Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
O brothers and sisters, no one goes wrong on purpose.
The one who goes astray is the one the One lets wander. The one who understands is the one the One helps to understand.
No one makes a mistake on purpose.
This is the Rahao, the "pause" line at the center of the shabad, and it is the key to the whole song. Ko-ee jaan na bhoolai bhaa-ee: friends, no one goes wrong knowingly.
The next line goes further. The one who goes wrong is the one the One lets wander. The one who understands is the one the One helps to understand. Both getting lost and seeing clearly happen inside the Hukam, the One's way of moving through everything.
Think of walking in thick fog. You bump into things, not because you are bad, but because you cannot see. So being lost is not the same as being wicked. That makes room for kindness, toward others and toward ourselves.
How does it change things to remember that people who hurt you may just not see clearly?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI