Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Everything is part of the passing business of life.
Mother, father, brothers and sisters, children, relatives, and the wife in your home.
Everything and everyone around us is part of this passing life. They matter, but they are not the forever thing.
This is a hymn of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the Ninth Guru. It is the rahaa-o, the "pause" line, the center of the shabad. Sabh kichh jeevat ko bivhaar — everything belongs to the business of living. Then comes the list: mother, father, brothers, children, relatives, and the wife at home.
This needs to be heard gently. It does not mean our family does not matter. They matter very much. It means they are not what lasts forever, and not what a life is finally for.
Think of holding a small bird in your hands. Squeeze too tight and you hurt it. Hold it open and warm, and it stays safe. The Ninth Guru's voice often speaks of letting go. Here he gently loosens our grip, so that we hold our dearest people with love, not with fear.
How might you love your closest people fully while holding them a little more openly?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI