Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The leaders and rulers will not stay; even the richest, who pile up money and treasure, must one day leave it all behind. So this is my true wish: give me instead the sweet, living wealth of the Name.
This one says the Name is the one wealth you get to keep.
Nanak keeps up a gentle drumbeat. Cha-uDhree raajay nahee kisai mukaam — leaders and kings have no lasting place. The bankers pass away too, however much money and treasure they pile up. Think of a sandcastle. However tall you build it, the tide still comes in.
The turn comes in the third line. Mai Dhan deejai har amrit naam — give me the wealth of Your Name, which is amrit, sweet and undying. Nanak is changing what "wealth" means. It is not the pile you leave behind. It is the Name you carry forward.
The verse does not scold the rich. It simply points to a richer kind of richness.
If you could keep only one kind of "richness" forever, what would you want it to be?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI