ਮਃ ੫ ॥
mehlaa 5.
Fifth Mehl:
ਕੋਟਿ ਬਿਘਨ ਤਿਸੁ ਲਾਗਤੇ ਜਿਸ ਨੋ ਵਿਸਰੈ ਨਾਉ ॥
kot bighan tis laagtay jis no visrai naa-o.
Millions of misfortunes block the way of one who forgets the Name of the Lord.
ਨਾਨਕ ਅਨਦਿਨੁ ਬਿਲਪਤੇ ਜਿਉ ਸੁੰਞੈ ਘਰਿ ਕਾਉ ॥੨॥
naanak an-din bilpatay ji-o sunjai ghar kaa-o. ||2||
O Nanak, like a crow in a deserted house, he cries out, night and day. ||2||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Millions of misfortunes block the one who forgets the One's Name.
Nanak says: like a crow in an empty house, he cries out, night and day.
The whole ballad comes down to one repeated choice — forget and cry in an empty house, or remember and be kept.
Another near-repeat (of P42), the dark refrain paired with P60's bright one. The Vaar sets forgetting and remembering side by side one last time before its close: forget, and life is a crow crying in an empty house; remember, and no misfortune strikes. The repetition is not filler but emphasis — the whole ballad comes down to this single, repeated choice, driven home so it cannot be missed.
A Question to Sit With
The choice keeps coming back because it keeps mattering — which side of it are you living today?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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