The glory of the world vanishes in a blink; there is only the One.
The Arc
A shabad on the emptiness of worldly glory and the steadiness of the One. It opens by asking what use the shine of maa-i-aa is, since it vanishes in no time. The Rahao names the trap as a dream the sleeper does not know they are in, clinging half-asleep to its pictures. The verses show one captivated by dazzling attachments while their own time quietly runs out, and then lift the gaze to the divine court, highest of the high, that brings countless beings into life and gathers them back. It closes on the bedrock of Ik Onkar: there has never been another and never will be — so hold the One alone.
Key Vocabulary
maa-i-aa vadi-aa-ee: the glory of the world
supnaa: dream
achayt bivasthaa: an unaware, sleepwalking state
mahaa mohi: great attachment
doosar ho-aa naa ko: there has never been any other
Themes and Cross-Connections
The world-as-dream (supnaa) is a gentle nudge toward waking, not a verdict — waking is always possible. The immensity of the divine court is meant to right-size our worries, and the close, doosar ho-aa naa ko ho-ee, is the plainest statement of Ik Onkar in the batch: against everything that vanishes, the One is what stays.
For Raag Soohee
Soohee's warmth keeps even this shabad about impermanence from turning cold. The raag of love points past the fading shine toward the one steady reality worth loving, and ends with a single, calm instruction: hold the One.
The glory of the world vanishes in a blink; there is only the One.
The Arc
A shabad on the emptiness of worldly glory and the steadiness of the One. It opens by asking what use the shine of maa-i-aa is, since it vanishes in no time. The Rahao names the trap as a dream the sleeper does not know they are in, clinging half-asleep to its pictures. The verses show one captivated by dazzling attachments while their own time quietly runs out, and then lift the gaze to the divine court, highest of the high, that brings countless beings into life and gathers them back. It closes on the bedrock of Ik Onkar: there has never been another and never will be — so hold the One alone.
Key Vocabulary
Themes and Cross-Connections
The world-as-dream (supnaa) is a gentle nudge toward waking, not a verdict — waking is always possible. The immensity of the divine court is meant to right-size our worries, and the close, doosar ho-aa naa ko ho-ee, is the plainest statement of Ik Onkar in the batch: against everything that vanishes, the One is what stays.
For Raag Soohee
Soohee's warmth keeps even this shabad about impermanence from turning cold. The raag of love points past the fading shine toward the one steady reality worth loving, and ends with a single, calm instruction: hold the One.