Ang-201 — Chapter 88
Having created the creation, He infuses His own power into it.
So many times, Nanak is a sacrifice to Him. ||8||18||
Salok:
Nothing shall go along with you, except your devotion. All corruption is like ashes.
Practice the Name of the Lord, Har, Har. O Nanak, this is the most excellent wealth. ||1||
Ashtapadee:
Joining the Company of the Saints, practice deep meditation.
Remember the One, and take the Support of the Naam, the Name of the Lord.
Forget all other efforts, O my friend
- enshrine the Lord's Lotus Feet within your heart.
God is All-powerful; He is the Cause of causes.
Grasp firmly the object of the Lord's Name.
Gather this wealth, and become very fortunate.
Pure are the instructions of the humble Saints.
Keep faith in the One Lord within your mind.
All disease, O Nanak, shall then be dispelled. ||1||
The wealth which you chase after in the four directions
you shall obtain that wealth by serving the Lord.
The peace, which you always yearn for, O friend
that peace comes by the love of the Company of the Holy.
The glory, for which you perform good deeds
- you shall obtain that glory by seeking the Lord's Sanctuary.
All sorts of remedies have not cured the disease
- the disease is cured only by giving the medicine of the Lord's Name.
Of all treasures, the Lord's Name is the supreme treasure.
Chant it, O Nanak, and be accepted in the Court of the Lord. ||2||
Enlighten your mind with the Name of the Lord.
Having wandered around in the ten directions, it comes to its place of rest.
No obstacle stands in the way of one
whose heart is filled with the Lord.
The Dark Age of Kali Yuga is so hot; the Lord's Name is soothing and cool.
Remember, remember it in meditation, and obtain everlasting peace.
Your fear shall be dispelled, and your hopes shall be fulfilled.
By devotional worship and loving adoration, your soul shall be enlightened.
You shall go to that home, and live forever.
Says Nanak, the noose of death is cut away. ||3||
One who contemplates the essence of reality, is said to be the true person.
Birth and death are the lot of the false and the insincere.
Coming and going in reincarnation is ended by serving God.
Give up your selfishness and conceit, and seek the Sanctuary of the Divine Guru.
Thus the jewel of this human life is saved.
Remember the Lord, Har, Har, the Support of the breath of life.
By all sorts of efforts, people are not saved
not by studying the Simritees, the Shaastras or the Vedas.
Worship the Lord with whole-hearted devotion.
O Nanak, you shall obtain the fruits of your mind's desire. ||4||
Your wealth shall not go with you;
why do you cling to it, you fool?
Children, friends, family and spouse
who of these shall accompany you?
Power, pleasure, and the vast expanse of Maya
who has ever escaped from these?
Horses, elephants, chariots and pageantry
- false shows and false displays.
The fool does not acknowledge the One who gave this;
forgetting the Naam, O Nanak, he will repent in the end. ||5||
Take the Guru's advice, you ignorant fool;
without devotion, even the clever have drowned.
Worship the Lord with heart-felt devotion, my friend;
your consciousness shall become pure.
Enshrine the Lord's Lotus Feet in your mind;
✦ Connected Across Traditions
The Golden Rule
Matthew 7:12
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Hadith (An-Nawawi 13)
“None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”
Leviticus 19:18
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Mahabharata 5.1517
“One should never do to another what one regards as injurious to oneself.”
Impermanence & Letting Go
Dhammapada 20:277
“All conditioned things are impermanent. When one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.”
Tao Te Ching 76
“A man is born gentle and weak. At his death he is hard and stiff. The soft and yielding is the disciple of life.”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.”
Bhagavad Gita 2:22
“As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.”
The Path to Wisdom
Proverbs 4:7
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.”
Dhammapada 20:282
“Wisdom springs from meditation; without meditation wisdom wanes.”
Analects 2:11
“If you study the past and use it to understand the present, you are worthy of being a teacher.”
Tao Te Ching 33
“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom.”
Humility & Surrender
Bhagavad Gita 18:66
“Abandon all varieties of dharma and simply surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions; do not fear.”
Matthew 5:5
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
Tao Te Ching 22
“If you want to become whole, let yourself be partial. If you want to become full, let yourself be empty.”
Quran 2:45
“Seek help through patience and prayer. It is indeed exacting, but not for those who are humble.”
Good vs Evil / Light vs Darkness
Yasna 30:3
“Now the two primal Spirits, who reveal themselves as Twins, are the Better and the Bad, in thought and word and action.”
John 1:5
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
Dhammapada 1:1-2
“Mind is the forerunner of all actions. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind, happiness follows like a shadow.”
Genesis 1:3
“And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”