In the second stanza (
savaiya), Guru Arjan spoke of the immortalizing nectar that flows from
IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One). In the third stanza, Guru Arjan narrates the expanses of the One, within which this immortalizing nectar flows. Guru Arjan says that all
realms of the expanse are created from IkOankar; no place exists outside IkOankar’s Self. While pervading all places, IkOankar is neither dependent on, reliant on, nor attached to these expanses. The manifest world and any expanses may cease to exist, yet IkOankar will remain. Guru Arjan marvels at the wonder of the One, invoking
Hari, the all-pervasive One, as a name for IkOankar, saying the virtues of the all-pervasive One are limitless. Guru Arjan reminds us that all beings and creatures belong to the One, who is the Gifter and Bestower upon all. Another name for IkOankar,
Murari, is invoked, representing IkOankar’s power to end ignorance—not just any ignorance, but the ignorance that overshadows the light within. Guru Arjan describes the One as imperceivable, yet this internal transformation is a way the One becomes known.
Guru Arjan further highlights the creative capacity of IkOankar, saying that IkOankar establishes all creation; all that is seen is a manifestation of its creative power. Alongside this, Guru Arjan again reminds us of the imperceptibility of IkOankar, disrupting the tendency to create fixations or masculinize the divine. Guru Arjan says:
there is no color or mark, neither face nor beard, nor mustache. IkOankar cannot be fully described, grasped, or limited to any physical representation, as is often seen across spiritual traditions where the divine is depicted as a man with a mustache and a long, flowing beard. Again invoking the name of Guru Nanak, Guru Arjan reminds us that all Guru embodiments are of the same light, saying:
Servant Nanak, the accepted devotee at Your door, is equal to You, is like You, O Braham! The true votary is at the door of the One who is neither markedly male nor female, the One who pervades all yet is independent from all. That votary becomes like
Braham, the Divine, an epithet for IkOankar. Guru Arjan, expressing reverence for the Divine, expresses that he could never possibly say enough to express the vastness and praise of IkOankar alone. Emphasizing this ineffability, he reiterates
five times that he devotes, he devotes, he devotes, he devotes, he always devotes—expressing an ultimate surrender of everything within to IkOankar.
As humans, we tend to limit the Divine to a particular place. In various traditions, even while the number of realms may vary amongst them, the Divine is believed to be concentrated in certain realms and not in others. Some may ascribe certain physical representations to the Divine through iconographies, statues, or even through description, which are most often male representations. In all of this, we overlook a fundamental truth—IkOankar pervades all. IkOankar cannot be relegated to certain realms, nor can IkOankar’s vastness be contained in any physical representation. While IkOankar pervades everything, IkOankar also exists far beyond the confines of creation, further illuminating the futility of our tendencies here. It’s because of our own limited human understanding and conditioning that we often fail to see that everything is a manifestation of IkOankar and IkOankar’s creative power.
This shortsightedness causes us to engage with the world transactionally rather than in remembrance of the Gifter and the Bestower. If we live in devotion, praise, and love of the all-pervasive One, if we come to cherish the creative power of IkOankar that abounds, we may find it harder to extract, exploit, and pollute IkOankar’s creation as we so often do. As IkOankar is the One who destroys the forgetfulness-fueled transgressions within us, devotion, praise, and love of IkOankar are part of the solution to our climatic disasters and social ills. When we recognize that IkOankar is pervading everywhere, we move beyond seeing certain places and things as sacred and others as not. Serving the One, we come to recognize the importance of stewarding all places with care, not just those deemed ‘pure.’
Will we challenge our own tendencies to confine the Divine in these common, yet limiting ways? Will we let the forgetfulness and ignorance within us be removed through devotion, praise, and love? Will we, moving beyond forgetfulness, look at the ways we can improve our engagement with all of IkOankar’s creation?
