Ang 5

Countless fools, blinded by ignorance. Countless thieves and embezzlers. Countless impose their will by force. Countless cut-throats and ruthless killers. Countless sinners who keep on sinning. Countless liars, wandering lost in their lies. Countless wretches, eating filth as their ration. Countless slanderers, carrying the weight of their stupid mistakes on their heads. Nanak describes the state of the lowly. I cannot even once be a sacrifice to You. Whatever pleases You is the only good done, You, Eternal and Formless One. ||18|| Countless names, countless places. Inaccessible, unapproachable, countless celestial realms. Even to call them countless is to carry the weight on your head. From the Word, comes the Naam; from the Word, comes Your Praise. From the Word, comes spiritual wisdom, singing the Songs of Your Glory. From the Word, come the written and spoken words and hymns. From the Word, comes destiny, written on one’s forehead. But the One who wrote these Words of Destiny—no words are written on His Forehead. As He ordains, so do we receive. The created universe is the manifestation of Your Name. Without Your Name, there is no place at all. How can I describe Your Creative Power? I cannot even once be a sacrifice to You. Whatever pleases You is the only good done, You, Eternal and Formless One. ||19|| When the hands and the feet and the body are dirty, water can wash away the dirt. When the clothes are soiled and stained by urine, soap can wash them clean. But when the intellect is stained and polluted by sin, it can only be cleansed by the Love of the Name. Virtue and vice do not come by mere words; actions repeated, over and over again, are engraved on the soul. You shall harvest what you plant. O Nanak, by the Hukam of God’s Command, we come and go in reincarnation. ||20|| Pilgrimages, austere discipline, compassion and charity—these, by themselves, bring only an iota of merit. Listening and believing with love and humility in your mind, cleanse yourself with the Name, at the sacred shrine deep within. All virtues are Yours, Lord, I have none at all. Without virtue, there is no devotional worship. I bow to the Lord of the World, to His Word, to Brahma the Creator. He is Beautiful, True and Eternally Joyful. What was that time, and what was that moment? What was that day, and what was that date? What was that season, and what was that month, when the Universe was created? The Pandits, the religious scholars, cannot find that time, even if it is written in the Puraanas. That time is not known to the Qazis, who study the Koran. The day and the date are not known to the Yogis, nor is the month or the season. The Creator who created this creation—only He Himself knows. How can we speak of Him? How can we praise Him? How can we describe Him? How can we know Him? O Nanak, everyone speaks of Him, each one wiser than the rest. Great is the Master, Great is His Name. Whatever happens is according to His Will. O Nanak, one who claims to know everything shall not be decorated in the world hereafter. ||21||

There are nether worlds beneath nether worlds, and hundreds of thousands of heavenly worlds above. The Vedas say that you can search and search for them all, until you grow weary. The scriptures say that there are 18,000 worlds, but in reality, there is only One Universe. If you try to write an account of this, you will surely finish yourself before you finish writing it. O Nanak, call Him Great! He Himself knows Himself. ||22|| The praisers praise the Lord, but they do not obtain intuitive understanding—the streams and rivers flowing into the ocean do not know its vastness. Even kings and emperors, with mountains of property and oceans of wealth—these are not even equal to an ant, who does not forget God. ||23|| Endless are His Praises, endless are those who speak them. Endless are His Actions, endless are His Gifts. Endless is His Vision, endless is His Hearing. His limits cannot be perceived. What is the Mystery of His Mind? The limits of the created universe cannot be perceived. Its limits here and beyond cannot be perceived. Many struggle to know His limits, but His limits cannot be found. No one can know these limits. The more you say about them, the more there still remains to be said. Great is the Master, High is His Heavenly Home. Highest of the High, above all is His Name. Only one as Great and as High as God can know His Lofty and Exalted State. Only He Himself is that Great. He Himself knows Himself. O Nanak, by His Glance of Grace, He bestows His Blessings. ||24|| His Blessings are so abundant that there can be no written account of them. The Great Giver does not hold back anything. There are so many great, heroic warriors begging at the Door of the Infinite Lord. So many contemplate and dwell upon Him, that they cannot be counted. So many waste away to death engaged in corruption. So many take and take again, and then deny receiving. So many foolish consumers keep on consuming. So many endure distress, deprivation and constant abuse. Even these are Your Gifts, O Great Giver! Liberation from bondage comes only by Your Will. No one else has any say in this. If some fool should presume to say that he does, he shall learn, and feel the effects of his folly. He Himself knows, He Himself gives. Few, very few are those who acknowledge this. One who is blessed to sing the Praises of the Lord, O Nanak, is the king of kings. ||25||

Priceless are His Virtues, Priceless are His Dealings. Priceless are His Dealers, Priceless are His Treasures. Priceless are those who come to Him, Priceless are those who buy from Him. Priceless is Love for Him, Priceless is absorption into Him. Priceless is the Divine Law of Dharma, Priceless is the Divine Court of Justice. Priceless are the scales, priceless are the weights. Priceless are His Blessings, Priceless is His Banner and Insignia. Priceless is His Mercy, Priceless is His Royal Command. Priceless, O Priceless beyond expression! Speak of Him continually, and remain absorbed in His Love. The Vedas and the Puraanas speak. The scholars speak and lecture. Brahma speaks, Indra speaks. The Gopis and Krishna speak. Shiva speaks, the Siddhas speak. The many created Buddhas speak. The demons speak, the demi-gods speak. The spiritual warriors, the heavenly beings, the silent sages, the humble and serviceful speak. Many speak and try to describe Him. Many have spoken of Him over and over again, and have then arisen and departed. If He were to create as many again as there already are, even then, they could not describe Him. He is as Great as He wishes to be. O Nanak, the True Lord knows. If anyone presumes to describe God, he shall be known as the greatest fool of fools! ||26|| Where is that Gate, and where is that Dwelling, in which You sit and take care of all? The Sound-current of the Naad vibrates there, and countless musicians play on all sorts of instruments there. So many Ragas, so many musicians singing there. The praanic wind, water and fire sing; the Righteous Judge of Dharma sings at Your Door. Chitr and Gupt, the angels of the conscious and the subconscious who record actions, and the Righteous Judge of Dharma who judges this record sing. Shiva, Brahma and the Goddess of Beauty, ever adorned, sing. Indra, seated upon His Throne, sings with the deities at Your Door. The Siddhas in Samaadhi sing; the Saadhus sing in contemplation. The celibates, the fanatics, the peacefully accepting and the fearless warriors sing. The Pandits, the religious scholars who recite the Vedas, with the supreme sages of all the ages, sing. The Mohinis, the enchanting heavenly beauties who entice hearts in this world, in paradise, and in the underworld of the subconscious sing. The celestial jewels created by You, and the sixty-eight holy places of pilgrimage sing. The brave and mighty warriors sing; the spiritual heroes and the four sources of creation sing. The planets, solar systems and galaxies, created and arranged by Your Hand, sing. They alone sing, who are pleasing to Your Will. Your devotees are imbued with the Nectar of Your Essence. So many others sing, they do not come to mind. O Nanak, how can I consider them all? That True Lord is True, Forever True, and True is His Name. He is, and shall always be. He shall not depart, even when this Universe which He has created departs. He created the world, with its various colors, species of beings, and the variety of Maya. Having created the creation, He watches over it Himself, by His Greatness. He does whatever He pleases. No order can be issued to Him. He is the King, the King of kings, the Supreme Lord and Master of kings. Nanak remains subject to His Will. ||27||