Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Attached to illusion, the whole world is in bondage; the foolish, self-willed are eaten up by their own ego.
But taking me by the arm, Guru Nanak has saved me.
The whole world gets tangled in illusion, and the Guru reaches in and pulls a person out.
First the verse names the problem. Held by Maya, the pull of things that do not last, the whole world is tied up. The manmukh, the person who follows only their own will, gets eaten up by haumai. Haumai means ego, the "me first" voice inside.
Then comes one simple rescue: gur naanak baah pakar ham raakhaa — Guru Nanak took me by the arm and saved me. Picture slipping into the deep end of a pool, and a friend grabbing your arm. You did not climb out on your own. Someone reached in and pulled. Other shabads in Raag Aasaa use this same picture of the Guru's saving hand.
When were you pulled free of something the whole crowd was caught in?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI