budhvāri āpe budhi sāru.
gurmukhi karṇī sabadu vīcāru.
nāmi rate manu nirmalu hoi.
hari guṇ gāvai haümai malu khoi.
dari sacai sad sobhā pāe.
nāmi rate gur sabadi suhāe.4.
-Guru Granth Sahib 841
This composition, revealed by Guru Amardas Sahib (1479-1574 CE), is based on the seven days of the week. In it, the Guru imparts a distinct teaching for each day of the week. Through Sunday, the being is inspired to recite the Nam of IkOankar (the Divine). Through Monday, it is conveyed that Nam is received through the Wisdom (Guru), and it is through Nam that the being experiences IkOankar. Through Tuesday, it is expressed that IkOankar Own-Self creates worldly attachment, and Own-Self bestows awareness to the being. Through Wednesday, it is informed that the being receives honor by immersing in the Nam. Through Thursday, it is stated that all beings are created and supported by IkOankar. Through Friday, it is explained that without remembering the Nam, all ritual practices like observance of fasts lead to worldly attachment. Through Saturday, it is conveyed that self-centered beings deliberate on “auspicious” and “inauspicious” deeds and continue to live in illusion. At the end, it is concluded that only the beings who reflect on the eternal Wisdom are imbued with the love of IkOankar.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
Recite the Treasure of virtues within the heart. This alone is the rosary. Through Wednesday, the fourth day of the week, Guru Amardas describes IkOankar (One Creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One) as Hari, the all-pervasive One who bestows supreme intellect. The all-pervasive One, through the Wisdom (Guru), bestows contemplation and reflection on the Sabad (Infinite Wisdom). We learn that only the all-pervasive One can give us this essential understanding. We may wonder, how does this happen? This happens through the Wisdom. When Wisdom-oriented beings contemplating the Sabad engage in the supreme deed, their behaviors align with that contemplation.
Recite the Treasure of virtues within the heart. This alone is the rosary. We are invited to contemplate something more worthwhile here. When we reflect on the Sabad as the Wisdom-oriented beings, we become imbued with the Nam (Identification with IkOankar). Our minds become filth-free. We are no longer self-centered. When we are drenched in the Identification, we only desire to sing the virtues of the all-pervasive One. Our deeds change, and our actions align with the One. We live in that essential understanding given to us by the One, and we become deeply immersed in the Identification with the One through the Wisdom. Our minds become free of ego.
At the end of the stanza, we learn that we find honor at the door of the eternal One by aligning our deeds with the One through the Wisdom. This is not a physical door but the ever-expanding universal dwelling space of IkOankar. So much of these existing systems of transactional spirituality, rooted in notions of ‘auspiciousness,’ are about finding honor or repute in this world and the next. We learn here that it is through drenching ourselves with the Identification that we experience the presence of the One and make our lives fruitful. When we are imbued with the Identification through the Wisdom, through the teachings of the Wisdom, we become beautiful. We become radiant. We earn our deeds guided by those teachings. We are offered an understanding of what we ought to be doing with ourselves, what efforts we might engage in, and what essential understandings we may internalize to rid ourselves of ego. Guru Amardas understands the local and popular systems and games of so-called auspiciousness and what to do when. Still, we are encouraged to come out of these systems to involve ourselves in something universal and eternal. Will we internalize these understandings? Will we reflect on the Wisdom? Will we drench ourselves in the Identification?
Recite the Treasure of virtues within the heart. This alone is the rosary. We are invited to contemplate something more worthwhile here. When we reflect on the Sabad as the Wisdom-oriented beings, we become imbued with the Nam (Identification with IkOankar). Our minds become filth-free. We are no longer self-centered. When we are drenched in the Identification, we only desire to sing the virtues of the all-pervasive One. Our deeds change, and our actions align with the One. We live in that essential understanding given to us by the One, and we become deeply immersed in the Identification with the One through the Wisdom. Our minds become free of ego.
At the end of the stanza, we learn that we find honor at the door of the eternal One by aligning our deeds with the One through the Wisdom. This is not a physical door but the ever-expanding universal dwelling space of IkOankar. So much of these existing systems of transactional spirituality, rooted in notions of ‘auspiciousness,’ are about finding honor or repute in this world and the next. We learn here that it is through drenching ourselves with the Identification that we experience the presence of the One and make our lives fruitful. When we are imbued with the Identification through the Wisdom, through the teachings of the Wisdom, we become beautiful. We become radiant. We earn our deeds guided by those teachings. We are offered an understanding of what we ought to be doing with ourselves, what efforts we might engage in, and what essential understandings we may internalize to rid ourselves of ego. Guru Amardas understands the local and popular systems and games of so-called auspiciousness and what to do when. Still, we are encouraged to come out of these systems to involve ourselves in something universal and eternal. Will we internalize these understandings? Will we reflect on the Wisdom? Will we drench ourselves in the Identification?
