ਹਮ ਭੂਲਹ ਤੁਮ ਸਦਾ ਅਭੂਲਾ ਹਮ ਪਤਿਤ ਤੁਮ ਪਤਿਤ ਉਧਰੀਆ ॥
ham bhoolah tum sadaa abhoolaa ham patit tum patit uDhree-aa.
I am mistaken; You are never mistaken. I am a sinner; You are the Saving Grace of sinners.
ਹਮ ਨੀਚ ਬਿਰਖ ਤੁਮ ਮੈਲਾਗਰ ਲਾਜ ਸੰਗਿ ਸੰਗਿ ਬਸਰੀਆ ॥੧॥
ham neech birakh tum mailaagar laaj sang sang basree-aa. ||1||
I am a lowly thorn-tree, and You are the sandalwood tree. Please preserve my honor by staying with me; please stay with me. ||1||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
I slip and get things wrong; You never do — and when I fall, You are the One who lifts me back up.
I feel like a plain little thorn-tree, and You are the fragrant sandalwood — so stay close beside me, and let Your sweetness soak right into me.
You do not have to be sweet on your own — staying close to what is good lets its sweetness soak into you.
A famous image: sandalwood (mailaagar) is said to be so fragrant that even a nearby thorn-tree (neech birakh) takes on its scent. The humility here is gentle: I become sweet by staying close to You. Laaj sang basree-aa — keep my honor by staying with me — is a plea for nearness, and nearness is the whole cure.
A Question to Sit With
Who is someone whose good scent rubs off on you when you spend time near them?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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