Salok Mehlaa 9, Salok 1 — like a fish in water
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
There is only One. And the One is found by the True Guru's grace — a gift that is always here, waiting for an open heart.
If you do not sing the praises of the Lord of the World, you make your life useless.
Nanak says: remember the One, O mind, the way a fish lives in water.
A life is full when it sings the One's praises, and remembering can be as close as a fish is to water.
These are the first saloks of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru. Gun gobind gaa-i-o nahee: if you have not sung the praises of the Lord of the World, janam akaarath keen, the life has been made useless.
Jih biDh jal ka-o meen: like the fish with water. The fish does not strain or perform; water is its life, and without it the fish cannot live. Remembrance (bhaj) is meant to be that close.
What is one small way you could remember the One today, the way a fish simply lives in water?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI