Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The cravings of the heart jingle like little bells, and the whole world keeps time to their beat.
Even the wise can get swept up dancing to the music of a confused age.
In all that noise and motion, where is a person who wants to live truthfully supposed to put their feet?
This one asks where a person can stand firm when the whole world dances to its cravings.
Guru Nanak pictures the heart's wants as cymbals and ankle-bells. The world is a drum that keeps the beat. Think of a party so loud that everyone just moves with the music, whether they mean to or not.
Naarad naachai kal kaa bhaa-o — Naarad dances to the tune of the dark age. Naarad is a famous wise musician in Hindu stories. So even people known for wisdom get swept up. Kal here means Kali Yuga, the age of confusion.
Then the honest question: jatee satee kah raakhahi paa-o — where can the self-controlled and the truthful put their feet? It names how hard it is to stand still when everything spins. In a world like that, standing still takes real courage.
When everyone around you is rushing after the same thing, how do you decide where to stand?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI