The Timeless Keeps Office Hours in Good Company
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Dear mind, take shelter with such souls - hand your mind and body over to their keeping.
The ones who recognize the One become givers of everything - in their sanctuary, every comfort; in their sight, old stains dissolve.
So drop the clever schemes - all of them - and weave yourself into the service of such servants.
The comings and goings end there. Honor the feet of the One's humble ones, forever.
The Timeless One can be found wherever people who truly know Him gather.
The last pauri turns this whole song into one instruction: man mayray tin kee ot layhi — O my mind, seek their shelter. Whose? Jin jan apnaa parabhoo pachhaataa — those who recognize their God. Notice the word. Not those who claim God, or put on a show, or run things. Those who recognize Him. Once again, all religious rank is measured by what is real inside. Sukhmani did this same check earlier. Now it guides where to find shelter.
Then come the promises, stacked up. Such people give all things. In their shelter is every comfort. Through their daras, their sight, all wrongs are wiped away. This repeats what Sukhmani said before about the gift of good company.
Avar si-aanap saglee chhaad — drop all other clever tricks. Cleverness cannot end the soul's coming and going, being born again and again. Company can: aavan jaan na hovee tayraa — your coming and going will end. The wheel stops where the good gather, as Sukhmani promised before. It is like a lost hiker who stops puzzling over the map alone and follows a guide who knows the way home.
This song began with Japji's timeless Truth. It ends at the most human place: naanak tis jan kay poojahu sad pairaa — honor the feet of the humble servants, always. In Sukhmani's map, that is where the Timeless One can always be found.
If you could apprentice yourself to any quality in a person, would you pick brilliance, power, or recognition of what matters most - and why?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI