Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
From a spark of life you were formed and placed in the warmth of the womb.
Head downward, you rested restlessly in that dark, close, difficult place.
Remembering the One, you were not burned; keep it in your heart, mind and body.
In that hard place it protected and kept you; do not forget it, even for a moment.
Forgetting the One, you will never find peace; you will waste your life and depart.
This part says: the One kept you safe when you were most helpless, so keep the One in mind now.
A pauree is a verse that gathers up what the short verses before it said. Here, Guru Arjan gathers the verses about the womb into one steady message to you. You were formed. You were held in that dark, cramped place. Agan udar majhaar — in the heat of the womb. And you were kept safe. Har simrat too naa jaleh — remembering the One, you were not burned.
He uses the start of every human life as a reason to remember. Bikham thaanahu jin rakhi-aa — the One who guarded you in that hard place. Tis til na visaar — don't forget that One, not even for a moment. Think of a baby who can do nothing for itself, yet is kept warm and fed.
The warning is gentle but real. Parabh bisrat sukh kaday naahi — forgetting the One, you never find peace. This isn't a punishment. It is simply what happens. A life that forgets where it came from stays restless, because it is cut off from what would steady it.
Why might a life that stays connected to its source feel more peaceful than one that forgets where it came from?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI