Sikhism·Raag Aasaa·Shabad 256
Verse 7 of 9

You Don't Grasp the One; You Become It

ਰਸਿ ਰਸਿਆ ਮਤਿ ਏਕੈ ਭਾਇ ॥
ras rasi-aa mat aikai bhaa-ay.
He delights in the delightful wisdom of loving the One Lord.
ਤਖਤ ਨਿਵਾਸੀ ਪੰਚ ਸਮਾਇ ॥
takhat nivaasee panch samaa-ay.
He is one of the self-elect - he merges with the Lord, who occupies the throne.
ਕਾਰ ਕਮਾਈ ਖਸਮ ਰਜਾਇ ॥
kaar kamaa-ee khasam rajaa-ay.
He performs his works in obedience to the Will of his Lord and Master.
ਅਵਿਗਤ ਨਾਥੁ ਨ ਲਖਿਆ ਜਾਇ ॥੬॥
avigat naath na lakhi-aa jaa-ay. ||6||
The Unknowable Lord cannot be understood. ||6||

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa

In plain words

He delights in the joyful wisdom of loving the One; one of the chosen, he merges with the One on the throne.

He does his work in obedience to the Will. The Unknowable cannot be grasped.

You don't grasp the One with the mind — you become one with it.
The deeper layer

The person who merges with the One lives by the One's Will, yet still cannot fully understand the One.

Kaar kamaa-ee khasam rajaa-ay — he does his work in step with the Master's Will. This Will is the Hukam, the flow of existence. He delights in loving the One, and he merges with the One who sits on the throne.

Yet avigat naath na lakhi-aa jaa-ay — the Master beyond knowing cannot be grasped. Think of a fish in the sea. It lives in the water every moment, yet it could never draw a map of the whole ocean. You come to know the One by becoming one with the One, not by figuring the One out.

A Question to Sit With

Can you be united with something you'll never fully understand?

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI

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