Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The Doer behind all causes can do anything at all - what pleases Him is what happens.
In one instant He makes, in one instant He unmakes - and He has no edge or end.
By His flow the earth was set in place - and it hangs there, held by nothing you can see. By His flow the world came; into Him it returns. By His flow one person's work is high and another's low; by His flow come all the colors and the forms.
Having made it all, He beholds His own greatness. Nanak says: He is present inside every bit of it.
The whole universe runs on the One's order, and the One enjoys it all from inside.
The key word is hukmay, "by the order." The order is Hukam, the flow of existence. hukmay Dhaar aDhar rahaavai — by the order, the earth is held up with no support. Old stories gave the world something to rest on, like a turtle, a bull or pillars. Gurbani says nothing holds it up but the order itself. The earth floats on Hukam. Readers have wondered at this line for centuries.
hukmay ooch neech bi-uhaar — by the order, one person's work is high and another's is low. The section before this one taught the same about who sits where. This does not rank people's souls. The jobs are part of the play.
Then comes a picture: kar kar daykhai apnee vadi-aa-ee — having made it all, the One looks at its own greatness. Think of an artist who steps inside her own painting. Every color there is her own. She enjoys it from within.
naanak sabh meh rahi-aa samaa-ee — the One is present in all of it.
What holds the earth up? Keep asking what holds that up - where does the question finally rest?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI