Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Be merciful, and let me see You; I sing Your praises night and day.
I would wash the feet of Your servant with my own hair — that is what my life is for.
The shabad opens in ardent longing — to see the One (darshan) — and in an image of extreme humility: "with my hair, I wash the feet of Your slave." To use one's own hair, a thing of pride and beauty, to wash the feet of even the One's servant, is to place oneself utterly low in loving service. And this, the verse says, is "my life's purpose." The whole point of a life, in this vision, is not to be exalted but to love so completely that no service is beneath you.
What would it look like to find your purpose in serving rather than in being served?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI