Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Your mind is blown here and there, in every direction, like a leaf in the wind. Bring it home, back to the One.
Let go of the small arguments you keep having in your head. Instead, recognize the Guru's Word.
Bow before the True Guru, who already knows everything.
Stop clutching at your hopes and worries. Live lightly in this world, the way a guest stays in someone's home: grateful, easy, not trying to own the place.
Walk in step with the True Guru's will, and you will be honored in the deepest place there is.
Nanak says: when we forget to keep the Name close, even our food and our clothes feel strangely empty, like something is missing from an ordinary day.
Bring your scattered mind home, and live in this world like a grateful guest.
This verse speaks to a shaykh, a Muslim holy man. That is part of the teaching. Guru Amar Das speaks across traditions, giving the same advice he would give anyone.
Cha-uchaki-aa cha-uvaa-i-aa means the four directions and the four winds. The mind is blown everywhere, like a leaf in a storm. Ayhu man ikat ghar aan: bring this mind back to the one home. Think of a group chat with a hundred messages pinging at once. Then you close the phone and sit quietly with someone you love.
Aasaa mansaa jalaa-ay means burn away your hopes and wants. It means loosening your grip. Ho-ay rahu mihmaan: live as a guest. A good guest is grateful and easy, and doesn't try to own the house.
The last line speaks harshly of the clothes and food of those who forget the Name. Its meaning is that a life can feel strangely empty when it has lost what matters most.
What does it feel like when your mind is “blown in four directions” at once? What helps you bring it back home?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI