No Effort Quenches the Fire; One Remembrance Does
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Be as clever as you like - the fear of death still sits with you. Try everything - the thirst is still there.
Wear every uniform of holiness - the fire inside is not put out. Make a million efforts - effort alone opens no door.
You cannot outrun it into the sky or under the earth while your heart is tangled in the net of wanting.
One thing is accepted: loving remembrance of the One. Remember, and sorrow scatters. Nanak says: say the Name with natural ease.
No clever trick or effort puts out the fire inside; one easy, loving remembrance does.
The first verses of this song weighed outside practices. This one weighs strategies. Being clever. Trying many things. Wearing bhaykh, religious robes. Making huge numbers of efforts. Even trying to escape, to the heavens above or the worlds below. None of it works while the maa-i-aa jaal, the net of Maya, is wrapped around the heart. Maya is the pull of the passing world.
The line about robes is sharp. Bhaykh anayk agan nahee bujhai — many robes do not put out the fire. Wearing the uniform does not change the person. A team jersey does not make you a good player.
The verse ends with Sukhmani's gentlest instruction. Naanak bolai sahj subhaa-ay — say it with natural ease. Sahj means calm and easy. After showing that forcing never works, the song does not ask for forced chanting. The Name is said the way a child says the name of someone they love. Easily.
What is the difference between doing something with great strain and doing the same thing with ease and love?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI