Patiently Teach Your Restless Mind to Keep It in View

ਵਡਹੰਸੁ ਮਹਲਾ ੪ ਘਰੁ ੨

vad-hans mehlaa 4 ghar 2

Wadahans, Fourth Mehl, Second House:

ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥

ik-o^Nkaar satgur parsaad.

One Universal Creator God. By The Grace Of The True Guru:

ਮੈ ਮਨਿ ਵਡੀ ਆਸ ਹਰੇ ਕਿਉ ਕਰਿ ਹਰਿ ਦਰਸਨੁ ਪਾਵਾ ॥

mai man vadee aas haray ki-o kar har darsan paavaa.

Within my mind there is such a great yearning; how will I attain the Blessed Vision of the Lord's Darshan?

ਹਉ ਜਾਇ ਪੁਛਾ ਅਪਨੇ ਸਤਗੁਰੈ ਗੁਰ ਪੁਛਿ ਮਨੁ ਮੁਗਧੁ ਸਮਝਾਵਾ ॥

ha-o jaa-ay puchhaa apnay satgurai gur puchh man mugaDh samjhaavaa.

I go and ask my True Guru; with the Guru's advice, I shall teach my foolish mind.

ਭੂਲਾ ਮਨੁ ਸਮਝੈ ਗੁਰ ਸਬਦੀ ਹਰਿ ਹਰਿ ਸਦਾ ਧਿਆਏ ॥

bhoolaa man samjhai gur sabdee har har sadaa Dhi-aa-ay.

The foolish mind is instructed in the Word of the Guru's Shabad, and meditates forever on the Lord, Har, Har.

ਨਾਨਕ ਜਿਸੁ ਨਦਰਿ ਕਰੇ ਮੇਰਾ ਪਿਆਰਾ ਸੋ ਹਰਿ ਚਰਣੀ ਚਿਤੁ ਲਾਏ ॥੧॥

naanak jis nadar karay mayraa pi-aaraa so har charnee chit laa-ay. ||1||

O Nanak, one who is blessed with the Mercy of my Beloved, focuses his consciousness on the Lord's Feet. ||1||

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa

In plain words

There's such a longing in me to see the One I love — how do I get there?

So I go and ask what's wise, and gently teach my restless mind to keep the good in view.

Little by little the mind learns, and settles into remembering.

And a heart touched by kindness rests, at last, at the feet of the One.

When your heart longs for something good, you can patiently teach your restless mind to keep it in view.

The deeper layer

Guru Ram Das opens this longer shabad with the raag's ache — "such a great yearning; how will I attain the Darshan (sight) of the Lord?" — and a practical answer: go and ask the Guru, and patiently "teach my foolish mind" through the Shabad. The mind is not scolded but gently instructed, like a child learning. The qMonk voice keeps "foolish mind" as "restless mind" — a state, not an insult. Longing plus patient teaching plus grace: the mind slowly settles into remembrance.

A Question to Sit With

How do you gently teach your own mind to focus on what matters?

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI

About this shabad →

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