Sikhism·Raag Gauree·Shabad 198
Verse 2 of 5

To Serve the One Beyond Understanding Is a Gift

ਕਰਨ ਕਰਾਵਨ ਸਭ ਕਿਛੁ ਤੁਮ ਹੀ ਤੁਮ ਸਮਰਥ ਨਾਹੀ ਅਨ ਹੋਰੀ ॥
karan karaavan sabh kichh tum hee tum samrath naahee an horee.
You are the Doer, the Cause of causes - You are everything. You are All-powerful; there is no other than You.
ਤੁਮਰੀ ਗਤਿ ਮਿਤਿ ਤੁਮ ਹੀ ਜਾਨੀ ਸੇ ਸੇਵਕ ਜਿਨ ਭਾਗ ਮਥੋਰੀ ॥੧॥
tumree gat mit tum hee jaanee say sayvak jin bhaag mathoree. ||1||
You alone know Your condition and extent. They alone become Your servants, upon whose foreheads such good destiny is recorded. ||1||

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa

In plain words

You are the One doing everything and letting everything be done — You are truly all of it. You can do anything; there is no one else.

Only You know Your own full depth and reach. And those who serve You are the ones whose good fortune has quietly opened up to it.

The One behind everything is beyond our full understanding — and coming to serve it is itself a gift.
The deeper layer

The One behind everything is bigger than we can understand, and being drawn to serve the One is a gift.

Karan karaavan sabh kichh tum hee — You are the One who does everything and makes everything happen. All action comes from one source. This is Hukam, the flow of existence. Tum samrath naahee an horee — You can do anything, and there is no second.

Tumree gat mit tum hee jaanee — only You know Your own gat mit, how You are and how far You reach. Earlier shabads say the same: the One is too vast to measure. Think of trying to measure the ocean with a cup.

Say sayvak jin bhaag mathoree — those who serve are the ones whose good fortune has woken up. This is not the One playing favorites. The wish to serve is itself a blessing that opens up inside a person.

A Question to Sit With

Is there something enormous you can sense but not fully wrap your mind around?

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

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