Raag Devgandhaari, Shabad 12, Mehl 5 (Guru Arjan) — Second Set of Six
"God is the nearest of the near... what is there which is not in Your home?"
The Arc
The One as nearest of the near — the answer to all longing (rahau); the gentle urgency of a finite life, redeemed in good company (v.1); the prayer to be lifted from the pit, and the recognition that the One's house lacks nothing — so ask only for the Name (v.2). Closes Guru Arjan's second hexad.
Key Vocabulary
nerai hee te nera — nearest of the near (see Viraha, philosophy.md).
death "in its vision" — mortality as focusing honesty, not terror.
"what is not in Your home?" — the One lacks nothing (cf. Anand Sahib, Praise over Prayer).
Themes and Cross-Connections
"Nearest of the near" resolves the raag's longing the way Maajh does (the Beloved nearer than near). "What is not in Your home?" is a direct echo of Anand Sahib v.2 — praise from fullness, asking only for the Giver. Finite-time urgency links to the memento-mori of the Mehl 9 close.
For Raag Devgandhaari
Caps the second hexad by resolving longing (the One is near) and reordering prayer (ask for the Giver, not the gifts). The most consoling shabad in Guru Arjan's Devgandhaari run.
"God is the nearest of the near... what is there which is not in Your home?"
The Arc
The One as nearest of the near — the answer to all longing (rahau); the gentle urgency of a finite life, redeemed in good company (v.1); the prayer to be lifted from the pit, and the recognition that the One's house lacks nothing — so ask only for the Name (v.2). Closes Guru Arjan's second hexad.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
"Nearest of the near" resolves the raag's longing the way Maajh does (the Beloved nearer than near). "What is not in Your home?" is a direct echo of Anand Sahib v.2 — praise from fullness, asking only for the Giver. Finite-time urgency links to the memento-mori of the Mehl 9 close.
For Raag Devgandhaari
Caps the second hexad by resolving longing (the One is near) and reordering prayer (ask for the Giver, not the gifts). The most consoling shabad in Guru Arjan's Devgandhaari run.