Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The One itself is the lamp, and the light filling all the worlds.
It itself is the true teacher; it itself churns the ocean.
It itself does the churning, bringing up the essence; meditating on the jewel of the Name, sincere love rises to the surface.
The image of "churning the ocean" recalls the old myth in which the gods churned the cosmic ocean of milk to bring up its hidden treasures. Guru Ram Das turns it inward and non-dual: the One itself is both the churner and the ocean, and what rises to the surface is "the essence," the jewel of the Name, and "sincere love." The churning is the spiritual work — the stirring of the depths — but here it is the One doing it in and through us. And "the One is the lamp and the light in all worlds": the single light shining through every window (echoing Aasaa's "light in all," Shabad 28). One light, one churner, one essence rising — all the One.
What treasures might rise to the surface if the depths of your heart were gently stirred?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI