Sikhism·Raag Maaroo·Shabad 139
Verse 14 of 16

The Unstruck Music

ਜਿਸਹਿ ਨਿਵਾਜੇ ਗੁਰਮੁਖਿ ਸਾਜੇ ॥
jisahi nivaajay gurmukh saajay.
One whom You bless and make Gurmukh
ਨਾਮੁ ਵਸੈ ਤਿਸੁ ਅਨਹਦ ਵਾਜੇ ॥
naam vasai tis anhad vaajay.
- the Naam abides within him, and the unstruck sound current vibrates for him.
ਤਿਸ ਹੀ ਸੁਖੁ ਤਿਸ ਹੀ ਠਕੁਰਾਈ ਤਿਸਹਿ ਨ ਆਵੈ ਜਮੁ ਨੇੜਾ ॥੧੪॥
tis hee sukh tis hee thakuraa-ee tiseh na aavai jam nayrhaa. ||14||
He is peaceful, and he is the master of all; the Messenger of Death does not even approach him. ||14||

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa

In plain words

When You bless someone, You make them face the Guru.

The Naam comes to live in them. A music with no instrument begins to play inside.

Peace is theirs, and they are masters of all. The messenger of death does not even come near them.

When the Naam lives in you, fear runs out of places to stand.
The deeper layer

When the One lifts someone up, a quiet music begins inside them.

Nivaajay means blessed and lifted. The One makes that person a gurmukh, one who faces the Guru. The Name comes to live in them. Then anhad vaajay, music that no instrument plays, begins to sound. It is the inner hum of a heart at peace.

Such a person is calm and fully at home in themselves. Jam, the messenger of death in the old stories, does not even come near. So even endings hold no dread for them. Think of a happy song stuck in your head. It keeps playing, wherever you go.

A Question to Sit With

What makes you feel most at home inside your own self?

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI

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