Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
But here is the steady ground under all of it: the One is the Master of both worlds, this one and whatever comes next. And whoever the One draws close is set free.
Guru Arjan ends with comfort: the One holds everything, and whoever the One draws close is set free.
After three verses of honest looking-at-ourselves, the shabad turns to reassurance. Duhaa siri-aa kaa khasam — the Master of both ends, both worlds. Nothing falls outside the One's care: not the borrowed things, and not the lasting reality.
And muktaa, being set free, is not something we earn by finally walking the path perfectly. It is jis maylay, whoever the One unites. That is grace, given freely.
The confused seeker from the earlier verses is not shut out. They are exactly the one grace reaches. Think of a lost child in a crowded fair. They do not have to find their way out alone. A parent's hand reaches in and takes theirs.
Does it feel easier or harder to try, knowing you don't have to be perfect first?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI