Selections from the Guru Granth Sahib · 167 of 228
Raag Aasaa: Of Kabeer Jee, Chau-Padas, Ik-Tukas
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
Aasaa Of Kabeer Jee, Chau-Padas, Ik-Tukas:
Sanak and Sanand, the sons of Brahma, could not find the Lord’s limits.
Brahma wasted his life away, continually reading the Vedas. ||1||
Churn the churn of the Lord, O my Siblings of Destiny.
Churn it steadily, so that the essence, the butter, may not be lost. ||1||Pause||
Make your body the churning jar, and use the stick of your mind to churn it.
Gather the curds of the Word of the Shabad. ||2||
The churning of the Lord is to reflect upon Him within your mind.
By Guru’s Grace, the Ambrosial Nectar flows into us. ||3||
Says Kabeer, if the Lord, our King casts His Glance of Grace, one is carried across to the other side, holding fast to the Lord’s Name. ||4||1||10||
Aasaa:
The wick has dried up, and the oil is exhausted.
The drum does not sound, and the actor has gone to sleep. ||1||
The fire has gone out, and no smoke is produced.
The One Lord is pervading and permeating everywhere; there is no other second. ||1||Pause||
The string has broken, and the guitar makes no sound.
He mistakenly ruins his own affairs. ||2||
When one comes to understand, he forgets his preaching, ranting and raving, and arguing. ||3||
Says Kabeer, the state of supreme dignity is never far from those who conquer the five demons of the body passions. ||4||2||11||
Aasaa:
As many mistakes as the son commits, his mother does not hold them against him in her mind. ||1||
O Lord, I am Your child.
Why not destroy my sins? ||1||Pause||
If the son, in anger, runs away, even then, his mother does not hold it against him in her mind. ||2||
My mind has fallen into the whirlpool of anxiety.
Without the Naam, how can I cross over to the other side? ||3||
Please, bless my body with pure and lasting understanding, Lord;
in peace and poise, Kabeer chants the Praises of the Lord. ||4||3||12||
Aasaa:
My pilgrimage to Mecca is on the banks of the Gomati River;
the spiritual teacher in his yellow robes dwells there. ||1||
Waaho! Waaho! Hail! Hail! How wondrously he sings.
The Name of the Lord is pleasing to my mind. ||1||Pause||
Section 08 - Raag Aasaa - Part 133 Naarada the sage, and Shaarada the goddess of knowledge, serve the Lord.
The goddess Lakhshmi sits by Him as His slave. ||2||
The mala is around my neck, and the Lord’s Name is upon my tongue.
I repeat the Naam, the Name of the Lord, a thousand times, and bow in reverence to Him. ||3||
Says Kabeer, I sing the Glorious Praises of the Lord;
I teach both Hindus and Muslims. ||4||4||13||
Aasaa, Kabeer Jee, 9 Panch-Padas, 5 Du-Tukas:
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
You tear off the leaves, O gardener, but in each and every leaf, there is life.
That stone idol, for which you tear off those leaves - that stone idol is lifeless. ||1||
In this, you are mistaken, O gardener.
The True Guru is the Living Lord. ||1||Pause||
Brahma is in the leaves, Vishnu is in the branches, and Shiva is in the flowers.
When you break these three gods, whose service are you performing? ||2||
The sculptor carves the stone and fashions it into an idol, placing his feet upon its chest.
If this stone god was true, it would devour the sculptor for this! ||3||
Rice and beans, candies, cakes and cookies
- the priest enjoys these, while he puts ashes into the mouth of the idol. ||4||
The gardener is mistaken, and the world is mistaken, but I am not mistaken.
Says Kabeer, the Lord preserves me; the Lord, my King, has showered His Blessings upon me. ||5||1||14||
Aasaa:
Twelve years pass in childhood, and for another twenty years, he does not practice self-discipline and austerity.
For another thirty years, he does not worship God in any way, and then, when he is old, he repents and regrets. ||1||
His life wastes away as he cries out, “Mine, mine!”
The pool of his power has dried up. ||1||Pause||
He makes a dam around the dried-up pool, and with his hands, he makes a fence around the harvested field.
When the thief of Death comes, he quickly carries away what the fool had tried to preserve as his own. ||2||
His feet and head and hands begin to tremble, and the tears flow copiously from his eyes.
His tongue has not spoken the correct words, but now, he hopes to practice religion! ||3||
If the Dear Lord shows His Mercy, one enshrines love for Him, and obtains the Profit of the Lord’s Name.
By Guru’s Grace, he receives the wealth of the Lord’s Name, which alone shall go with him, when he departs in the end. ||4||
Says Kabeer, listen, O Saints - he shall not take any other wealth with him.
When the summons comes from the King, the Lord of the Universe, the mortal departs, leaving behind his wealth and mansions. ||5||2||15||
Aasaa:
To some, the Lord has given silks and satins, and to some, beds decorated with cotton ribbons.
Some do not even have a poor patched coat, and some live in thatched huts. ||1||
Do not indulge in envy and bickering, O my mind.
By continually doing good deeds, these are obtained, O my mind. ||1||Pause||
The potter works the same clay, and colors the pots in different ways.
Into some, he sets pearls, while to others, he attaches filth. ||2||
God gave wealth to the miser for him to preserve, but the fool calls it his own.
Section 08 - Raag Aasaa - Part 134 When the Messenger of Death strikes him with his club, in an instant, everything is settled. ||3||
The Lord’s humble servant is called the most exalted Saint; he obeys the Command of the Lord’s Order, and obtains peace.
Whatever is pleasing to the Lord, he accepts as True; he enshrines the Lord’s Will within his mind. ||4||
Says Kabeer, listen, O Saints - it is false to call out, “Mine, mine.”
Breaking the bird cage, death takes the bird away, and only the torn threads remain. ||5||3||16||
Aasaa:
I am Your humble servant, Lord; Your Praises are pleasing to my mind.
The Lord, the Primal Being, the Master of the poor, does not ordain that they should be oppressed. ||1||
O Qazi, it is not right to speak before Him. ||1||Pause||
Keeping your fasts, reciting your prayers, and reading the Kalma, the Islamic creed, shall not take you to paradise.
The Temple of Mecca is hidden within your mind, if you only knew it. ||2||
That should be your prayer, to administer justice. Let your Kalma be the knowledge of the unknowable Lord.
Spread your prayer mat by conquering your five desires, and you shall recognize the true religion. ||3||
Recognize Your Lord and Master, and fear Him within your heart; conquer your egotism, and make it worthless.
As you see yourself, see others as well; only then will you become a partner in heaven. ||4||
The clay is one, but it has taken many forms; I recognize the One Lord within them all.
Says Kabeer, I have abandoned paradise, and reconciled my mind to hell. ||5||4||17||
Aasaa:
From the city of the Tenth Gate, the sky of the mind, not even a drop rains down. Where is the music of the sound current of the Naad, which was contained in it?
The Supreme Lord God, the Transcendent Lord, the Master of wealth has taken away the Supreme Soul. ||1||
O Father, tell me: where has it gone? It used to dwell within the body, and dance in the mind, teaching and speaking. ||1||Pause||
Where has the player gone - he who made this temple his own?
No story, word or understanding is produced; the Lord has drained off all the power. ||2||
The ears, your companions, have gone deaf, and the power of your organs is exhausted.
Your feet have failed, your hands have gone limp, and no words issue forth from your mouth. ||3||
Having grown weary, the five enemies and all the thieves have wandered away according to their own will.
The elephant of the mind has grown weary, and the heart has grown weary as well; through its power, it used to pull the strings. ||4||
He is dead, and the bonds of the ten gates are opened; he has left all his friends and brothers.
Says Kabeer, one who meditates on the Lord, breaks his bonds, even while yet alive. ||5||5||18||