Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The people who truly love the One carry something greater than any holy mark from any sacred river — they carry the One right on their faces.
To be near them is worth more than every pilgrimage there is. I would gladly serve them day and night, if grace allows me that gift.
The true pilgrimage is being near people who love the One.
In India, people traveled to sacred rivers and shrines called tirath. There were said to be athsath, sixty-eight, great ones. Pilgrims came home with a tilak, a holy mark on the forehead.
Mukh athsath tirath tin tilak kadhaa-ay — the faces of the One's lovers already carry the mark of all sixty-eight. All those holy places are gathered in their faces.
Think of wanting to see the whole world, and then finding that your grandparents' kitchen table holds more love than any famous place. Jan naanak tin ka-o an-din parsay — Nanak would gladly touch their feet day and night, if grace allows.
Where do you feel closest to what matters most — a place, or certain people?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI