Ang 1417

Those who die in the Word of the Shabad are saved. Without the Shabad, no one is liberated. They wear religious robes and perform all sorts of rituals, but they are ruined; in the love of duality, their world is ruined. O Nanak, without the True Guru, the Name is not obtained, even though one may long for it hundreds of times. ||32|| The Name of the Lord is utterly great, lofty and high, the highest of the high. No one can climb up to it, even though one may long for it, hundreds of times. Speaking about self-discipline, no one become pure; everyone walks around wearing religious robes. Those blessed by the karma of good deeds go and climb the ladder of the Guru. The Lord comes and dwells within that one who contemplates the Word of the Guru’s Shabad. O Nanak, when someone dies in the Word of the Shabad, the mind is pleased and appeased. True is the reputation of those who are true. ||33|| Emotional attachment to Maya is a treacherous ocean of pain and poison, which cannot be crossed. Screaming, “Mine, mine!”, they rot and die; they pass their lives in egotism. The self-willed manmukhs are in limbo, neither on this side, nor the other; they are stuck in the middle. They act as they are pre- destined; they cannot do anything else. Following the Guru’s Teachings, the jewel of spiritual wisdom abides in the mind, and then God is easily seen in all. O Nanak, the very fortunate ones embark on the Boat of the True Guru; they are carried across the terrifying world-ocean. ||34|| Without the True Guru, there is no giver who can bestow the Support of the Lord’s Name. By Guru’s Grace, the Name comes to dwell in the mind; keep it enshrined in your heart. The fire of desire is extinguished, and one finds satisfaction, through the Love of the Name of the Lord. O Nanak, the Gurmukh finds the Lord, when He showers His Mercy. ||35|| Without the Shabad, the world is so insane, that it cannot even be described. Those who are protected by the Lord are saved; they remain lovingly attuned to the Word of the Shabad. O Nanak, the Creator who made this making knows everything. ||36|| The Pandits, the religious scholars, have grown weary of making fire-offerings and sacrifices, making pilgrimages to all the sacred shrines, and reading the Puraanas. But they cannot get rid of the poison of emotional attachment to Maya; they continue to come and go in egotism. Meeting with the True Guru, one’s filth is washed off, meditating on the Lord, the Primal Being, the All- knowing One. Servant Nanak is forever a sacrifice to those who serve their Lord God. ||37||

Mortals give great thought to Maya and emotional attachment; they harbor great hopes, in greed and corruption. The self-willed manmukhs do not become steady and stable; they die and are gone in an instant. Only those who are blessed with great good fortune meet the True Guru, and leave behind their egotism and corruption. Chanting the Name of the Lord, they find peace; servant Nanak contemplates the Word of the Shabad. ||38|| Without the True Guru, there is no devotional worship, and no love of the Naam, the Name of the Lord. Servant Nanak worships and adores the Naam, with love and affection for the Guru. ||39|| Do not trust greedy people, if you can avoid doing so. At the very last moment, they will deceive you there, where no one will be able to lend a helping hand. Whoever associates with the self-willed manmukhs, will have his face blackened and dirtied. Black are the faces of those greedy people; they lose their lives, and leave in disgrace. O Lord, let me join the Sat Sangat, the True Congregation; may the Name of the Lord God abide in my mind. The filth and pollution of birth and death is washed away, O servant Nanak, singing the Glorious Praises of the Lord. ||40|| Whatever is pre-destined by the Lord God Creator, cannot be erased. Body and soul are all His. The Sovereign Lord King cherishes all. The gossipers and slanderers shall remain hungry and die, rolling in the dust; their hands cannot reach anywhere. Outwardly, they do all the proper deeds, but they are hypocrites; in their minds and hearts, they practice deception and fraud. Whatever is planted in the farm of the body, shall come and stand before them in the end. Nanak offers this prayer: O Lord God, please forgive me, and unite me with Yourself. ||41|| The mortal being does not understand the comings and goings of reincarnation; he does not see the Court of the Lord. He is wrapped up in emotional attachment and Maya, and within his being is the darkness of ignorance. The sleeping person wakes, only when he is hit on the head by a heavy club. The Gurmukhs dwell upon the Lord; they find the door of salvation. O Nanak, they themselves are saved, and all their relatives are carried across as well. ||42|| Whoever dies in the Word of the Shabad, is known to be truly dead. By Guru’s Grace, the mortal is satisfied by the sublime essence of the Lord. Through the Word of the Guru’s Shabad, he is recognized in the Court of the Lord. Without the Shabad, everyone is dead. The self-willed manmukh dies; his life is wasted. Those who do not remember the Name of the Lord, shall cry in pain in the end. O Nanak, whatever the Creator Lord does, comes to pass. ||43||