ਮਃ ੨ ॥
mehlaa 2.
Second Mehl:
ਮਨਹਠਿ ਤਰਫ ਨ ਜਿਪਈ ਜੇ ਬਹੁਤਾ ਘਾਲੇ ॥
manhath taraf na jip-ee jay bahutaa ghaalay.
Stubborn-mindedness will not win the Lord to one's side, no matter how much it is tried.
ਤਰਫ ਜਿਣੈ ਸਤ ਭਾਉ ਦੇ ਜਨ ਨਾਨਕ ਸਬਦੁ ਵੀਚਾਰੇ ॥੪॥
taraf jinai sat bhaa-o day jan naanak sabad veechaaray. ||4||
The Lord is won over to your side, by offering Him your true love, O servant Nanak, and contemplating the Word of the Shabad. ||4||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
You cannot win the One over to your side by being stubborn, no matter how hard you push.
Nanak says: the One is won over when you offer your true love and think deeply on the Guru's Word.
What force can never win, love wins gently.
manhath = a stubborn mind, forcing by willpower; taraf na jip-ee = will not win the side or the game. sat bhaa-o day = by offering true love. A caution against spiritual force and austerity-for-its-own-sake: love, not strain, is the way.
A Question to Sit With
When has pushing harder made something worse, and softening made it better?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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