Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
I am not celibate, not truthful, not a scholar. I came into this world foolish and ignorant.
Nanak prays: let me seek the sanctuary of those who have not forgotten You. That is enough. Being near those who remember is where I want to be.
This shabad is a masterclass in honest self-assessment without self-loathing. Guru Nanak does not claim any spiritual achievement. He does not pretend to be what he is not. He simply says: I am what I am — foolish and ordinary. And from that honest place, he makes one request: let me be near those who remember the oneness.
This is the wisdom of the Sangat (congregation): you do not need to have arrived in order to benefit from being near those who are arriving. Proximity to remembrance is itself a form of remembrance.
Is there someone in your life who simply by being themselves reminds you of what matters? What is it like to be around them?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI