Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The merchant image returns at the very end — the same image that opened the Vaar's Vanajaaraa section: the trader who loads his goods for the journey.
Guru Ram Das says: I have packed the Name of the Lord as my provision. Not food, not gold, not reputation. The Name.
And it is the Companion that will travel with every breath — not just a thing in his bag, but a presence that goes with him.
The Guru put it there — not through force but through grace. And now this Imperishable Treasure — something that cannot be destroyed, cannot be spent, cannot be taken away — rests in his lap.
Saas (breath) is both the provision of life and the vehicle of the Name — each breath is the opportunity for simaran (remembrance). The 'Companion of my breath' (praan saathee) is the Lord Himself — not a concept or a practice but a presence. The merchant image (potali baandhi har naau) deliberately echoes the Vanajaaraa of Shabad 136: the merchant who loads the right cargo. At the end of Siree Raag, the answer to that earlier question — what should the merchant carry? — is given again with simplicity: the Name. And the Guru's role is clear: satgur nikharvat hee deeaa, the True Guru has simply given this. Not complicated it. Given it.
If you were packing for the longest journey imaginable, what would be the one thing you'd make sure to bring?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI