Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
I am so wretched. O Baba Nanak -- it feels like no one cares for me at all.
This short pause line is a lonely cry from someone who built a whole life on things that could not hold.
This shabad has more than one Rahao, or "pause" line. This second one is very short. Ha-o kharee duhaylee ho-ee — I have become so miserable. Baabaa naanak mayree baat na puchhai ko-ee — O Baba Nanak, no one asks about me at all.
It is the voice of a soul that has woken up to how empty its life was. The ego built everything on what could not last. Now it feels that no one belongs to anyone. Think of a tall tower of blocks that falls, and you sit alone among the pieces.
This low point matters. It is what makes the turn toward the Name, in the verses that follow, possible.
When you feel low or alone, what helps you turn back toward what matters?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI