Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The day slips away chasing busy things, and the night is lost in sleep.
Telling lies, a person eats poison. The one who follows only their own mind leaves crying.
Death holds its club over their head. Pulled two ways, loving something other than the One, they lose their honor.
They never once remember the Naam of the One, so they keep coming and going, again and again.
But when, by the Guru's grace, the One comes to live in the mind, death's club does not strike.
Nanak says: then they merge gently and naturally into the One, by grace.
A whole day can slip away, and grace can turn it around.
Dhandhaa dhaavat din ga-i-aa means "running after busy things, the day is gone." And the night passes in sleep. Think of a day spent scrolling from one video to the next. When bedtime comes, you wonder where the day went.
Koorh bol bikh khaa-i-aa means "speaking lies, one eats poison." A manmukh is someone who follows only their own mind instead of the Guru. The verse says such a person leaves in tears.
The verse speaks of the jam dand, the club of Death, held over the head. It is a picture of fear. Doojai bhaa-ay means "in the love of two." It is the habit of seeing the world as split, instead of one. Never remembering the Name, a person keeps coming and going.
Then hope arrives. Gur parsaadee har man vasai means "by the Guru's grace, the One comes to live in the mind." Then fear loses its grip. The person merges in sahaj, the easy, natural calm, and meets the One by grace.
Where did your day go today?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI