Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Truest of the true, and never fading, is the Guru who holds the One within the heart.
Truest of the true is the Guru who has mastered craving, anger, and bitterness inside.
When I see the Perfect Guru clearly, my mind is steadied and comforted from deep within.
I would give myself to the Guru, again and again, forever and ever.
The one who faces the Guru wins the contest of life, while the one ruled by ego loses it.
A compact Pauri contrasting the gurmukh — one who faces the Guru — with the manmukh — one who faces only their own ego. The victory that counts is inner: jin kaam kroDh bikh maari-aa — the mastering of craving, anger, and "poison" (bitterness) within oneself. This is the only battle that matters here, and it is fought inside. The lovely line andrahu man saaDhaari-aa — the mind "steadied and comforted from within" — shows what winning feels like: not conquest of others, but a deep inner settling. The closing gurmukh jitaa manmukh haari-aa is a summary of the whole Vaar's psychology: ego is not a crime to be punished but the losing move; alignment with the Guru is simply how the game is won.
What is a "battle" inside yourself — like calming anger or letting go of wanting — that feels like a real victory when you win it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI