Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
From the first day to the last, Someone has been protecting you - and still we hold back our love.
Serving the One, every treasure opens - and still we do not connect our minds to it.
The Master is right here, always, forever - and the unseeing insist that He is far away.
Serving the One brings honor in the court of Truth - and still we forget. We keep on making this one mistake. Nanak says: Infinite One, be our saving grace anyway.
The One feels far away only because we forget. The One is always right here.
The verse is built on two words, "and yet." Four gifts, and four times we turn away. The One protects us from start to finish, and yet we give no love. Serving the One brings the nav niDh, the nine treasures, and yet we do not link our minds. The One is always here, and yet we think the One is far. Serving brings honor in the One's court, and yet we forget.
The third one is the sharpest. Jo thaakur sad sadaa hajooray — the Master is always, always present. Taa ka-o anDhaa jaanat dooray — the blind think the Master is far away.
Being far is not a fact about the One. It is a sign that we have forgotten. Think of looking all over the house for your glasses while they sit on your head. Raag Maajh says the same about viraha, the ache of missing the Beloved. The Beloved was nearer than near the whole time.
The ending is this song's special move. After saying we keep making the same mistake forever, it does not demand that we fix ourselves first. It turns straight to grace. Naanak raakhanhaar apaar — the Infinite One is the One who saves.
When someone loves you steadily, is it possible to stop noticing? What wakes you up to it again?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI