Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The tongue is one; His praises are past counting. The True One is perfection upon perfection -
no speech, however lovely, can climb all the way to Him.
Beyond access, beyond the mind's grasp, resting in complete stillness: He needs no food, holds no grudge, gives peace without end. No one can price Him.
Countless devoted ones simply bow, and bow again - holding His feet in their hearts. And I offer myself to the True Guru, by whose grace all this remembering happens at all.
No words could ever be enough to praise the One, so the gift left to bring is simple love.
Jihbaa ayk ustat anayk — the tongue is one, but His praises are many. Earlier, Sukhmani compared us to a thimble trying to hold the ocean. Here the same thing is said with the body: one small tongue, and a subject with no end.
The middle lines say two quiet but important things. Niraahaar nirvair — He needs no food, and He holds no grudge. Nirvair, without hate, is a word from the Mool Mantar, the opening words of Gurbani.
Needing no food means no offering is feeding Him. You cannot buy Him off or keep Him pleased with gifts. Holding no grudge means He is not waiting to get even. Many people across history have pictured God as needing offerings, or as angry. These two words set the Sikh picture apart. There is nothing to fear and nothing to pay.
So what is left when fear and paying are both gone? The devotees show the answer. Anik bhagat bandan nit karahi — countless devotees bow to Him every day. They hold His lotus feet in their hearts. They bow without asking for anything. It is like hugging your grandmother just because you love her, not because you want something.
The last line brings it back to the Guru. It is by the True Guru's grace that anyone remembers the One at all.
If the One needs nothing from you and holds nothing against you, why bow at all - and what kind of bow would it be?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI