Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Inwardly and outwardly, there is none but Him; whatever pleases Him comes to pass.
Listen, Bharthari the yogi — Nanak speaks after deep thought: the spotless Name is my only support.
Guru Nanak ends by speaking straight to Bharthari, and by naming his one support.
Bharthari was a famous yogi-king from old stories. Two earlier shabads in Raag Aasaa speak to him too. Through this whole shabad, Guru Nanak has turned each yogi practice inward, one by one.
Now he sums up. Antar baahar avar na ko-ay — inside and outside, there is no one but the One. Whatever pleases the One, happens.
Nirmal naam mayraa aaDhaar — the spotless Name is my support. Think of a tent. It has many ropes, but everything hangs on one center pole. For Guru Nanak, that pole is the Name, not the yogi's tools.
If you stripped away all the outer forms, what would remain as your support?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI