Sikhism·Raag Saarang·Shabad 175
Verse 1 of 3

Keep Close to What Lifts You

ਛਾਡਿ ਮਨ ਹਰਿ ਬਿਮੁਖਨ ਕੋ ਸੰਗੁ ॥
chhaad man har bimukhan ko sang.
O mind, do not even associate with those who have turned their backs on the Lord.
ਸਾਰੰਗ ਮਹਲਾ ੫ ਸੂਰਦਾਸ ॥
saarang mehlaa 5 soordaas.
Saarang, Fifth Mehl, Sur Daas:
ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥
ik-oNkaar satgur parsaad.
One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:
ਹਰਿ ਕੇ ਸੰਗ ਬਸੇ ਹਰਿ ਲੋਕ ॥
har kay sang basay har lok.
The people of the Lord dwell with the Lord.
ਤਨੁ ਮਨੁ ਅਰਪਿ ਸਰਬਸੁ ਸਭੁ ਅਰਪਿਓ ਅਨਦ ਸਹਜ ਧੁਨਿ ਝੋਕ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
tan man arap sarbas sabh arpi-o anad sahj Dhun jhok. ||1|| rahaa-o.
They dedicate their minds and bodies to Him; they dedicate everything to Him. They are intoxicated with the celestial melody of intuitive ecstasy. ||1||Pause||

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa

In plain words

There is only One. And the One is found by the True Guru's grace — a gift that is always here, waiting for an open heart.

O heart, keep close to what lifts you toward the One.

The One's people live with the One. They give body, mind and everything they have, and a quiet, joyful music carries them along.

Choose the company that lifts you toward the One.
The deeper layer

Stay close to the people and things that lift you toward the One.

This is the rahaa-o, the "pause" line, the center of the shabad. The first line comes from Bhagat Sur Daas, a devotee-poet. Guru Arjan, the Fifth Guru, then wrote the rest of the shabad around it.

The line does not tell us to look down on anyone. It asks us to choose our company well. Think of a campfire. Sit close and you stay warm. Wander off into the cold and you start to shiver.

Then the verse shows the people worth staying near. The people who love the One live right beside the One. They give everything they have, body and mind.

And they are carried by sahaj, a calm and natural joy. It runs through them like a song that never stops playing.

A Question to Sit With

Whose company leaves you wanting to be your better self?

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI

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