Turn toward what matters most, and the other good things follow like a shadow.
The Arc
Praise so full it cannot be spoken; the four aims of life trail the devotee like a shadow. The verses move through good fortune, the washing away of ego's stain in living water, the Name as a friend at the final moment, and the empty-handed plea to be lifted like a sinking stone.
Key Vocabulary
akath — inexpressible; praise larger than words. haumai mail — the stain of feeling separate; dirt washed off, not a crime. naam saath — the Name as companion at the close of life. paathar — the sinking stone; the empty-handed self.
Themes and Cross-Connections
Ego is treated as a stain to wash, a disease to heal, never a sin to punish. The court of accounts is softened to wherever life asks an account; the final moment is met by the Name as a dear friend, not by Death's terror. The stone-lifted-from-sinking image keeps humility as reach, not self-condemnation.
For Raag Kalyaan
The raag's promise of wellbeing appears as things quietly following a loving heart, and as the reassurance that what you keep close stays with you to the end.
Translation Notes
dargahi lekhaa (court of accounts) and antee a-osar (the death-moment) rendered gently; haumai as stain/illness; paathar as empty-handedness, per wellbeing guidance.
Turn toward what matters most, and the other good things follow like a shadow.
The Arc
Praise so full it cannot be spoken; the four aims of life trail the devotee like a shadow. The verses move through good fortune, the washing away of ego's stain in living water, the Name as a friend at the final moment, and the empty-handed plea to be lifted like a sinking stone.
Key Vocabulary
akath — inexpressible; praise larger than words. haumai mail — the stain of feeling separate; dirt washed off, not a crime. naam saath — the Name as companion at the close of life. paathar — the sinking stone; the empty-handed self.
Themes and Cross-Connections
Ego is treated as a stain to wash, a disease to heal, never a sin to punish. The court of accounts is softened to wherever life asks an account; the final moment is met by the Name as a dear friend, not by Death's terror. The stone-lifted-from-sinking image keeps humility as reach, not self-condemnation.
For Raag Kalyaan
The raag's promise of wellbeing appears as things quietly following a loving heart, and as the reassurance that what you keep close stays with you to the end.
Translation Notes
dargahi lekhaa (court of accounts) and antee a-osar (the death-moment) rendered gently; haumai as stain/illness; paathar as empty-handedness, per wellbeing guidance.