A yogi blows a horn and carries a bowl, but my horn is awake awareness, my bowl is a life of honor, and the only one truly awake is the Maker who holds up the earth.
The Arc
The keynote yogi-dialogue of Guru Nanak's Raamkalee: it takes the Naths' own symbols and reveres them by turning them inward.
Verse 1 (P0): awareness is my horn, honor my bowl, the Name the alms I gather.
The Rahau (P1): the truly awake one is the Creator who upholds the earth in an instant.
Verse 2 (P2): He wove life from water and air, hung sun and moon, gave the earth, gifts we forget.
Verse 3 (P3): among all the seekers and holy people, I sing praise and my heart serves.
Verse 4 (P4): like ghee-coated paper or the lotus in water, hearts in the One stay unspoiled and unafraid.
Key Vocabulary
singi — the yogi's curved horn; here, awake awareness.
jholi — the begging-bowl; here, a life of honor.
bheekhiaa — alms; here, the Name.
Gorakh — Gorakhnath, the Naths' revered master; here, the ever-awake Creator.
kamal — the lotus, rooted in water yet untouched.
Themes and Cross-Connections
The hymn's move is to relocate the sacred from the outer emblem to the inner state, while treating the yogis themselves with warmth. The lotus image (P4) is one of Gurbani's most enduring pictures of engaged non-attachment: rooted in the pond, untouched by it.
For Raag Raamkalee
This is the shabad that sets Raamkalee's whole method. Every later yogi-hymn in the set follows its lead: the horn, the bowl, the ash, the ear-rings are not rejected but re-worn as awareness, honor, and the Name.
Translation Notes
Yogic instruments reinterpreted (P0):singi (horn) becomes awake awareness; jholi (begging-bowl) becomes a life of honor; bheekhiaa (alms) becomes the Name.
Gorakh reinterpreted respectfully (P1): not the historical Gorakhnath dismissed, but "the true Gorakh" identified as the ever-awake Creator; the Naths' own reverence redirected to the One.
Seekers honored (P3): Siddhas, yogis, and pilgrims are named with respect, not scorn.
Death-terror avoided (P4):jam kiaa karai rendered as fearlessness, dropping the Death-Messenger threat.
A yogi blows a horn and carries a bowl, but my horn is awake awareness, my bowl is a life of honor, and the only one truly awake is the Maker who holds up the earth.
The Arc
The keynote yogi-dialogue of Guru Nanak's Raamkalee: it takes the Naths' own symbols and reveres them by turning them inward.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
The hymn's move is to relocate the sacred from the outer emblem to the inner state, while treating the yogis themselves with warmth. The lotus image (P4) is one of Gurbani's most enduring pictures of engaged non-attachment: rooted in the pond, untouched by it.
For Raag Raamkalee
This is the shabad that sets Raamkalee's whole method. Every later yogi-hymn in the set follows its lead: the horn, the bowl, the ash, the ear-rings are not rejected but re-worn as awareness, honor, and the Name.
Translation Notes
Last updated: 2026-07-09