Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The God-aware person is the purest of the pure - the way filth cannot stick to water.
Their mind is lit up and open, like the sky standing over the earth.
Friend and enemy get the same kindness, because the machinery of pride is gone.
Highest of the high - and inside their own mind, humbler than everyone. Nanak says: such people are not self-made. The One makes them.
The God-aware person is the highest of all, and inside feels the humblest of all.
Two pictures deepen the portrait. First, jaisay mail na laagai jalaa — like dirt that cannot stick to water. Water can carry mud and still be water. So purity here does not mean staying away from a messy world. It means having a nature that mess cannot change. It is the lotus idea, pushed further.
Second, jaisay Dhar oopar aakaas — like the sky over the earth. The sky is huge and bright. It holds everything under it and never feels crowded. That is what an open, lit-up mind is like.
Then comes a surprise Sukhmani loves. Barahm gi-aanee ooch tay oochaa — highest of the high. Man apnai hai sabh tay neechaa — yet in their own mind, lower than everyone. For such a person, these two do not fight. The height is made of the humility. Think of a great teacher who still sits on the floor with the youngest students.
The last line keeps the whole picture safe. Naanak jin parabh aap karay-i — only those whom the One makes so become like this. The portrait shows what grace makes. It is not a to-do list for making yourself perfect.
Who impresses you more: someone great who knows it, or someone great who has no idea? Why?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI