Sikhism·Raag Dhanaasaree·Shabad 17
Verse 2 of 4

One Cause Behind All Causes

ਹੰਉ ਬਲਿਹਾਰੈ ਜਾਉ ਸਾਚੇ ਤੇਰੇ ਨਾਮ ਵਿਟਹੁ ॥
haN-u balihaarai jaa-o saachay tayray naam vitahu.
I am a sacrifice to Your Name, O True Lord.
ਕਰਣ ਕਾਰਣ ਸਭਨਾ ਕਾ ਏਕੋ ਅਵਰੁ ਨ ਦੂਜਾ ਕੋਈ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
karan kaaran sabhnaa kaa ayko avar na doojaa ko-ee. ||1|| rahaa-o.
The One Lord is the Cause of causes; there is no other at all. ||1||Pause||

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa

In plain words

I give myself completely to Your true Naam.

The One is the reason behind every reason, the maker behind everything that happens — and there is no other.

Behind every reason there is one Reason, and behind every maker, one Maker.
The deeper layer

Behind every reason there is one Reason, the One.

This is the Rahao, the "pause" line, the center of the shabad. HaN-u balihaarai jaa-o saachay tayray naam vitahu — I give myself completely to Your true Name.

Karan kaaran sabhnaa kaa ayko — the One is the cause of all causes. Everything unfolds from that single source. Think of all the lights in a house: many switches, but one power supply. This line is a short way of saying Ik Onkaar, that oneness is the only reality.

A Question to Sit With

When you trace a good thing in your life all the way back, where does it lead?

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI

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