Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Why are you sleeping, forgetting the Name, O careless and foolish soul?
So many have been washed away and carried off by this river of life.
This one is a wake-up call.
ki-aa soveh naam visaar — why are you sleeping, forgetting the Name? Guru Arjan pictures a strong river. So many people have already been swept away by it.
The river is time, and Maya, the pull of the world. It carries people off while they doze. Think of someone asleep on a raft, drifting toward the rapids. The sleeper does not see the others being carried away. He does not see that it is happening to him too. (See also Shabad 172.)
What is quietly carrying time (and you) along while you're not looking?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI