Salok Sehskritee, Salok 21 — The Heaviest Weight Is Worry
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
A person might fall from a mountain down into the deepest places below, or be burned in a blazing fire,
or be swept away by waves of water too deep to measure — but the worst pain of all is worry about home and things, which keeps the round of birth and death turning.
Nanak says: try as you might, you cannot break free of it this way. The only support, the only anchor, the only pillar, is the Word and the holy people, your true friends.
The heaviest pain is the constant worry about home and things, and the Word and the holy people are what hold us steady.
The salok names terrible dangers: girant gir patit paataalan, falling from a mountain into the depths; jalant daydeep-y baisvaantareh, burning in a blazing fire; bahant agaah to-yan tarangan, being swept away by deep waves. Then it says the worst pain is garah chintaa, worry about home and belongings. This worry keeps a person going around in janman ta marnah, birth and death.
Anik saaDhanan na siDh-yatai: many efforts do not break it. Asthambha asthambha asthambha: the support, said three times, is sabad saaDh svajanah, the Word and the holy people who are true friends.
Is there a low, constant worry humming in the background of your days? What would help you set it down?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI