A hinge into Raag Sorath: endings come to all, but praise the steady One whose peace holds — and the beautiful close, our virtues cut the chains of our faults and become our truest brothers.
A Bridge Between Raags
Though it closes the Wadahans folder, this shabad carries its own heading — Sorath, First Mehl, First House, Chau-Padas — preceded by the full Mool Mantar. It is the opening shabad of Raag Sorath by Guru Nanak, placed here as a bridge (as the first Goojaree shabad closed Aasaa, B00C1023, and the first Wadahans shabad closed Bihaagraa, B00C1155). It both ends Wadahans — fittingly, on the theme of endings — and opens Sorath.
The Arc
Pauri 0: the honest opening — endings come to all, and what hurts most is forgetting the good. The rahao (Pauri 1): the turn to praise — the steady One "who is and shall ever be," whose grace makes "peace ever prevail"; trust the gentle plan. Pauri 2: even the mightiest kings departed — don't lean on power or things that don't last. Pauri 3 closes with the landmark image — faults are chains, virtues cut them and become our true brothers.
Key Vocabulary
Endings come to all (P0) — the honest opening; forgetting the good is the deepest pain.
"Peace ever prevails" (P1, rahao) — the steady One's grace; trust over protest.
The mighty departed (P2) — power and possessions don't last.
Faults as chains, virtues as brothers (P3) — every good quality cuts a chain and becomes true family.
Translation Notes
Wellbeing handling. The death/separation opening (P0) and P2's "torment"/"ropes through noses" imagery are handled gently, per the project's rules — honest about endings, but foregrounding the hopeful turn (praise, trust, and the chain-cutting virtues).
"What good does it do to cry out in protest?" (P1) is rendered as trusting a gentle plan, not as suppressing feeling.
Themes and Cross-Connections
"Virtues cut the chains of faults" is one of Guru Nanak's most beloved images (it reappears in his Japji-adjacent teaching and across the GGS) — kin to Wadahans's "gather virtues" (B00C1156 beads on a thread) and the transformation vein (B00C1180 "poison to nectar"). "The mighty all departed" restates Kabir's "where is Raavan's house now" (Aasaa B00C990) and Bihaagraa's B00C1153 "phantom city." "Forgetting the good is the deepest pain" caps the Alaahnian's grief teaching. Endings-held-by-a-steady-One closes the raag of mourning on trust.
For Raag Wadahans (and the doorway to Sorath)
A perfect hinge for a child, and a hopeful close to a raag that has held so much longing and loss. Guru Nanak is honest — everything has an ending, and we all feel the ache of goodbye — but he turns quickly to comfort: praise the steady One whose kindness brings a peace that always holds. And he leaves a child with one of the loveliest images in all of Gurbani: our unkind habits weigh us down like little chains — but every good quality we grow cuts one of those chains and sets us freer, and those good qualities become like our truest brothers and sisters, real family who stand by us and free us. Grow goodness, and be free. On that note, the raag of mourning opens the door to the next song.
A hinge into Raag Sorath: endings come to all, but praise the steady One whose peace holds — and the beautiful close, our virtues cut the chains of our faults and become our truest brothers.
A Bridge Between Raags
Though it closes the Wadahans folder, this shabad carries its own heading — Sorath, First Mehl, First House, Chau-Padas — preceded by the full Mool Mantar. It is the opening shabad of Raag Sorath by Guru Nanak, placed here as a bridge (as the first Goojaree shabad closed Aasaa, B00C1023, and the first Wadahans shabad closed Bihaagraa, B00C1155). It both ends Wadahans — fittingly, on the theme of endings — and opens Sorath.
The Arc
Pauri 0: the honest opening — endings come to all, and what hurts most is forgetting the good. The rahao (Pauri 1): the turn to praise — the steady One "who is and shall ever be," whose grace makes "peace ever prevail"; trust the gentle plan. Pauri 2: even the mightiest kings departed — don't lean on power or things that don't last. Pauri 3 closes with the landmark image — faults are chains, virtues cut them and become our true brothers.
Key Vocabulary
Translation Notes
Themes and Cross-Connections
"Virtues cut the chains of faults" is one of Guru Nanak's most beloved images (it reappears in his Japji-adjacent teaching and across the GGS) — kin to Wadahans's "gather virtues" (B00C1156 beads on a thread) and the transformation vein (B00C1180 "poison to nectar"). "The mighty all departed" restates Kabir's "where is Raavan's house now" (Aasaa B00C990) and Bihaagraa's B00C1153 "phantom city." "Forgetting the good is the deepest pain" caps the Alaahnian's grief teaching. Endings-held-by-a-steady-One closes the raag of mourning on trust.
For Raag Wadahans (and the doorway to Sorath)
A perfect hinge for a child, and a hopeful close to a raag that has held so much longing and loss. Guru Nanak is honest — everything has an ending, and we all feel the ache of goodbye — but he turns quickly to comfort: praise the steady One whose kindness brings a peace that always holds. And he leaves a child with one of the loveliest images in all of Gurbani: our unkind habits weigh us down like little chains — but every good quality we grow cuts one of those chains and sets us freer, and those good qualities become like our truest brothers and sisters, real family who stand by us and free us. Grow goodness, and be free. On that note, the raag of mourning opens the door to the next song.
Last updated: 2026-07-05