When people shut the door, the One turns the whole house to face you.
The Arc
Say it as many times as you need: please keep me in mind. Some people may turn you away. They may call you names because of the family you were born into. They may push you out the door. Turn to the One, your dear Father. You matter now, in this life. Whoever looks down on you looks down on the One you belong to. The One is called kind, with an arm stronger than any other. Picture the temple turning around to face the person who was shut out. Every person has the same dignity. At the centre, the Rahao: please, dear Lord, do not forget me.
Key Vocabulary
too na bisaar — do not forget me; the shabad's threefold refrain of trust.
beethulaa — Beloved Father (Bitthal), a tender name for the One.
sood — "low-caste": the slur Namdev names and overturns.
pher dee-aa dehuraa — the temple was turned to face him; welcome for the shut-out.
Themes and Cross-Connections
This is the raag's clearest caste-leveling story, kin to the Ravidas shabads that follow. The bond between the devotee's dignity and the divine's honor is a recurring Bhagat theme; the door that opens by grace echoes the raag's rain that greens the parched.
For Raag Malaar
Longing (viraha) here is social exile, and its rain is welcome: the One who will not forget turns the whole temple toward the one who was shut out.
Hukumnama
Subject: Ask the One to keep you in mind Preview: Temple keepers at the door, a cry to a dear Father, a temple that turns to face the one shut out.
Today: Say it as many times as you need: please keep me in mind. Some people may turn you away. They may call you names because of the family you were born into. They may push you out the door. Turn to the One, your dear Father. You matter now, in this life. Whoever looks down on you looks down on the One you belong to. The One is called kind, with an arm stronger than any other. Picture the temple turning around to face the person who was shut out. Every person has the same dignity.
Ask the One, again and again, to keep you in mind.
For today: Make room today for someone who is often left out, at your table or in your game.
When people shut the door, the One turns the whole house to face you.
The Arc
Say it as many times as you need: please keep me in mind. Some people may turn you away. They may call you names because of the family you were born into. They may push you out the door. Turn to the One, your dear Father. You matter now, in this life. Whoever looks down on you looks down on the One you belong to. The One is called kind, with an arm stronger than any other. Picture the temple turning around to face the person who was shut out. Every person has the same dignity. At the centre, the Rahao: please, dear Lord, do not forget me.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
This is the raag's clearest caste-leveling story, kin to the Ravidas shabads that follow. The bond between the devotee's dignity and the divine's honor is a recurring Bhagat theme; the door that opens by grace echoes the raag's rain that greens the parched.
For Raag Malaar
Longing (viraha) here is social exile, and its rain is welcome: the One who will not forget turns the whole temple toward the one who was shut out.
Hukumnama
Subject: Ask the One to keep you in mind Preview: Temple keepers at the door, a cry to a dear Father, a temple that turns to face the one shut out.
Today: Say it as many times as you need: please keep me in mind. Some people may turn you away. They may call you names because of the family you were born into. They may push you out the door. Turn to the One, your dear Father. You matter now, in this life. Whoever looks down on you looks down on the One you belong to. The One is called kind, with an arm stronger than any other. Picture the temple turning around to face the person who was shut out. Every person has the same dignity.
Ask the One, again and again, to keep you in mind.
For today: Make room today for someone who is often left out, at your table or in your game.