Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
A settled, single-minded heart succeeds at whatever it gives itself to.
Some people talk and talk — but you can only live on what you have in your own home, inside you.
Without the True Guru, understanding doesn't come, and ego won't loosen its grip on its own.
Ego leaves a person restless and hungry inside, always reaching, never full.
A false front can't stay hidden forever — the thin coating wears off and what's underneath shows through.
Just as plain iron turns to gold at the touch of the fabled stone, a person is transformed by joining the Sangat — sitting among those who love the One. You are Nanak's Master; lead him as You please.
Two beautiful metaphors carry this Shalok. First, je ghar vath hovai saa-ee khaa-ay — "you eat only what's in your own home": talk is cheap, and what nourishes you is what you have made your own inside, more than borrowed words. Second, the famous paaras (Philosopher's Stone) image: iron becomes gold by touching it — transformation in the sangat, the Sangat. One of Gurbani's gentlest teachings: you become like those you sit among, so sit among those who love the One. Ego is again treated as a condition that leaves you hungry and restless (dukh bhukh) — an unsatisfied ache, not a wickedness. And the close, jio bhaavai tivai chalaa-ay — "lead me as You please" — rests the whole thing in Hukam, the trusting flow.
Who do you spend time with that brings out your best? How do you become a little like the people around you?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI