ਆਸਾ ਮਹਲਾ ੫ ॥
aasaa mehlaa 5.
Aasaa, Fifth Mehl:
ਪ੍ਰਥਮੇ ਮਤਾ ਜਿ ਪਤ੍ਰੀ ਚਲਾਵਉ ॥
parathmay mataa je patree chalaava-o.
First, they advised me to send a letter.
ਦੁਤੀਏ ਮਤਾ ਦੁਇ ਮਾਨੁਖ ਪਹੁਚਾਵਉ ॥
dutee-ay mataa du-ay maanukh pahuchaava-o.
Second, they advised me to send two men.
ਤ੍ਰਿਤੀਏ ਮਤਾ ਕਿਛੁ ਕਰਉ ਉਪਾਇਆ ॥
taritee-ay mataa kichh kara-o upaa-i-aa.
Third, they advised me to make the effort and do something.
ਮੈ ਸਭੁ ਕਿਛੁ ਛੋਡਿ ਪ੍ਰਭ ਤੁਹੀ ਧਿਆਇਆ ॥੧॥
mai sabh kichh chhod parabh tuhee Dhi-aa-i-aa. ||1||
But I have renounced everything, and I meditate only on You, God. ||1||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
First they told me to send a letter. Then they told me to send two messengers.
Then they told me to get up and do something about it.
But I let all of that go, and I lean on You alone, God.
Sometimes the wisest move is to stop maneuvering and simply lean on the One.
Guru Arjan lists the world's escalating strategies for a problem — send a letter, send envoys, take action — and then sets them all aside for a single move: "I meditate only on You." It is not that effort is wicked, but that the soul's deepest security is not in maneuvering; it is in trust (cf. Raag Gauree's "sleep in peace").
A Question to Sit With
Is there a worry you keep trying to fix with more plans, when you might just need to set it down?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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