Illusion is unheard and unseen, yet sweet to every mind, sowing mine-and-yours in every home; but one handhold on the One sets the heart free.
The Arc
Some pulls are quiet. Nobody hears them, and nobody sees them work. They just taste sweet, like a bag of candy on the desk while you do homework. That pull reaches every home. It whispers mine and yours, so brothers and sisters argue over who got more. On your own, it can feel too big to fight. So hold on to the One, the way you would grab a rope thrown from the shore. Sing the One's praise, and the troubles that cling to you let go. Once you see through the game, with the Guru's help, it loses its grip. Then you come home, carrying the wealth of the Naam. At the centre, the Rahao: one handhold on the One sets you free.
Key Vocabulary
trai gun: the three tendencies that color activity
prabh kee ot: the One's shelter
chalat: the wondrous play
goojhee bhaahi: the hidden smouldering fire
doo-aa: duality, the sense of two
apunai ghar: one's own true home
Themes and Cross-Connections
This shabad is a sustained meditation on Haumai and Maya: the illusion of separateness (doo-aa) is the root of quarrels, and its cure is not force but a handhold on the One and the clear seeing that the whole thing is a chalat, a play. The homecoming of the fifth stanza is the return described throughout the project: not going somewhere new, but recognizing the home that was always there.
For Raag Dhanaasaree
In the raag of longing, this shabad locates the source of our restless ache in illusion's quiet sweetness, and answers it with the simplest possible remedy — one handhold — and the deepest possible reward: coming home.
Translation Notes
The literal personifies Maya as a woman ('she controls,' 'she administers her drug'). Following the project's even-handedness and wellbeing rules, Maya is rendered as an ungendered 'pull of illusion,' avoiding gendered blame while keeping the full teaching. 'They fight to the death' is softened to 'quarrel and pull apart.'
Hukumnama
Subject: Hold on to the One, and you are set free Preview: a sweet pull no one hears, mine-and-yours in every home, a hidden fire, and a homecoming.
Today: Some pulls are quiet. Nobody hears them, and nobody sees them work. They just taste sweet, like a bag of candy on the desk while you do homework. That pull reaches every home. It whispers mine and yours, so brothers and sisters argue over who got more. On your own, it can feel too big to fight. So hold on to the One, the way you would grab a rope thrown from the shore. Sing the One's praise, and the troubles that cling to you let go. Once you see through the game, with the Guru's help, it loses its grip. Then you come home, carrying the wealth of the Naam.
One handhold on the One, and you are free.
For today: When a small fight starts over who got more, take a breath and remember the One.
Illusion is unheard and unseen, yet sweet to every mind, sowing mine-and-yours in every home; but one handhold on the One sets the heart free.
The Arc
Some pulls are quiet. Nobody hears them, and nobody sees them work. They just taste sweet, like a bag of candy on the desk while you do homework. That pull reaches every home. It whispers mine and yours, so brothers and sisters argue over who got more. On your own, it can feel too big to fight. So hold on to the One, the way you would grab a rope thrown from the shore. Sing the One's praise, and the troubles that cling to you let go. Once you see through the game, with the Guru's help, it loses its grip. Then you come home, carrying the wealth of the Naam. At the centre, the Rahao: one handhold on the One sets you free.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
This shabad is a sustained meditation on Haumai and Maya: the illusion of separateness (doo-aa) is the root of quarrels, and its cure is not force but a handhold on the One and the clear seeing that the whole thing is a chalat, a play. The homecoming of the fifth stanza is the return described throughout the project: not going somewhere new, but recognizing the home that was always there.
For Raag Dhanaasaree
In the raag of longing, this shabad locates the source of our restless ache in illusion's quiet sweetness, and answers it with the simplest possible remedy — one handhold — and the deepest possible reward: coming home.
Translation Notes
The literal personifies Maya as a woman ('she controls,' 'she administers her drug'). Following the project's even-handedness and wellbeing rules, Maya is rendered as an ungendered 'pull of illusion,' avoiding gendered blame while keeping the full teaching. 'They fight to the death' is softened to 'quarrel and pull apart.'
Hukumnama
Subject: Hold on to the One, and you are set free Preview: a sweet pull no one hears, mine-and-yours in every home, a hidden fire, and a homecoming.
Today: Some pulls are quiet. Nobody hears them, and nobody sees them work. They just taste sweet, like a bag of candy on the desk while you do homework. That pull reaches every home. It whispers mine and yours, so brothers and sisters argue over who got more. On your own, it can feel too big to fight. So hold on to the One, the way you would grab a rope thrown from the shore. Sing the One's praise, and the troubles that cling to you let go. Once you see through the game, with the Guru's help, it loses its grip. Then you come home, carrying the wealth of the Naam.
One handhold on the One, and you are free.
For today: When a small fight starts over who got more, take a breath and remember the One.