Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
So I bring my prayer into good company, having heard that the One loves the people who turn toward it — and that's why I've come.
I run toward that love and ask simply: keep me true, and make me Your own.
This one is where the whole shabad turns. After four verses of honest looking, a door opens.
The mind isn't left in trouble. It is pointed to the saadh sangat — good company, people who are steadying themselves toward the One. Har bhagat vachhal sun aa-i-o — "I heard the Lord loves His devotees, so I came." What brings the runner home isn't fear of punishment. It's the news of being loved. Think of a kid who hears, "Come home, dinner's ready, we missed you." That call works better than any scolding.
Raakh laaj apunaa-i-o — "protect my honor, and make me Your own." It is the ask of someone who knows they can't fix themselves alone. They trust they will be caught.
This pattern is Guru Arjan's signature. First comes an honest look at the problem. Then comes an open door.
Why might hearing 'you are loved' change a person faster than hearing 'you are bad'?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI