Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
As I started making the effort, walking forward, my mind grew clean and clear. Step by step along the path toward the One, all my confusion fell away. The true teacher let me hear the great treasure of the living Name — and the moment I did, every sickness inside me simply disappeared.
This stanza describes what happens after the blessed meeting: the walking. Udam karat man nirmal hoaa — "as I made udam (effort, the moving-forward), the mind became nirmal (clean, clear)." Note the balance here. Earlier shabads (Shabad 10) showed that effort alone cannot reach the One. But this verse can be read as showing that effort has its rightful place once the meeting is given: you still have to walk the path. Grace opens the door; you still take the steps. The two are not enemies — grace makes the walking possible and fruitful.
Har maarag chalat bharam saglaa khoiaa — "walking the maarag (path/road) toward the One, all bharam (confusion, doubt, the restless wandering) was lost (cast off)." Recall bharam from earlier — the directionless wandering of the lost yogi. Here it is cured not by stopping but by walking a direction. The aimless wandering becomes a purposeful journey, and on a real road, the confusion of wandering naturally falls away. You are no longer lost when you are going somewhere.
And the engine of it all: naam nidhaan satguroo sunaaiaa — "the Guru caused [me] to hear the nidhaan (treasure) of the Name." Simply hearing the Name from the Guru — sunaaiaa — and mit gae sagle rogaa, "all the diseases vanished." The illnesses named in earlier shabads (anxiety, ego, the hunger) are dispelled by the heard Name. There is something important here: the Name is received by listening (the practice of sunaaiaa / suneeai recurs through the section). The treasure is not seized by force but given to the ear by the Guru, and the receiving heals. Effort walks the path; the Guru's word does the curing.
The seeker's confusion went away not by stopping, but by walking in a clear direction. When have you felt less lost simply because you finally had somewhere to go?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI