The One fills sky and depths and every direction; when the body-vessel breaks, that boundless One goes right on being.
The Arc
One of Kabir's great cosmic shabads. P0 (verse 1) sees the One pervading the heights, the depths, and all four directions — the source of bliss that does not perish when the body does. P1 (rahau) is a tender wondering: where does this life come from, and where does it go? P2 follows the questions all the way back — who made the elements, who gave the very idea of karma? P3 resolves it: the One is in the body and the body in the One; hold the Name and meet all that comes with ease.
Key Vocabulary
gagan — sky, the vast expanse (used for the pervading One)
anand mool — the root of bliss
ghat binsai ... gagan na jaa-ilay — the vessel perishes, the expanse does not
sehjay ho-ay so ho-ay — letting what happens happen, in sahaj
Themes and Cross-Connections
This shabad is a pillar of the philosophy.md lens: Ik Onkar as oneness with no gap — 'the body is in the One, the One in the body.' The closing sahaj (natural ease) and 'accept whatever happens' tie directly to Hukam, the flow of existence. The fearless questioning models the project's prized curiosity.
For Raag Gond
Gond's expansiveness suits this sky-wide vision; the raag can hold both the soaring cosmos and the intimate 'where do I come from?'
Translation Notes
Rahau placement: standalone P1; P0 = verse 1.
Wellbeing:bairaag ('I have become sad') is rendered as tender wonder rather than depression, keeping the doorway-quality of the longing.
No interfaith flags; the cosmic vocabulary (purkhotam, gagan) is rendered inclusively as the boundless One.
The One fills sky and depths and every direction; when the body-vessel breaks, that boundless One goes right on being.
The Arc
One of Kabir's great cosmic shabads. P0 (verse 1) sees the One pervading the heights, the depths, and all four directions — the source of bliss that does not perish when the body does. P1 (rahau) is a tender wondering: where does this life come from, and where does it go? P2 follows the questions all the way back — who made the elements, who gave the very idea of karma? P3 resolves it: the One is in the body and the body in the One; hold the Name and meet all that comes with ease.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
This shabad is a pillar of the philosophy.md lens: Ik Onkar as oneness with no gap — 'the body is in the One, the One in the body.' The closing sahaj (natural ease) and 'accept whatever happens' tie directly to Hukam, the flow of existence. The fearless questioning models the project's prized curiosity.
For Raag Gond
Gond's expansiveness suits this sky-wide vision; the raag can hold both the soaring cosmos and the intimate 'where do I come from?'
Translation Notes
Last updated: 2026-07-09