Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Nanak says: what can anyone do on their own?
Only that one is set free on whom the One's grace falls.
Night and day, that one sings the One's praises.
Then they no longer bother with the loud claims of the Shastras and the Vedas.
Freedom comes as a gift of grace, and the one who receives it sings the One's praise day and night.
Kahat naanak kavan bidh karay ki-aa ko-ay: Guru Amar Das, signing as Nanak, asks, what can anyone do on their own? So-ee mukat jaa ka-o kirpaa ho-ay: the one who is freed is the one grace touches. Mukat means freedom, and kirpaa means kindness or grace.
Then that person sings the One's praise day and night. The last line says they no longer bother with the loud claims of the Shaastras and Vedas, old holy books. The turn is from arguing about holy books to living the truth quietly. Think of a friend who stops debating what kindness means and just starts being kind.
What is something good that came to you when you stopped trying so hard to make it happen?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI