Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Those who have forgotten the Name wander deluded, caught in doubt and duality.
Whoever abandons the roots and clings to the branches gathers nothing but ashes.
Feed the root. If you hold only the branches, you end up holding ashes.
The whole shabad grows from one picture: a tree. Mool chhod daalee lagay — leaving the root and clinging to the branches. Ki-aa paavahi chhaa-ee — what will you get? Only ashes.
The Name is the root. You cannot see it, but it feeds the whole tree. The shiny things of the world are the branches. They are easy to see and easy to grab. But cut from the root, a branch dries out in a few days.
Jinhee naam visaari-aa doojai bharam bhulaa-ee — those who forget the Name get lost in doubt and doojaa, "the second thing," anything we put in the One's place. It is like caring about the flowers in a vase but forgetting they have no roots. The ashes are not a punishment added later. They are simply what a cut-off branch becomes.
In your life, what is root and what is branch — and which gets more of your attention?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI