Selections from the Guru Granth Sahib · 149 of 228
Raag Aasaa: Chhant, Fourth Mehl, First House
Raag Aasaa, Chhant, Fourth Mehl, First House:
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Life - I have found real life, as Gurmukh, through His Love.
The Lord’s Name - He has given me the Lord’s Name, and enshrined it within my breath of life.
He has enshrined the Name of the Lord, Har, Har within my breath of lfe, and all my doubts and sorrows have departed.
I have meditated on the invisible and unapproachable Lord, through the Guru’s Word, and I have obtained the pure, supreme status.
The unstruck melody resounds, and the instruments ever vibrate, singing the Bani of the True Guru.
O Nanak, God the Great Giver has given me a gift; He has blended my light into the Light. ||1||
The self-willed manmukhs die in their self-willed stubbornness, declaring that the wealth of Maya is theirs.
They attach their consciousness to the foul-smelling pile of filth, which comes for a moment, and departs in an instant.
They attach their consciousness to the foul-smelling pile of filth, which is transitory, like the fading color of the safflower.
One moment, they are facing east, and the next instant, they are facing west; they continue spinning around, like the potter’s wheel.
In sorrow, they eat, and in sorrow, they gather things and try to enjoy them, but they only increase their stores of sorrow.
O Nanak, one easily crosses over the terrifying world-ocean, when he comes to the Sanctuary of the Guru. ||2||
My Lord, my Lord Master is sublime, unapproachable and unfathomable.
The wealth of the Lord - I seek the wealth of the Lord, from my True Guru, the Divine Banker.
I seek the wealth of the Lord, to purchase the Naam; I sing and love the Glorious Praises of the Lord.
I have totally renounced sleep and hunger, and through deep meditation, I am absorbed into the Absolute Lord.
The traders of one kind come and take away the Name of the Lord as their profit.
O Nanak, dedicate your mind and body to the Guru; one who is so destined, attains it. ||3||
The great ocean is full of the treasures of jewels upon jewels.
Those who are committed to the Word of the Guru’s Bani, see them come into their hands.
This priceless, incomparable jewel comes into the hands of those who are committed to the Word of the Guru’s Bani.
They obtain the immeasurable Name of the Lord, Har, Har; their treasure is overflowing with devotional worship.
I have churned the ocean of the body, and I have seen the incomparable thing come into view.
The Guru is God, and God is the Guru, O Nanak; there is no difference between the two, O Siblings of Destiny. ||4||1||8||
Aasaa, Fourth Mehl:
Slowly, slowly, slowly, very slowly, the drops of Ambrosial Nectar trickle down.
Section 08 - Raag Aasaa - Part 097 As Gurmukh, the Gurmukh beholds the Lord, the Beloved Lord.
The Name of the Lord, the Emancipator of the world, is dear to him; the Name of the Lord is his glory.
In this Dark Age of Kali Yuga, the Lord’s Name is the boat, which carries the Gurmukh across.
This world, and the world hereafter, are adorned with the Lord’s Name; the Gurmukh’s lifestyle is the most excellent.
O Nanak, bestowing His kindness, the Lord gives the gift of His emancipating Name. ||1||
I chant the Name of the Lord, Raam, Raam, which destroys my sorrows and erases my sins.
Associating with the Guru, associating with the Guru, I practice meditation; I have enshrined the Lord within my heart.
I enshrined the Lord within my heart, and obtained the supreme status, when I came to the Sanctuary of the Guru.
My boat was sinking under the weight of greed and corruption, but it was uplifted when the True Guru implanted the Naam, the Name of the Lord, within me.
The Perfect Guru has given me the gift of spiritual life, and I center my consciousness on the Lord’s Name.
The Merciful Lord Himself has mercifully given this gift to me; O Nanak, I take to the Sanctuary of the Guru. ||2||
Hearing the Bani of the Lord’s Name, all my affairs were brought to perfection and embellished.
With each and every hair, with each and every hair, as Gurmukh, I meditate on the Lord.
I meditate on the Lord’s Name, and become pure; He has no form or shape.
The Name of the Lord, Raam, Raam, is permeating my heart deep within, and all of my desire and hunger has disappeared.
My mind and body are totally adorned with peace and tranquility; through the Guru’s Teachings, the Lord has been revealed to me.
The Lord Himself has shown His kind mercy to Nanak; He has made me the slave of the slaves of His slaves. ||3||
Those who forget the Name of the Lord, Raam, Raam, are foolish, unfortunate, self-willed manmukhs.
Within, they are engrossed in emotional attachment; each and every moment, Maya clings to them.
The filth of Maya clings to them, and they become unfortunate fools - they do not love the Lord’s Name.
The egotistical and proud perform all sorts of rituals, but they shy away from the Lord’s Name.
The path of Death is very arduous and painful; it is stained with the darkness of emotional attachment.
O Nanak, the Gurmukh meditates on the Naam, and finds the gate of salvation. ||4||
The Name of the Lord, Raam, Raam, and the Lord Guru, are known by the Gurmukh.
One moment, this mind is in the heavens, and the next, it is in the nether regions; the Guru brings the wandering mind back to one-pointedness.
When the mind returns to one-pointedness, one totally understands the value of salvation, and enjoys the subtle essence of the Lord’s Name.
The Lord’s Name preserves the honor of His servant, as He preserved and emancipated Prahlaad.
So repeat continually the Name of the Lord, Raam, Raam; chanting His Glorious Virtues, His limit cannot be found.
Nanak is drenched in happiness, hearing the Name of the Lord; he is merged in the Name of the Lord. ||5||
Those beings, whose minds are filled the Lord’s Name, forsake all anxiety.
They obtain all wealth, and all Dharmic faith, and the fruits of their minds’ desires.
They obtain the fruits of their hearts’ desires, meditating on the Lord’s Name, and singing the Glorious Praises of the Lord’s Name.
Evil-mindedness and duality depart, and their understanding is enlightened. They attach their minds to the Name of the Lord.
Section 08 - Raag Aasaa - Part 098 Their lives and bodies become totally blessed and fruitful; the Lord’s Name illumines them.
O Nanak, by continually vibrating upon the Lord, day and night, the Gurmukhs abide in the home of the inner self. ||6||
Those who place their faith in the Lord’s Name, do not attach their consciousness to another.
Even if the entire earth were to be transformed into gold, and given to them, without the Naam, they love nothing else.
The Lord’s Name is pleasing to their minds, and they obtain supreme peace; when they depart in the end, it shall go with them as their support.
I have gathered the capital, the wealth of the Lord’s Name; it does not sink, and does not depart.
The Lord’s Name is the only true support in this age; the Messenger of Death does not draw near it.
O Nanak, the Gurmukhs recognize the Lord; in His Mercy, He unites them with Himself. ||7||
True, True is the Name of the Lord, Raam, Raam; the Gurmukh knows the Lord.
The Lord’s servant is the one who commits himself to the Guru’s service, and dedicates his mind and body as an offering to Him.
He dedicates his mind and body to Him, placing great faith in Him; the Guru lovingly unites His servant with Himself.
The Master of the meek, the Giver of souls, is obtained through the Perfect Guru.
The Guru’s Sikh, and the Sikh’s Guru, are one and the same; both spread the Guru’s Teachings.
The Mantra of the Lord’s Name is enshrined within the heart, O Nanak, and we merge with the Lord so easily. ||8||2||9||