Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The merchants and traders have arrived in this world — each with a pre-ordained profit written for them.
Those who practice truth reap the real profit, living in the divine flow.
The one who finds the Guru carries true wealth — and that Guru has not a trace of greed.
The merchant metaphor reappears — one of Guru Nanak's most consistent images across Siree Raag. Vajahu likhaaay — the profits are pre-ordained (literally "the wages are written"). The merchants come with their profit already determined — not arbitrarily, but by what they trade in. Those who trade in truth (kaar kamaaveh sach kee) receive the lasting profit; those who trade in appearance receive nothing that holds.
Poonjee saachee — the True Capital. The word poonjee means capital in the investment sense — what you bring into the market to trade with. The soul's true capital is the Name, the Guru's teaching. Bring that into the world and the trade yields the right profit: laahaa milai rajaa-ay (the profit comes through the divine flow/will).
Tis til na tamaa-ay — the Guru does not have a trace of greed. This is a pointed critique embedded quietly in the line. Many of the religious teachers of Guru Nanak's time traded in exactly the goods he describes — rituals, blessings, pilgrimage, sacred water — for material payment. The True Guru has no such appetite. The transaction with the True Guru is not commercial. The capital you bring is your genuine orientation; what you receive cannot be measured in ordinary terms.
What are you actually trading your time and energy for — and is that trade producing something that will last?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI