Raag Maaroo
Commentary

Raag Maaroo, Du-Padas, Mehl 5 (Guru Arjan)

The One who held you before birth holds you still.

The Arc

The One nourished and protected you before birth, and that same One protects you now — understand it with a discerning mind. The Pause: lean on the Name, and know the One who made you, the Cause of causes. Keep the One in mind, set down clever tricks and outward robes, and join the countless already carried home.

Key Vocabulary

  • Pratipaal maataa udar raakhai — cherished and protected in the womb
  • Tek — support, the thing leaned on
  • Karan kaaran — the Cause of all causes
  • Bibek — discerning understanding

Themes and Cross-Connections

Grace that precedes us — care given before we could ask — is a keynote across Maaroo (and Bairaaree's "held before you could ask"). The womb here is shelter, not dread.

For Raag Maaroo

Pre-emptive tenderness: the protection that was there before we knew to want it.

Translation Notes

The womb imagery is kept because in this shabad it is protective and comforting (held safe, kept from harm), not the frightening womb-as-fiery-pit found elsewhere; it is rendered simply as being cared for before birth.

Last updated: 2026-07-09

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