tilaṅg mahalā 9
hari jasu re manā gāi lai jo saṅgī hai tero.
aüsaru bītio jātu hai kahio mān lai mero.1. rahāu.
sampati rath dhan rāj siu ati nehu lagāio.
kāl phās jab gali parī sabh bhaïo parāio.1.
jāni būjh kai bāvare tai kāju bigārio.
pāp karat sukcio nahī nah garabu nivārio.2.
jih bidhi gur updesiā so sunu re bhāī.
nānak kahat pukāri kai gahu prabh sarnāī.3.3.
-Guru Granth Sahib 727
Guru Teghbahadar Sahib states that the praises of IkOankar (the Divine) are the only everlasting companion in this world and the hereafter. Accepting the instructions of the Wisdom (Guru) and considering the transience of human life, the individual is advised to spend time reflecting on IkOankar.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
In the third composition, Guru Teghbahadar begins with the advice to sing, whereas in the first two compositions, that advice comes at the end. The Guru says, O mind! Sing the praises of the 1-Light, who is your companion. Opportunity is passing away; accept my utterance. If our consciousness and our minds are awakened, if we have arrived at the end of this series of compositions, the Guru says it is time to sing the praises of the One, our only companion in the end. Our lives are passing away. We know this, we know the imagery of water seeping out of the pitcher, we know that time is passing quickly and we are entangled in the physical. Here the Guru becomes even more urgent in the message. We really ought to take this opportunity and sing.
Opportunity is passing away; accept my utterance. The Guru continues and says that we have been so attached to wealth, and property and power, in seeing ourselves as superior over others. This is what we have been after, this is what we are attached to, this is what we are consumed by, this is what we pursue. And we accumulate things and money and relationships and power and we think it is all ours. We have spent all of our time thinking that this is all ours. But when the noose of death slips around our necks, when it is our time to go, all of these things we have attached ourselves to and been driven by will become someone else’s.
Opportunity is passing away; accept my utterance. The Guru says, you have known this! You have understood this! And still, O crazy person, you have ruined the affair. We have done this knowingly and that is what makes us mad. A theme throughout these compositions has been that we know what ails us, we know what we are caught up in, we know what we are consumed by, and we know that it is not good for us but still, again and again, we make the decision to continue on as we are. We do not do the things that we know can help us out of this. We do not pause and reflect for even a moment. We know what we are meant to do with these human bodies and instead of making our lives fruitful, we are wasting them away into disrepair. We are actively choosing to mess things up for ourselves. This is what makes us crazy. We do not even hesitate when we commit transgressions! We are so driven by our own greed and attachment that we have lost all sense of shame. We have lost all restraint or discipline. We did not rid ourselves of pride or ego. We have not even paused to take a good look at ourselves.
Opportunity is passing away; accept my utterance. The Guru then lovingly addresses us as siblings, fellow travelers, and says, as the Guru has explained, let us listen to that! This is what the Guru is asking us to follow, this is the advice that has been repeated throughout the three compositions. There is actually a kind of loud pleading here, where the Guru is asking us to go to the sanctuary, to the refuge of the One, and to sing the songs of praise. This is not about a physical space. This is about bringing Wisdom into our lives, even at this stage, even if we think it is too late. Our minds need Wisdom, and the Guru’s way to bring that Wisdom into the mind is to sing the virtues. We are being asked to take sanctuary in that act. This pleading is especially poignant because in an infinite number of scenarios, the one guiding is the one to whom the traveler pleads. But in this situation, the Guru is pleading to us, to listen to this guidance and do what we know will help us. The guru uses the word pukar, which is used to say a person’s name with an emphasis or with a tone of something like an imperative. It is used in courts when they announce for a person to mark their presence. It is a call, and when it shows up in songs it is a pleading or a cry for help, an expression of feeling, a word that sets an emotive tone that can evoke pain or grief or joy or wonder. Here, the Guru uses it on our behalf, even as the Guru is guiding us.
This state we are in is one of pain and grief, but it can be one that becomes joyful and hopeful, if we begin to take the guidance of the Guru and sing praises of the One. We know the condition of the mind. Will we acknowledge it? We know the condition of the mad ones, the crazy people. Will we reflect on it? We know the guidance of the Guru, the advice on how to solve these conditions. Will we take it?
Opportunity is passing away; accept my utterance. The Guru continues and says that we have been so attached to wealth, and property and power, in seeing ourselves as superior over others. This is what we have been after, this is what we are attached to, this is what we are consumed by, this is what we pursue. And we accumulate things and money and relationships and power and we think it is all ours. We have spent all of our time thinking that this is all ours. But when the noose of death slips around our necks, when it is our time to go, all of these things we have attached ourselves to and been driven by will become someone else’s.
Opportunity is passing away; accept my utterance. The Guru says, you have known this! You have understood this! And still, O crazy person, you have ruined the affair. We have done this knowingly and that is what makes us mad. A theme throughout these compositions has been that we know what ails us, we know what we are caught up in, we know what we are consumed by, and we know that it is not good for us but still, again and again, we make the decision to continue on as we are. We do not do the things that we know can help us out of this. We do not pause and reflect for even a moment. We know what we are meant to do with these human bodies and instead of making our lives fruitful, we are wasting them away into disrepair. We are actively choosing to mess things up for ourselves. This is what makes us crazy. We do not even hesitate when we commit transgressions! We are so driven by our own greed and attachment that we have lost all sense of shame. We have lost all restraint or discipline. We did not rid ourselves of pride or ego. We have not even paused to take a good look at ourselves.
Opportunity is passing away; accept my utterance. The Guru then lovingly addresses us as siblings, fellow travelers, and says, as the Guru has explained, let us listen to that! This is what the Guru is asking us to follow, this is the advice that has been repeated throughout the three compositions. There is actually a kind of loud pleading here, where the Guru is asking us to go to the sanctuary, to the refuge of the One, and to sing the songs of praise. This is not about a physical space. This is about bringing Wisdom into our lives, even at this stage, even if we think it is too late. Our minds need Wisdom, and the Guru’s way to bring that Wisdom into the mind is to sing the virtues. We are being asked to take sanctuary in that act. This pleading is especially poignant because in an infinite number of scenarios, the one guiding is the one to whom the traveler pleads. But in this situation, the Guru is pleading to us, to listen to this guidance and do what we know will help us. The guru uses the word pukar, which is used to say a person’s name with an emphasis or with a tone of something like an imperative. It is used in courts when they announce for a person to mark their presence. It is a call, and when it shows up in songs it is a pleading or a cry for help, an expression of feeling, a word that sets an emotive tone that can evoke pain or grief or joy or wonder. Here, the Guru uses it on our behalf, even as the Guru is guiding us.
This state we are in is one of pain and grief, but it can be one that becomes joyful and hopeful, if we begin to take the guidance of the Guru and sing praises of the One. We know the condition of the mind. Will we acknowledge it? We know the condition of the mad ones, the crazy people. Will we reflect on it? We know the guidance of the Guru, the advice on how to solve these conditions. Will we take it?
Tags
