separation from my Beloved.” Without her Husband Lord, how can the soul-bride ever find peace? When He becomes merciful, then God unites us with Himself. || 2 ||

The lonely soul-bride suffers in the pit of the world. She has no companions, and no friends. In His Mercy, God has united me with the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy. And when I look again, then I find God as my Helper. || 3 ||

The path upon which I must walk is very depressing. It is sharper than a two-edged sword, and very narrow. That is where my path lies. O Shaykh Fareed, think of that path early on.

PAGE 794