Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
I am foolish, slow, ignorant, and thoughtless;
Your Name is my mind's only hope.
This one says that when you have nothing else, the Name becomes your whole hope.
The honesty keeps going. Guru Arjan calls himself foolish, slow, and thoughtless. Then he lands on the one thing left. Naam tayray kee aas man Dhaaree — I hold the hope of Your Name in my mind.
When you truly feel you have nothing to offer, the Name is not one hope among many. It is the only hope.
Think of being lost in a big crowd. You stop trying to figure it out yourself. You just hold on tight to one trusted hand. Feeling your need clearly points you straight to that hand, and to the One's kindness.
What is the one thing you'd hold onto if everything else were stripped away?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI