ḍaḍai ḍamphu karahu kiā prāṇī jo kichu hoā su sabhu calṇā.
tisai sarevahu tā sukhu pāvahu sarab nirantari ravi rahiā.16.
-Guru Granth Sahib 433
The Patti composition revealed by Guru Nanak Sahib consists of thirty-five stanzas, each containing two lines. This composition is based on the thirty-five letters of the alphabet prevalent at that time. In this composition the Guru has established a foundational system based on letters. In the rahau line, by addressing his own mind, the Guru provides insights, saying, “O fool! Why do you remain forgetful? You will be considered truly educated only when you are able to settle the account of your deeds in IkOankar’s (the Divine) court.” The Guru goes on to explain the mystery of the letters, enlightening that the limits of IkOankar, the Creator, cannot be known. All beings are under IkOankar’s command, and no one else can exercise authority over them. All-pervading IkOankar is the cause of everything in the creation. An arrogant being who forgets IkOankar and is engrossed in worldly matters continues to suffer. However, if a being recognizes the eternal IkOankar through the Wisdom (Guru), they are freed from suffering. The being who understands the mystery explained through these thirty-five letters becomes one with IkOankar.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
O mind! Why do you forget, O foolish mind? You will be considered learned only when you give the account of your deeds, O sibling! In the sixteenth couplet, Guru Nanak delivers a message through the letter ਡ (‘ḍaḍḍā,’ #18) and says, O being! What pretense are you engaging in? Whatever has originated in this world will perish one day. If you remember That IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One), who is ceaselessly pervading in all, then you will find comfort. Whatever things we have accumulated in this life, whether knowledge, wealth, assets, opulence, influence, power, or relationships, will not last. The word the Guru uses is ‘ḍamphu,’ or pretense. Why do we make so much of an effort to display these things? Maybe we do it because we think it will bring us some kind of satisfaction, or a sense of stability and comfort. Maybe we forget that these things are temporary. The Guru urges us to practice remembrance of the One instead — to devote ourselves to serving and contemplating the One who is eternal. Right now, we are serving and remembering only ourselves and others. In that service, we do not find comfort and instead engage in displays of wealth, power, or knowledge. If we begin to serve and remember the One, we will experience the ultimate comfort we seek. These are the applications of the wisdom of this letter — to practice remembrance and service of the One, to understand experientially the temporariness of all other things, and to find lasting comfort through a change in lifestyle and understanding. Will we end our pretense? Will we understand the transience of all things and internalize that understanding? Will we awaken from our forgetfulness and remember the only Eternal?
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