ਜਿਉ ਮਛੁਲੀ ਵਿਣੁ ਪਾਣੀਐ ਰਹੈ ਨ ਕਿਤੈ ਉਪਾਇ ॥
ji-o machhulee vin paanee-ai rahai na kitai upaa-ay.
As the fish cannot survive at all without water,
ਤਿਉ ਹਰਿ ਬਿਨੁ ਸੰਤੁ ਨ ਜੀਵਈ ਬਿਨੁ ਹਰਿ ਨਾਮੈ ਮਰਿ ਜਾਇ ॥੭॥
ti-o har bin sant na jeev-ee bin har naamai mar jaa-ay. ||7||
the Saint cannot live without the Lord. Without the Lord's Name, he dies. ||7||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
A fish, however hard it tries, simply can't live once it's out of the water — the water is its whole life.
That's how it is for a loving heart and the One: apart from that closeness, apart from the Name, something essential goes missing. It's the element I live in.
What you truly love becomes the element you live in.
ji-o machhulee vin paanee-ai rahai na kitai upaa-ay, ti-o har bin sant na jeev-ee — as a fish cannot live out of water, the lover cannot live apart from the One. The recurring Soohee emblem of a need at the level of survival.
A Question to Sit With
What is the "water" your inner life needs to stay alive?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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