Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The world is woven from three tugging qualities, and so we swing between our high days and our low days.
When we feel cut off and separate, we keep coming and going, and the mind can't stay still even for a moment. Without the Guru, all is dark. Meet the True Guru, and you are set free.
Our minds swing up and down, and there is a way to calm.
Tarai gun means the three gunas, three pulls woven into the whole world. One pulls toward calm and goodness. One pulls toward rushing and wanting. One pulls toward being dull and stuck. Because all three tug at us, our days swing between high and low. The verse names these swings narak surag, hell and heaven.
Ha-umai means the "me first" feeling that makes us feel separate. In it, we keep coming and going. Man tikan na paavai raa-ee — the mind cannot stay still even for a moment.
Think of a phone with a dozen apps pinging at once. You cannot settle on anything. Without the Guru, it feels like darkness. Meeting the Guru is like finding the one quiet, steady voice in the noise. Then the mind is set free.
What makes your mind feel foggy, and what clears it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI