Ang 355

AASAA, FIRST MEHL, PANCH-PADAS: A cow without milk; a bird without wings; a garden without water — totally useless! What is an emperor, without respect? The chamber of the soul is so dark, without the Name of the Lord. ||1|| How could I ever forget You? It would be so painful! I would suffer such pain — no, I shall not forget You! ||1|| Pause|| The eyes grow blind, the tongue does not taste, and the ears do not hear any sound. He walks on his feet only when supported by someone else; without serving the Lord, such are the fruits of life. ||2|| The Word is the tree; the garden of the heart is the farm; tend it, and irrigate it with the Lord’s Love. All these trees bear the fruit of the Name of the One Lord; but without the karma of good actions, how can anyone obtain it? ||3|| As many living beings are there are, they are all Yours. Without selfless service, no one obtains any reward. Pain and pleasure come by Your Will; without the Name, the soul does not even exist. ||4|| To die in the Teachings is to live. Otherwise, what is life? That is not the way. Says Nanak, He grants life to the living beings; O Lord, please keep me according to Your Will. ||5||19||

AASAA, FIRST MEHL: Let the body be the Brahmin, and let the mind be the loin-cloth; let spiritual wisdom be the sacred thread, and meditation the ceremonial ring. I seek the Name of the Lord and His Praise as my cleansing bath. By Guru’s Grace, I am absorbed into God. ||1|| O Pandit, O religious scholar, contemplate God in such a way that His Name may sanctify you, that His Name may be your study, and His Name your wisdom and way of life. ||1|| Pause|| The outer sacred thread is worthwhile only as long as the Divine Light is within. So make the remembrance of the Naam, the Name of the Lord, your loin-cloth and the ceremonial mark on your forehead. Here and hereafter, the Name alone shall stand by you. Do not seek any other actions, except the Name. ||2|| Worship the Lord in loving adoration, and burn your desire for Maya. Behold only the One Lord, and do not seek out any other. Become aware of reality, in the Sky of the Tenth Gate; read aloud the Lord’s Word, and contemplate it. ||3|| With the diet of His Love, doubt and fear depart. With the Lord as your night watchman, no thief will dare to break in. Let the knowledge of the One God be the ceremonial mark on your forehead. Let the realization that God is within you be your discrimination. ||4|| Through ritual actions, God cannot be won over; by reciting sacred scriptures, His value cannot be estimated. The eighteen Puraanas and the four Vedas do not know His mystery. O Nanak, the True Guru has shown me the Lord God. ||5||20||

AASAA, FIRST MEHL: He alone is the selfless servant, slave and humble devotee, who as Gurmukh, becomes the slave of his Lord and Master. He, who created the Universe, shall ultimately destroy it. Without Him, there is no other at all. ||1|| Through the Word of the Guru’s Shabad, the Gurmukh reflects upon the True Name; in the True Court, he is found to be true. ||1|| Pause|| The true supplication, the true prayer — within the Mansion of His Sublime Presence, the True Lord Master hears and applauds these. He summons the truthful to His Heavenly Throne and bestows glorious greatness upon them; that which He wills, comes to pass. ||2|| The Power is Yours; You are my only Support. The Word of the Guru’s Shabad is my true password. One who obeys the Hukam of the Lord’s Command, goes to Him openly. With the password of truth, his way is not blocked. ||3|| The Pandit reads and expounds on the Vedas, but he does not know the secret of the thing within himself. Without the Guru, understanding and realization are not obtained; but still God is True, pervading everywhere. ||4|| What should I say, or speak or describe? Only You Yourself know, O Lord of total wonder. Nanak takes the Support of the Door of the One God. There, at the True Door, the Gurmukhs sustain themselves. ||5||21||

AASAA, FIRST MEHL: The clay pitcher of the body is miserable; it suffers in pain through birth and death. How can this terrifying world-ocean be crossed over? Without the Lord — Guru, it cannot be crossed. ||1|| Without You, there is no other at all, O my Beloved; without you, there is no other at all. You are in all colors and forms; he alone is forgiven, upon whom You bestow Your Glance of Grace. ||1|| Pause|| Maya, my mother-in-law, is evil; she does not let me live in my own home. The vicious one does not let me meet with my Husband Lord. I serve at the feet of my companions and friends; the Lord has showered me with His Mercy, through Guru’s Grace. ||2|| Reflecting upon my self, and conquering my mind, I have seen that there is no other friend like You. As You keep me, so do I live. You are the Giver of peace and pleasure. Whatever You do, comes to pass. ||3|| Hope and desire have both been dispelled; I have renounced my longing for the three qualities. The Gurmukh obtains the state of ecstasy, taking to the Shelter of the Saints’ Congregation. ||4|| All wisdom and meditation, all chanting and penance, come to one whose heart is filled with the Invisible, Inscrutable Lord. O Nanak, one whose mind is imbued with the Lord’s Name, finds the Guru’s Teachings, and intuitively serves. ||5||22||