Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
By the flow of existence we arrive, and by that same flow we one day move on, it is the natural rhythm of all things.
When we turn away and forget, we wander restless and unsettled, out of step with the flow.
But recognize the Word, fall into step, and life carries you forward with quiet honor, like a guest welcomed home.
We arrive by the flow of existence, and by the same flow we one day move on.
Hukmai andar aa-i-aa pi-aaray hukmay jaado jaa-ay — "within hukam we come, Beloved, and by hukam we go." Hukam is the great flow of existence, the natural rhythm of all things. It is like the tide that comes in and goes out.
The next line is about the manmukh, the person who faces only their own wants. Hukmay baneh chalaa-ee-ai pi-aaray manmukh lahai sajaa-ay — such a person is tied up, driven along, and pays the price. The verse calls it a punishment. It is the natural result of forgetting the One, not a scary penalty from above. Think of a player who ignores the coach and plays only for himself. He ends up tired, restless and out of step with his whole team.
Hukmay sabad pachhaanee-ai — by the same flow, one comes to recognize the Shabad, the Guru's Word. Then dargeh paiDhaa jaa-ay — that person goes to the One's court dressed in honor, like a guest welcomed home.
When have you felt in step with how things are, instead of fighting it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI