Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
O Kind One, so gentle with the humble and the weak — my dear King — you have drawn millions of people into your service.
You love those who love you; it is simply your nature to. And you fill every place there is.
This shabad of Guru Arjan opens in pure praise, and the first thing it praises is the One's tenderness toward the lowly. O Merciful to the meek, O Dear Lord King — deen dayaal, kind to the humble and the weak. The very first note struck about the One is not its power or majesty but its gentleness with those the world overlooks. And it has engaged millions of people in Your Service — drawn countless souls into the joy of serving it.
The stanza then names something essential: You are the Lover of Your devotees; this is Your Nature. That the One loves those who love it is not a reward it grants or withholds by mood — it is its nature, bhagat-vatsal, as natural to it as warmth is to the sun. You do not have to earn the One's love by being impressive; loving its devotees is simply what it is. And this loving One is not confined to a temple or a heaven: You are totally pervading all places. The tender, devotee-loving One is everywhere — which means its gentleness with the meek is available in every place, to anyone who turns to it. The opening sets the whole shabad's key: a King whose royalty expresses itself as kindness to the lowly, whose nature is love, and who is present everywhere.
Does it change your picture of the divine to lead with its gentleness toward the weak rather than its power?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI