Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The Gurmukh is weighed on the true scale — and the measure is truth itself.
The pull of hope and desire is quieted by the Guru, whose every word is true.
The One weighs with His own scale. When the Perfect One does the weighing, the measure is always perfect.
Sach taraajee tol — the scales of truth, the weights of truth. The Gurmukh is measured not by the world's standards (wealth, status, power, learning) but by truth. And the result: pooray pooraa tol — the Perfect One, the perfect weighing. The Gurmukh measured by truth is found full, not lacking.
The scales image connects to the broader merchant sequence in this ashtapadee and throughout Siree Raag. In a trading culture, the scales were where everything was decided: was the goods genuine? Was the weight honest? Was the merchant trustworthy? Guru Nanak takes the most contested object in any marketplace — the scale — and says: there is one scale that is completely reliable, and one weigher who is completely honest.
Aasaa mansaa mohni — hope (aasaa), desire (mansaa), and enchantment (mohni). These are the three forces that pull the soul toward impermanent goods — not because they are evil, but because when oriented toward the world's passing things they produce a restlessness that never resolves. The Guru thaakee (checks, stills, stops) them with sach bol — the true word. The word that is true quiets the appetite for things that are not.
Aap tulaa-ay tolsee — the divine does the weighing. This is grace in action: the Perfect One's scale is perfect. The soul does not need to worry about whether the assessment is accurate or fair. When the Husband weighs, the measure is exact and kind.
What would it feel like to trust that you are being measured by truth and not by the world's standards?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI