Ang-801 — Chapter 35
I praise the Lord, day and night, moving my feet to the beat of the drum. ||5||
Imbued with the Lord's Love, my mind sings His Praise, joyfully chanting the Shabad, the source of nectar and bliss.
The stream of immaculate purity flows through the home of the self within; one who drinks it in, finds peace. ||6||
The stubborn-minded, egotistical, proud-minded person performs rituals, but these are like sand castles built by children.
When the waves of the ocean come in, they crumble and dissolve in an instant. ||7||
The Lord is the pool, and the Lord Himself is the ocean; this world is all a play which He has staged.
As the waves of water merge into the water again, O Nanak, so does He merge into Himself. ||8||3||6||
Bilaaval, Fourth Mehl:
My mind wears the ear-rings of the True Guru's acquaintance; I apply the ashes of the Word of the Guru's Shabad to my body.
My body has become immortal, in the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy. Both birth and death have come to an end for me. ||1||
O my mind, remain united with the Saadh Sangat.
Be merciful to me, O Lord; each and every instant, let me wash the Feet of the Holy. ||1||Pause||
Forsaking family life, he wanders in the forest, but his mind does not remain at rest, even for an instant.
The wandering mind returns home, only when it seeks the Sanctuary of the Lord's Holy people. ||2||
The Sannyaasi renounces his daughters and sons, but his mind still conjures up all sorts of hopes and desires.
With these hopes and desires, he still does not understand, that only through the Word of the Guru's Shabad does one become free of desires, and find peace. ||3||
When detachment from the world wells up within, he become a naked hermit, but still, his mind roams, wanders and rambles in the ten directions.
He wanders around, but his desires are not satisfied; joining the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, he finds the house of kindness and compassion. ||4||
The Siddhas learn many Yogis postures, but their minds still yearn for riches, miraculous powers and energy.
Satisfaction, contentment and tranquility do not come to their minds; but meeting the Holy Saints, they are satisfied, and through the Name of the Lord, spiritual perfection is attained. ||5||
Life is born from the egg, from the womb, from sweat and from the earth; God created the beings and creatures of all colors and forms.
One who seeks the Sanctuary of the Holy is saved, whether he is a Kh'shaatriya, a Brahmin, a Soodra, a Vaishya or the most untouchable of the untouchables. ||6||
Naam Dayv, Jai Dayv, Kabeer, Trilochan and Ravi Daas the low-caste leather-worker,
blessed Dhanna and Sain; all those who joined the humble Saadh Sangat, met the Merciful Lord. ||7||
The Lord protects the honor of His humble servants; He is the Lover of His devotees - He makes them His own.
Nanak has entered the Sanctuary of the Lord, the Life of the world, who has showered His Mercy upon him, and saved him. ||8||||4||7||
Bilaaval, Fourth Mehl:
The thirst for God has welled up deep within me; hearing the Word of the Guru's Teachings, my mind is pierced by His arrow.
✦ 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.”
Divine Compassion & Mercy
Quran 1:1
“In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.”
Psalm 23:1
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”
Luke 6:36
“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”
Snp 1.8
“As a mother would risk her life to protect her child, her only child, even so should one cultivate a limitless heart with regard to all beings.”
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.”