ਜਿਸ ਕੀ ਬਾਣੀ ਤਿਸੁ ਮਾਹਿ ਸਮਾਣੀ ॥
jis kee banee tis maahi samaanee.
The Word of His Bani belongs to Him; in Him, it is diffused.
ਤੇਰੀ ਅਕਥ ਕਥਾ ਗੁਰ ਸਬਦਿ ਵਖਾਣੀ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
tayree akath kathaa gur sabad vakhaanee. ||1|| rahaa-o.
Your Speech cannot be spoken; through the Word of the Guru's Shabad, it is chanted. ||1||Pause||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The Word is the One's own, and spreads out from the One. Your speech is beyond speaking -- yet through the Word, it is sung.
The unspeakable One speaks itself through the Word -- so the Word is how the silence sings.
The Rahao on the paradox of Bani (sacred utterance): it belongs to the One and is diffused in the One -- the Word is not about the One, it is the One's self-expression. The unspeakable is spoken only through the Shabad itself (cf. those who speak the Unspeakable). Language reaching past language.
A Question to Sit With
Can words ever point to something bigger than words? When have you felt that?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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