Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Wealth, the beauty of youth, and flowers — they are guests. They arrive, they stay for a while, and they leave.
Like the leaves of the water-lily, they wither and fade and finally die.
This isn't sad news. It's an invitation: since these things don't last, hold them lightly. Appreciate them while they're here — and don't build your whole life on something that will eventually check out.
Shabad 23 is composed in the Second House — a different musical mode (ghar) that changes the emotional register of the raag. The ghar affects both the melody and the mood in which the shabad would be sung.
The water-lily (kanval) metaphor is precise: unlike the lotus, which grows above the water, the water-lily leaf sits directly on the surface. It is beautiful but fragile — a slight disturbance and it tears. Wealth, youth, and beauty are like this: present and lovely and completely subject to impermanence.
This shabad marks a shift in Guru Nanak's tone from exhortation to elegy — a more melancholy, reflective voice.
What is something you loved at a specific time in your life that is gone now? Do you feel sad about it, or grateful you had it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI