Stuck and unable to climb out alone, one honestly asks for help — and the One who shelters the helpless, friend and parent at once, reaches down and carries you across.
The Arc
A short, intimate cry. Pauri 0 (Rahao) is the reach: O strong, brave Ocean of Peace, I have fallen and cannot climb out — take my hand. Pauri 1 is the honest self-account: ears that don't hear, eyes that aren't sharp, unable to manage alone, standing at the door in need. Pauri 2 is the answer: the One is shelter of the shelterless, compassion itself, friend and companion and parent — and holding that presence in the heart, one is carried safely across.
Key Vocabulary
bhuj bal beer / sukh saagar: strong-armed and brave / ocean of peace — the One addressed
garat... geh layho anguree-aa: the pit... take hold of my fingers — asking for help when stuck
deenaa naath anaath: protector of the helpless
saajan meet pitaa mahatree-aa: friend, companion, father, mother — every close bond at once
bhai saagar paar: crossing the fearful ocean — rendered as being carried safely across
Themes and Cross-Connections
This shabad models the healthy relationship to need: asking for help is strength, not shame. The "pit" and the self-description as pinguree-aa (lame) are handled per the wellbeing rule — the concrete imagery paraphrased as honest empty-handedness ("I can't manage alone"), an adaptation rather than the literal sense, and never self-condemnation. The friend-and-parent pile-up echoes Shabad 177's baap jaisay maa-ee: the One as every intimate relation. The world-ocean crossing is comfort-forward — safe passage, not terror dwelt upon.
Translation Notes
Sant Singh Khalsa renders pinguree-aa as "cripple" and stages the "pit" and "terrifying world-ocean" literally. Per the project's wellbeing rules our child-facing text adapts these into honest need ("weak, unable to manage alone") and safe passage, keeping the plea and the rescue while dropping the frightening and self-condemning edges; the verse's own hearing, sight, and mobility imagery stays visible in the Literal Meaning.
For Raag Gauree
Gauree's reflective depth holds this tender plea without melodrama — the tone is honest and quiet, resolving into being safely held.
Stuck and unable to climb out alone, one honestly asks for help — and the One who shelters the helpless, friend and parent at once, reaches down and carries you across.
The Arc
A short, intimate cry. Pauri 0 (Rahao) is the reach: O strong, brave Ocean of Peace, I have fallen and cannot climb out — take my hand. Pauri 1 is the honest self-account: ears that don't hear, eyes that aren't sharp, unable to manage alone, standing at the door in need. Pauri 2 is the answer: the One is shelter of the shelterless, compassion itself, friend and companion and parent — and holding that presence in the heart, one is carried safely across.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
This shabad models the healthy relationship to need: asking for help is strength, not shame. The "pit" and the self-description as pinguree-aa (lame) are handled per the wellbeing rule — the concrete imagery paraphrased as honest empty-handedness ("I can't manage alone"), an adaptation rather than the literal sense, and never self-condemnation. The friend-and-parent pile-up echoes Shabad 177's baap jaisay maa-ee: the One as every intimate relation. The world-ocean crossing is comfort-forward — safe passage, not terror dwelt upon.
Translation Notes
Sant Singh Khalsa renders pinguree-aa as "cripple" and stages the "pit" and "terrifying world-ocean" literally. Per the project's wellbeing rules our child-facing text adapts these into honest need ("weak, unable to manage alone") and safe passage, keeping the plea and the rescue while dropping the frightening and self-condemning edges; the verse's own hearing, sight, and mobility imagery stays visible in the Literal Meaning.
For Raag Gauree
Gauree's reflective depth holds this tender plea without melodrama — the tone is honest and quiet, resolving into being safely held.