vaḍahansu mahalā 3.
suṇiahu kant mahelīho piru sevihu sabadi vīcāri.
avgaṇvantī piru na jāṇaī muṭhī rovai kant visāri.
rovai kant sammāli sadā guṇ sāri nā piru marai na jāe.
gurmukhi jātā sabadi pachātā sācai premi samāe.
jini apṇā piru nahī jātā karam bidhātā kūṛi muṭhī kūṛiāre.
suṇiahu kant mahelīho piru sevihu sabadi vīcāre.1.
-Guru Granth Sahib 583
In the first stanza of this Alahani, the being is encouraged to reflect on the virtues of IkOankar (the Divine) through the Wisdom (Guru). In the second stanza, it is stated that IkOankar, by Own-Self, has created this transient world, and by Own-Self, has deluded the beings in the attachment of material things. The third stanza conveys that the being suffers due to material attachment. The fourth stanza mentions that the being who remembers IkOankar always feels the presence of IkOankar, but the self-centered being considers IkOankar to be far away.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
In the first stanza, Guru Amardas says, listen, O human-brides of the Divine Husband! O seekers of the Spouse, IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One)! Serve the Spouse, contemplating through the Sabad (hymn-like stanza that exemplifies the word-sound of the Infinite Wisdom). The Guru uses the phrase kant mahelio to address all seekers. Kant is the Divine Husband, the Spouse. Mahelio are the feminine-friends or feminine-beings of the Divine. Through this reference, the Guru is implying that even those feminine-beings, those seekers who want to have a relationship with the Divine, with the Spouse, already do on some level because they are being addressed and defined around that relationship. The way to cultivate intimacy in that relationship is through reflection on the Sabad. Reflecting on Sabad is how we serve the Divine.
The Guru then invokes the avganvanti, the non-virtuous being, who does not contemplate the Beloved Spouse, who does not know the Spouse, who weeps and weeps, having forgotten the Spouse due to entanglement in Maya (the allure of the material and worldly relationships). This term represents the being who is not able to look for that One, who does not possess the virtues that can end their separation. It is not that they are without any virtues at all; it is just that they do not have this particular virtue that will help them meet the Spouse. They are not able to care for this virtue, hence, they are not able to care for the Spouse. Instead, they are ignorant, crying in the deception of the illusions of this world, crying in forgetfulness of the Spouse. They are not without hope! They are not without the potential to change! The avganvanti is contrasted with the gunvanti, the virtuous seeker, who weeps having cared for the Spouse, who cries in yearning for the Spouse, who remembers the virtues. The gunvanti weeps in love and never experiences the feeling of the Spouse leaving them. But even those of us who are engrossed in falsehood, in temporariness, who are deceived by falsehood, the Guru describes us as those who have not known their Spouse, the Creator of deeds. We have not known our own Spouse. This is not because we do not have access to the Spouse. It is because we have not engaged ourselves in the kinds of behaviors that help us know that One intimately. This is both deeply hopeful and also lovingly urgent in its tone. Why have we not done whatever we can to know our own Spouse?
The Guru tells us that knowing the Spouse intimately happens through the Wisdom, through becoming Wisdom-centered, through having a relationship with the Sabad. This is what immerses us in the love of the eternal Spouse. We can go from being feminine-beings of the Divine to being Wisdom-centered; we can go from being non-virtuous ones to being virtuous seekers. This happens through the Sabad, through walking on the path of the Spouse. This is how we recognize the Spouse. This is how we are filled with that eternal Spouse’s love. Will we walk this path of the One? Will we cultivate intimacy with IkOankar? Will we become Wisdom-centered and immersed in love? Will we begin to know our own Spouse?
The Guru then invokes the avganvanti, the non-virtuous being, who does not contemplate the Beloved Spouse, who does not know the Spouse, who weeps and weeps, having forgotten the Spouse due to entanglement in Maya (the allure of the material and worldly relationships). This term represents the being who is not able to look for that One, who does not possess the virtues that can end their separation. It is not that they are without any virtues at all; it is just that they do not have this particular virtue that will help them meet the Spouse. They are not able to care for this virtue, hence, they are not able to care for the Spouse. Instead, they are ignorant, crying in the deception of the illusions of this world, crying in forgetfulness of the Spouse. They are not without hope! They are not without the potential to change! The avganvanti is contrasted with the gunvanti, the virtuous seeker, who weeps having cared for the Spouse, who cries in yearning for the Spouse, who remembers the virtues. The gunvanti weeps in love and never experiences the feeling of the Spouse leaving them. But even those of us who are engrossed in falsehood, in temporariness, who are deceived by falsehood, the Guru describes us as those who have not known their Spouse, the Creator of deeds. We have not known our own Spouse. This is not because we do not have access to the Spouse. It is because we have not engaged ourselves in the kinds of behaviors that help us know that One intimately. This is both deeply hopeful and also lovingly urgent in its tone. Why have we not done whatever we can to know our own Spouse?
The Guru tells us that knowing the Spouse intimately happens through the Wisdom, through becoming Wisdom-centered, through having a relationship with the Sabad. This is what immerses us in the love of the eternal Spouse. We can go from being feminine-beings of the Divine to being Wisdom-centered; we can go from being non-virtuous ones to being virtuous seekers. This happens through the Sabad, through walking on the path of the Spouse. This is how we recognize the Spouse. This is how we are filled with that eternal Spouse’s love. Will we walk this path of the One? Will we cultivate intimacy with IkOankar? Will we become Wisdom-centered and immersed in love? Will we begin to know our own Spouse?
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