bin bhagtee sukh na ho-ee doojai patkho-ee gurmat naam aDhaaray.
Without devotion, there is no peace; through duality, one's honor is lost, but under Guru's Instruction, he is blessed with the Support of the Naam.
ਵਖਰੁ ਨਾਮੁ ਸਦਾ ਲਾਭੁ ਹੈ ਜਿਸ ਨੋ ਏਤੁ ਵਾਪਾਰਿ ਲਾਏ ॥
vakhar naam sadaa laabh hai jis no ayt vaapaar laa-ay.
He ever earns the profit of the merchandise of the Naam, whom the Lord employs in this Trade.
ਰਤਨ ਪਦਾਰਥ ਵਣਜੀਅਹਿ ਜਾਂ ਸਤਿਗੁਰੁ ਦੇਇ ਬੁਝਾਏ ॥੧॥
ratan padaarath vanjee-ah jaaN satgur day-ay bujhaa-ay. ||1||
He purchases the jewel, the invaluable treasure, unto whom the True Guru has given this understanding. ||1||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
In plain words
Buy the one jewel worth having — the priceless treasure that wisdom reveals.
The best gain of all is a heart full of devotion, its goodness blending into the great Goodness.
Without that, real peace stays out of reach; with it, you come to know your true self.
The one treasure truly worth having is a heart full of goodness — and it blends into the great Goodness like a stream into a river.
The deeper layer
Guru Amar Das opens with the merchant image: "purchase the jewel, the invaluable treasure." The greatest "profit" is devotion, through which "one's virtues merge into the virtues of the Lord" — your small goodness blending into the great Goodness, like a stream into a river. "Without devotion there is no peace." For a child: the one treasure truly worth having is a heart full of goodness — and your goodness blends into the great Goodness like a stream into a river.
A Question to Sit With
If you could 'buy' one priceless thing for your heart, what would it be?
