Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
People tell stories about a wishing tree that grants anything, and a magic cow that gives whatever you ask. The Name is that tree. The Name is that cow.
The highest of all speech is speaking of the One. Just hearing the Name, pain and sorrow loosen.
The Name's glow lives in the hearts of the saints, and their kindness clears away old guilt.
Finding the Sangat is great good fortune. Serving the saints, you remember the Name. Nothing equals it - and rare, says Nanak, is the one who receives it.
Every magic wishing tree in the old stories was pointing to the Name.
This part of Sukhmani ends by taking the two biggest wish-granters in the old stories and giving their jobs to the Name. Paarjaat ih har ko naam — the Name is paarjaat, the tree that grants any wish. Kaamdhayn har har gun gaam — singing the One's praise is Kaamdhayn, the cow that gives whatever you ask.
Guru Nanak does the same thing with the old hero stories in Raag Aasaa. He does not make fun of the old stories. He moves their promise over to the One who has no form.
Notice how much of this verse is about company. The Name's glory lives in the hearts of the sant, the holy people. Their kindness clears away guilt. Finding the Sangat is great good fortune. Serving them, you remember the Name. Four of the ten lines are about who you spend time with. Think of how you pick up the way your friends talk without trying.
The last line is honest. Naanak gurmukh naam paavai jan ko-ay — rare is the one who receives the Name. This is not shutting anyone out. It is a way of showing respect. Something that is free is not always something everyone finds.
If you had one wish from a magic tree, what would you ask for - and what does that reveal about what you think happiness is?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI