I have set my worrying down — like a lotus in muddy water, kept clean by a Hand I trust.
The Arc
This shabad is about surrender. The anxious thinking is set down; whatever is meant to unfold does, in the flow of existence. Surrounded by the world's tempting pulls, the heart holds the Word like medicine and stays unstained — a lotus rooted in muddy water. It ends in trust: on my own I am small, but You hold everything, so I rest in Your shelter.
Key Vocabulary
soch bisaaree — anxious thinking set down.
karnaa so-ee kar rahi-aa — trust in Hukam, the flow of existence.
jal kamlaa alipaaree — the lotus unstained in muddy water.
saran — sanctuary; the shelter one runs to in trust.
Themes and Cross-Connections
The lotus-in-water is one of Gurbani's most beloved images for living amid the world without being owned by it. The surrender of anxious thought echoes the wider teaching that peace comes from aligning with the flow rather than fighting it.
For Raag Saarang
Saarang's longing here turns into rest: the yearning heart stops striving and lets itself be held.
Translation Notes
The line hau naahee kichh (I am nothing) is carried as trust and relief — it is good not to have to hold everything alone — rather than as self-condemnation.
I have set my worrying down — like a lotus in muddy water, kept clean by a Hand I trust.
The Arc
This shabad is about surrender. The anxious thinking is set down; whatever is meant to unfold does, in the flow of existence. Surrounded by the world's tempting pulls, the heart holds the Word like medicine and stays unstained — a lotus rooted in muddy water. It ends in trust: on my own I am small, but You hold everything, so I rest in Your shelter.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
The lotus-in-water is one of Gurbani's most beloved images for living amid the world without being owned by it. The surrender of anxious thought echoes the wider teaching that peace comes from aligning with the flow rather than fighting it.
For Raag Saarang
Saarang's longing here turns into rest: the yearning heart stops striving and lets itself be held.
Translation Notes
The line hau naahee kichh (I am nothing) is carried as trust and relief — it is good not to have to hold everything alone — rather than as self-condemnation.