I offer everything and ask how to hold You; clever methods fail, good company saves, and the eyes finally rest content.
The Arc
A seeker's honest progress. It opens by offering body, mind, and wealth, then asking outright for the wisdom to hold the Name. The Rahau frames it all as hopeful asking — and just beholding the One adorns the inner courtyard. Then the humbling turns: many clever methods do not save the mind, but good company does; and the meeting cannot be forced by being smart — the One must draw the seeker near. It closes in contentment: the eyes that chased so much finally rest, and the life bears fruit.
Key Vocabulary
arpa-o: I offer, surrender — the letting-go of mine
kavan so mat: what is that wisdom — the seeker's direct question
aasaa maagan: coming with hope to ask — grace received, not earned
darshan: the seeing that itself beautifies the heart
anik jugat: many methods — which do not save on their own
saadhsang: the company of the holy, where the mind is carried across
nain santokhay: the eyes made content — the end of restless hunting
safal: fruitful — a life that has come to something
Themes and Cross-Connections
Guru Arjan poses and follows a real question here, so the asking is voiced directly rather than narrated. The pauri where cleverness fails and company saves restates the batch's repeated turn from self-effort to grace-through-sangat. And the closing santokh — eyes content — is the antidote to the restless wanting the earlier shabads named as a mirage and a fire: contentment is not getting more but resting at last.
For Raag Bilaaval
Bilaaval's brightness here is the light of a settled gaze. The raag ends the shabad not in striving but in santokh — the calm, satisfied eye that no longer needs to chase, which is the daylight raag's own kind of peace.
I offer everything and ask how to hold You; clever methods fail, good company saves, and the eyes finally rest content.
The Arc
A seeker's honest progress. It opens by offering body, mind, and wealth, then asking outright for the wisdom to hold the Name. The Rahau frames it all as hopeful asking — and just beholding the One adorns the inner courtyard. Then the humbling turns: many clever methods do not save the mind, but good company does; and the meeting cannot be forced by being smart — the One must draw the seeker near. It closes in contentment: the eyes that chased so much finally rest, and the life bears fruit.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
Guru Arjan poses and follows a real question here, so the asking is voiced directly rather than narrated. The pauri where cleverness fails and company saves restates the batch's repeated turn from self-effort to grace-through-sangat. And the closing santokh — eyes content — is the antidote to the restless wanting the earlier shabads named as a mirage and a fire: contentment is not getting more but resting at last.
For Raag Bilaaval
Bilaaval's brightness here is the light of a settled gaze. The raag ends the shabad not in striving but in santokh — the calm, satisfied eye that no longer needs to chase, which is the daylight raag's own kind of peace.
Last updated: 2026-07-08