kāiā kancanu tāṁ thīai jāṁ satiguru lae milāe.
bhramu māiā vicahu kaṭīai sacṛai nāmi samāe.
sacai nāmi samāe hari guṇ gāe mili prītam sukhu pāe.
sadā anandi rahai dinu rātī vicahu haṁümai jāe.
jinī purkhī hari nāmi citu lāiā tin kai haṁü lāgaü pāe.
kāṁiā kancanu tāṁ thīai jā satiguru lae milāe.2.
-Guru Granth Sahib 585
In the first stanza of this Alahani, it has been stated that beings who are disconnected from the Wisdom (Guru) continue to wander in the cycle of birth and death. But those who contemplate Nam of IkOankar (the Divine) through the Wisdom are saved from it. The second stanza mentions the seekers who are absorbed in the Nam, always sing the glory of IkOankar, and attain happiness. The third stanza shows that without the awareness of the Wisdom and the company of the Wisdom-oriented ones, beings go astray; they are regretful in the Court. The faces of the seekers imbued with the Nam are radiant in love. They become one with IkOankar. The fourth stanza inspires beings to stay in the company of those seekers who always sing the glory and contemplate the Nam.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
In the second stanza, Guru Amardas shifts from discussing the frailty of these transient bodies to discussing how these transient bodies can become as precious as gold. These bodies become gold, invaluable, and precious when the eternal Wisdom causes us to meet. When we are connected with the eternal Wisdom, that is when we are gold. Through this meeting, the illusion of Maya (attachment to the material and to our relationships) is cut from within us. We snap out of our belief that the temporary is permanent. Our perspective becomes vaster. When the Wisdom allows it to become golden, the eternal Wisdom is what makes this frail body a golden body.
The Guru redefines what it means to have value in this world and beyond. This is not about ideas of purity, ritual, monetary value, productivity, success, power, or authority. We become invaluable when we live in a relationship with the Wisdom. We immerse ourselves in the Nam (Identification with IkOankar, the One Creative and Pervasive Force) of the Eternal. When the illusion of Maya leaves us from within, we become filled with this Identification. We sing the virtues of the 1-Light, the Remover of Suffering, IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One), and we find the ultimate comfort in meeting the One. We remain in bliss day and night, and the ego disappears from within. We lose our self-centeredness. We change our thinking and our behaviors.
Finally, the Guru says, the beings who have connected their consciousness to the Nam of the 1-Light, I bow at their feet. I humbly submit to them; I seek their guidance. I want to learn from those who helped me connect with Nam. I want to learn from the eternal Wisdom. This is how the body becomes golden. Do we want our bodies to be invaluable like gold? Will we make an effort to connect with the eternal Wisdom? Will we immerse ourselves in the Nam? Will we fall at the feet of those who have connected with the Nam of the Beloved? Will we join their company with humility?
The Guru redefines what it means to have value in this world and beyond. This is not about ideas of purity, ritual, monetary value, productivity, success, power, or authority. We become invaluable when we live in a relationship with the Wisdom. We immerse ourselves in the Nam (Identification with IkOankar, the One Creative and Pervasive Force) of the Eternal. When the illusion of Maya leaves us from within, we become filled with this Identification. We sing the virtues of the 1-Light, the Remover of Suffering, IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One), and we find the ultimate comfort in meeting the One. We remain in bliss day and night, and the ego disappears from within. We lose our self-centeredness. We change our thinking and our behaviors.
Finally, the Guru says, the beings who have connected their consciousness to the Nam of the 1-Light, I bow at their feet. I humbly submit to them; I seek their guidance. I want to learn from those who helped me connect with Nam. I want to learn from the eternal Wisdom. This is how the body becomes golden. Do we want our bodies to be invaluable like gold? Will we make an effort to connect with the eternal Wisdom? Will we immerse ourselves in the Nam? Will we fall at the feet of those who have connected with the Nam of the Beloved? Will we join their company with humility?
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