Raag Sorath
Commentary

Raag Sorath, Du-Padas, Mehl 9 (Guru Tegh Bahadur)

Love the One with your ears and voice; this precious moment is the gift.

The Arc

Rahau (Pauri 0, with the Ik Onkar invocation): O mind, love the One — hear the praises with your ears, sing them with your tongue. Pauri 1: in good company, keep the One in mind, and a heavy heart grows light; our time is short and precious. Pauri 2: the days pass gently by, so turn toward the One now, while the chance is here.

Key Vocabulary

  • ray man raam si-o kar preet: O mind, love the Lord
  • gaa-o rasnaa geet: sing His song with the tongue
  • saadhsangat simar: remember in the holy company
  • jaat a-osar beet: the opportunity is slipping

Themes and Cross-Connections

This begins the Mehl 9 (Guru Tegh Bahadur) block in Sorath. Its memento mori is not fear but calm perspective: because life is brief, this present moment becomes a gift to spend well — turned toward love and song.

For Raag Sorath

Sorath's grounded gravity suits Guru Tegh Bahadur's steady, wakeful tenderness.

Translation Notes

The literal 'Death is on the prowl, with its mouth wide open' is rendered as time being short and precious, keeping the wakeful urgency while dropping the frightening image, per the wellbeing rules for Mehl 9 memento mori.

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