Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Picture a person so steady inside that when pain comes, it does not knock them over, and when good things come, they do not lose their head either.
Fear does not rule them. A pile of gold and a pile of dust look about the same to their calm heart.
That deep steadiness, that is what a settled heart feels like.
This is the Rahao, the "pause" line and the center of the shabad. It paints a person who stays steady in every weather.
Jo nar dukh mai dukh nahee maanai — someone who, in pain, is not knocked over by pain. Good times don't sweep them away either. Fear doesn't rule them. And kanchan maatee maanai: gold and dirt look the same to them.
Guru Tegh Bahadur is describing a jeevan-mukt, someone who is free while still living. This is not being numb. It is sahaj, a natural, easy calm. Think of a tree with deep roots. Wind blows and rain falls. It bends, but it stays put.
The next verses finish this picture.
What helps you stay steady when something upsetting happens?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI