ਮੂੰਡਿ ਮੁੰਡਾਇਐ ਜੇ ਗੁਰੁ ਪਾਈਐ ਹਮ ਗੁਰੁ ਕੀਨੀ ਗੰਗਾਤਾ ॥
moond moondaa-i-ai jay gur paa-ee-ai ham gur keenee gangaataa.
Some try to find the Guru by shaving their heads at the Ganges, but I have made the Guru my Ganges.
ਤ੍ਰਿਭਵਣ ਤਾਰਣਹਾਰੁ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਏਕੁ ਨ ਚੇਤਸਿ ਅੰਧਾਤਾ ॥੨॥
taribhavan taaranhaar su-aamee ayk na chaytas anDhaataa. ||2||
The Saving Grace of the three worlds is the One Lord and Master, but those in darkness do not remember Him. ||2||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Some shave their heads at the holy river hoping to find a teacher. But I have made the teacher my holy river. The One who saves all the worlds is right here -- yet those lost in the dark forget.
You do not need the holy river -- the teacher is the river.
Another relocation of the sacred (cf. the earlier shabads): the speaker sets the Guru in place of pilgrimage to the Ganges -- the Guru is my Ganges. External purification is outshone by the living teacher. Those in darkness simply forget the One who is already the savior of the three worlds.
A Question to Sit With
What is something you might be looking for far away that is actually close by?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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