ikoaṅkār satigur prasādi.
rāgu gaüṛī vār kabīr jīu ke 7.
bār bār hari ke gun gāvaü.
gur gami bhedu su hari kā pāvaü.1. rahāu.
ādit karai bhagati ārambh.
kāiā mandar mansā thambh.
ahinisi akhanḍ surhī jāi.
taü anhad beṇu sahaj mahi bāi.1.
-Guru Granth Sahib 344
This composition is based on the seven days of the week. The days of the week are often associated with the notions of good and bad. However, Bhagat Kabir Ji encourages us to focus on connecting with the Nam of IkOankar (the Divine) rather than believing in such notions. He imparts a distinct teaching for each day of the week. The message through Sunday is to practice devotion. Through Monday is to partake Nam from the Wisdom (Guru). Through Tuesday is to understand the true nature of the vices. Through Wednesday is to develop intellect within. Through Thursday is to rid our minds of the overpowering influence of Maya. Through Friday is to remain unaffected by the pride and prestige gained through good deeds. Finally, the message through Saturday is to keep one’s wandering mind steady and stable.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
Gauri is a rag (musical mode) often used to invoke the winter season and the afternoon period when the sun is strongest. It communicates a feeling of pain or the pang of separation that is either very long or permanent. In the Guru Granth Sahib, this emotion of the pang of separation is coupled with hope and the understanding that even if this pain is long and difficult, it can still be overcome when the one feels the One in their consciousness. Var Sat refers to the structure and form of the composition, which is a folk genre based on the seven days of the week. Bhagat Kabir challenges the widespread understanding that certain days are ‘auspicious’ or ‘inauspicious.’ Instead, he uses the calendar week to describe what we can practice, what habits we can make, and what deeds we can do.
In the first stanza, through Sunday, Bhagat Kabir says, If one sings the virtues of the 1-Light repeatedly, having approached the Guru, that being finds the secret of the 1-Light. If a seeker, through a relationship with the Wisdom (Guru), sings praises of IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One) continuously, they realize that it is through this continuous singing of praises and cultivation of adoration that they can connect with Hari, a synonymous name for IkOankar—the All-Pervasive, the Fear-Eliminator, the 1-Light. Bhagat Kabir is clear from the beginning: singing is the thing to do constantly and repeatedly. The thing we repeatedly do cannot be a particular ritual or gesture or debate, and it cannot be philosophical or abstract—it can only be singing, this thing we can all do, this thing that is accessible and requires nothing other than for us to use our bodies to practice devotion. It is this singing of the virtues that brings new understanding. When we sing in a folksy way, we are singing in the most accessible and community-oriented way, and we sing even the most complicated ideas simply so that everyone can understand. When we sing this way, we develop particular emotions and a particular desire, and we look for that desire to be fulfilled. We are looking for someone who can help us fulfill this. When this singing becomes a practice, a habit, and a routine, the Wisdom becomes integral, and this is how we meet IkOankar. This is how we find the secret, the mystery, and the insights about the 1-Light through the Wisdom.
Bhagat Kabir says that when a seeker begins practicing devotion, devotion becomes a pillar and support in the body-home of the seeker. When we are in deep love and devotion to the One, when we practice this and make it habitual, that devotion we cultivate within ourselves allows for steadiness. We no longer struggle with what ails us—the vices within. Just as any house needs a good foundation, good frames, structure, and pillars within it to bear its weight, these bodies also need good foundations and good pillars to bear the weight of our human cravings and vices.
When these foundations and pillars are cultivated out of our devotion to the One, when we are continuously connected to IkOankar through praise, this is when the unstruck melody within us resounds. Bhagat Kabir uses the imagery of the flute from Yogic culture and subverts it, making his message accessible to all. The Yogis are those who think they have figured out the Divine and believe they have demystified the Divine. And it might be that everyday people think they do not have access to that kind of relationship because they have not engaged in the same disciplines, rituals, or practices. Bhagat Kabir says that all of us can experience the Divine through praise. All of us can make these distracted minds focused. All of us can experience a state of sahaj and feel deep joy and bliss akin to unstruck melodies arising within us. This is for the everyday person asking how to pursue a relationship with the One. We need not be the most disciplined spiritualists going through complex systems and schools of thought. We only need to sing praises of the One in devotion. We are urged to start now, with devotion, on the first day of the week. This is how we build pillars within our body-homes. This is how we steady ourselves in the face of vices and the things of the mind. This is how we experience the unstruck melody resounding within us. This is how we experience bliss. This is how we make our lives musical and harmonious. Will we begin by singing of the One’s virtues? Will we make devotion our support? Will we cultivate a relationship with the Wisdom and understand the mystery of the One?
In the first stanza, through Sunday, Bhagat Kabir says, If one sings the virtues of the 1-Light repeatedly, having approached the Guru, that being finds the secret of the 1-Light. If a seeker, through a relationship with the Wisdom (Guru), sings praises of IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One) continuously, they realize that it is through this continuous singing of praises and cultivation of adoration that they can connect with Hari, a synonymous name for IkOankar—the All-Pervasive, the Fear-Eliminator, the 1-Light. Bhagat Kabir is clear from the beginning: singing is the thing to do constantly and repeatedly. The thing we repeatedly do cannot be a particular ritual or gesture or debate, and it cannot be philosophical or abstract—it can only be singing, this thing we can all do, this thing that is accessible and requires nothing other than for us to use our bodies to practice devotion. It is this singing of the virtues that brings new understanding. When we sing in a folksy way, we are singing in the most accessible and community-oriented way, and we sing even the most complicated ideas simply so that everyone can understand. When we sing this way, we develop particular emotions and a particular desire, and we look for that desire to be fulfilled. We are looking for someone who can help us fulfill this. When this singing becomes a practice, a habit, and a routine, the Wisdom becomes integral, and this is how we meet IkOankar. This is how we find the secret, the mystery, and the insights about the 1-Light through the Wisdom.
Bhagat Kabir says that when a seeker begins practicing devotion, devotion becomes a pillar and support in the body-home of the seeker. When we are in deep love and devotion to the One, when we practice this and make it habitual, that devotion we cultivate within ourselves allows for steadiness. We no longer struggle with what ails us—the vices within. Just as any house needs a good foundation, good frames, structure, and pillars within it to bear its weight, these bodies also need good foundations and good pillars to bear the weight of our human cravings and vices.
When these foundations and pillars are cultivated out of our devotion to the One, when we are continuously connected to IkOankar through praise, this is when the unstruck melody within us resounds. Bhagat Kabir uses the imagery of the flute from Yogic culture and subverts it, making his message accessible to all. The Yogis are those who think they have figured out the Divine and believe they have demystified the Divine. And it might be that everyday people think they do not have access to that kind of relationship because they have not engaged in the same disciplines, rituals, or practices. Bhagat Kabir says that all of us can experience the Divine through praise. All of us can make these distracted minds focused. All of us can experience a state of sahaj and feel deep joy and bliss akin to unstruck melodies arising within us. This is for the everyday person asking how to pursue a relationship with the One. We need not be the most disciplined spiritualists going through complex systems and schools of thought. We only need to sing praises of the One in devotion. We are urged to start now, with devotion, on the first day of the week. This is how we build pillars within our body-homes. This is how we steady ourselves in the face of vices and the things of the mind. This is how we experience the unstruck melody resounding within us. This is how we experience bliss. This is how we make our lives musical and harmonious. Will we begin by singing of the One’s virtues? Will we make devotion our support? Will we cultivate a relationship with the Wisdom and understand the mystery of the One?
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