Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Life comes with hard parts from the very start, and it does not last forever — that is just true, and it is okay to say so honestly.
But a life becomes truly worthwhile when it is filled with song and gratitude. That is what makes the whole journey, beginning to end, mean something.
This verse is honest: life has hard parts and it does not last forever. Then it shows what makes it worthwhile.
Janmat hee dukh laagai marnaa aa-ay kai: from birth, there is pain, and at the end, everyone dies. That is simply true, and the verse says it plainly without trying to scare anyone.
Janam maran parvaan har gun gaa-ay kai: birth and death are both made parvaan, accepted and worthwhile, by singing the One's praises.
Think of a school year. It has hard tests and it ends in June. But if it was filled with good friends and real learning, the whole year counts. Meaning is what makes the whole journey worth it, from start to finish.
What fills your days with a little more meaning?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI