Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
An outer holy thread is worth something only while the Light is actually alive inside you.
So let remembering the Name be the cloth you wear and the mark on your forehead.
Here and beyond, only the Name will stand by you — so don't chase any other actions; just the Name.
This one says an outer holy sign matters only when there is real light behind it.
Baahar janay-oo jichar jot hai naal means "the outer thread counts only while the Light is within." The janeu is the sacred thread some Hindu families give their sons. Jot means the Divine Light.
Guru Nanak does not mock the thread. He asks what gives it meaning. Think of a lamp. The lamp is lovely, but what you need is the light. Without the bulb glowing, it is just a shape in the dark.
So he says to make remembering the Name your cloth and the tikaa, the mark on your forehead. Aithai othai nibhee naal means "here and beyond, it stays with you." The Name is the one thing you carry through everything, even past this life. That idea runs through all of Guru Nanak's songs.
What in your life would still matter if everything outward were stripped away?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI