by Navtej Sarna
And repeating His Name, we cross the terrible ocean of the world.
He who lives detached, enshrining the Lord in his mind
Without desire in the midst of desire,
Sees and shows the Inaccessible and Incomprehensible
Of him Nanak is a slave.
Say the Yogis:
Who is unmanifest? Who is emancipated?
Who is united within and without?
Who is he who comes and goes?
Who is he who pervades the three worlds?
Says Nanak:
The all pervasive is unmanifest
The spiritual man is free
He too is united within and without with the Name
The self-centred man comes and goes
Nanak, His follower knows that He pervades the three worlds.
Say the Yogis:
What is the origin of life? What faith predominates the time?
Who is thy Guru, whose disciple are you?
Uttering whose discourse do you remain unique?
Listen to what we say, O Nanak child.
Tell us of this discourse. How does the Lord ferry man across the terrible ocean?
Says Nanak:
The breath is the beginning; the True Lord hold’s sway
The Lord my Guru, I his disciple love his meditation
The discourse of the Ineffable One makes me unique
O Nanak, the Cherisher of the world through the ages is my Guru.
Unique is the Lord and meditating on His discourse
His follower crosses the terrible ocean
And quenches the fire of his ego.
Listen O Yogi, to the quintessence of Divine discourse
Without the Name, there is no yoga.
Those touched by the Name are intoxicated day and night
Through the Name, they find peace.
Through the Name is all revealed
Through the Name comes understanding
Without the Name, many disguise themselves
Misled by the Lord himself.
From the True Lord is the Name attained
And then one knows the true yoga.
O Nanak, reflect in thy mind and see
There is no salvation without the Name.
You alone know Your size and estimation
What can anyone else explain?
You Yourself are hidden, and revealed
And Yours are all the joys
Many seekers, accomplished ones, spiritual teachers,
And many disciples wander in Thy search, by Thy command
Beseech thee for thy Name, and are granted;
O Lord, for thy vision I sacrifice myself.
The imperishable One has staged this play
His true follower understands
O Nanak, He alone pervades all worlds
There is no other.
Babar Vani
Guru Nanak’s Babar Vani is the composition of protest at the invasion of Babar and the suffering inflicted on innocent citizens, particularly the womenfolk. In four shabads, three of which are set to the Raga Asa and the fourth to Raga Tilang, Nanak pours forth the reaction of not just an eyewitness but also of a philosophical sage, a visionary and a poet. The suffering of humankind, the shortcomings of that age, the profligacy of India’s rulers at that time, the nature of the divine will and the suffering that mankind has to endure when the cosmic principles on which the world rests are ignored, are all brought out in these compositions renowned for their truth, spiritual insight and literary beauty.
As God’s Word comes to me
So I speak, O Lalo.
He (Babar) has charged from Kabul
With the wedding party of sin
And demands gifts by force, O Lalo.
Modesty and righteousness
Are in hiding
Falsehood is in command, O Lalo.
The Qazis and Brahmins
Have had their day,
Satan reads the marriage vows, O Lalo.
Muslim women read the Quran
In suffering
Call on God, O Lalo.
And Hindu women
Of caste high and low
Suffer the same fate, O Lalo.
O Nanak, paeans of blood are sung
And anointment is not by saffron
But blood, O Lalo.
Nanak sings the virtues of the Lord
In this city of corpses
And utters this truth:
The One who created men
And gave them joys
Beholds them in His solitude.
He is True,
True His verdict
And true His justice
—Raga Tilang
They with the beautiful tresses
Sacred vermillion in their partings,
Their heads are now shorn with scissors
And dust chokes their throats
They who lived in palaces
No longer can even sit outside
Praise to thee O Lord, praise,
O Primal Lord, none knows your li
mits,
Endlessly, You behold Yourself in diverse forms.
When they were married,
Their bridegrooms handsome beside them,
They came seated in palanquins,
And adorned in ornaments of ivory,
Welcoming waters greeted them
And glittering fans comforted them from close,
Riches were gifted as they sat
And riches when they stood,
They ate coconuts and dates
And took pleasure on comfortable beds;
Ropes now are around their necks
Their pearl strings are broken.
The wealth and youthful beauty
That gave them joy, are now their enemy;
The soldiers have been ordered, and
Dishonouring them, they take them away.
—Raga Asa