ਹਰਿ ਕੈ ਭਾਣੈ ਜਨਮੁ ਪਦਾਰਥੁ ਪਾਇਆ ਮਤਿ ਊਤਮ ਹੋਈ ॥
har kai bhaanai janam padaarath paa-i-aa mat ootam ho-ee.
By the Pleasure of the Lord's Will, the prize of this human birth is obtained, and the intellect is exalted.
ਨਾਨਕ ਨਾਮੁ ਸਲਾਹਿ ਤੂੰ ਗੁਰਮੁਖਿ ਗਤਿ ਹੋਈ ॥੪॥੩੯॥੧੩॥੫੨॥
naanak naam salaahi tooN gurmukh gat ho-ee. ||4||39||13||52||
O Nanak, praise the Naam, the Name of the Lord; as Gurmukh, you shall be emancipated. ||4||39||13||52||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
When it pleases the One, you win the prize of this human life, and your mind is lifted high.
Says Nanak: praise the Name, and turned toward the Guru, you are set free.
This human life is the prize — spend it praising, and you are set free.
The Kaafee closes by naming this human life "the prize" — the rare, precious opportunity (cf. Shabad 69). And even winning it is "by the Pleasure of His Will." The final instruction is simple and freeing: "praise the Naam; as Gurmukh, you shall be emancipated." The whole Mehl 3 block ends where it has pointed all along — praise, the Guru, and freedom.
A Question to Sit With
If this life is a rare prize, how do you most want to spend it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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