CONTD FROM Vol 7 ISSUE 26 || 6 || The self-willed manmukhs are hit over the head, and consumed by conflict. The cheaters are plundered by falsehood; they are chained and led away. || 7 || Enshrine the Lord Master in your mind, and you shall not have to repent. He forgives our sins, when we practice the Teachings of the Guru’s Word.

|| 8 || Nanak begs for the True Name, which is obtained by the Gurmukh.Without You, I have no other at all; please, bless me with Your Glance of Grace. || 9 || 16 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: Why should I go searching in the forests, when the woods of my home are so green? The True Word of the Shabad has instantaneously come and settled in my heart. || 1 || Wherever I look, there He is; I know no other.Working for the Guru, one realizes the Mansion of the Lord’s Presence.

|| 1 || Pause || The True Lord blends us with Himself, when it is pleasing to His Mind. One who ever walks in accordance with His Will, merges into His Being. || 2 || When the True Lord dwells in the mind, that mind flourishes. He Himself grants greatness; His Gifts are never exhausted. || 3 || Serving this and that person, how can one obtain the Lord’s Court? If someone embarks on a boat of stone, he shall drown with its cargo.

|| 4 || So offer your mind, and surrender your head with it. The Gurmukh realizes the true essence, and finds the home of his own self. || 5 || People discuss birth and death; the Creator created this. Those who conquer their selfhood and remain dead, shall never have to die again. || 6 || Do those deeds which the Primal Lord has ordered for you. If one surrenders his mind upon meeting the True Guru, who can estimate its value?

|| 7 || That Lord Master is the Assayer of the jewel of the mind; He places the value on it. O Nanak, True is the Glory of that one, in whose mind the Lord Master dwells. || 8 || 17 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: Those who have forgotten the Naam, the Name of the Lord, are deluded by doubt and duality. Those who abandon the roots and cling to the branches, shall obtain only ashes. || 1 || Without the Name, how can one be emancipated? Who knows this? One who becomes Gurmukh is emancipated; the self-willed manmukhs lose their honor.

|| 1 || Pause || Those who serve the One Lord become perfect in their understanding, O Siblings of Destiny. The Lord’s humble servant finds Sanctuary in Him, the Immaculate One, from the very beginning, and throughout the ages. || 2 || My Lord and Master is the One; there is no other, O Siblings of Destiny. By the Grace of the True Lord, celestial peace is obtained. || 3 || Without the Guru, no one has obtained Him, although many may claim to have done so. He Himself reveals the Way, and implants true devotion within.

|| 4 || Even if the selfwilled manmukh is instructed, he stills goes into the wilderness.Without the Lord’s Name, he shall not be emancipated; he shall die, and sink into hell. || 5 || He wanders through birth and death, and never chants the Lord’s Name. He never realizes his own value, without serving the Guru. || 6 || Whatever service the Lord causes us to do, that is just what we do. He Himself acts; who else should be mentioned? He beholds His own greatness.

|| 7 || He alone serves the Guru, whom the Lord Himself inspires to do so. O Nanak, offering his head, one is emancipated, and honored in the Court of the Lord. || 8 || 18 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: Beautiful is the Supreme Lord and Master, and beautiful is the Word of the Guru’s Bani. By great good fortune, one meets the True Guru, and the supreme status of Nirvaanaa is obtained. || 1 || I am the lowest slave of Your slaves; I am Your most humble servant. As You keep me, I live. Your Name is in my mouth.

|| 1 || Pause || I have such a great thirst for the Blessed Vision of Your Darshan; my mind accepts Your Will, and so You are pleased with me. Greatness is in the Hands of my Lord and Master; by His Will, honor is obtained. || 2 || Do not think that the True Lord is far away; He is deep within. Wherever I look, there I find Him pervading; how can I estimate His value? || 3 || He Himself does, and He Himself undoes. He Himself beholds His glorious greatness. Becoming Gurmukh, one beholds Him, and so, His value is appraised.

|| 4 || So earn your profits while you are alive, by serving the Guru. If it is so pre-ordained, then one finds the True Guru. || 5 || The self-willed manmukhs continually lose, and wander around, deluded by doubt. The blind manmukhs do not remember the Lord; how can they obtain the Blessed Vision of His Darshan? || 6 || One’s coming into the world is judged worthwhile only if one lovingly attunes oneself to the True Lord. Meeting the Guru, one becomes invaluable; his light merges into the Light.

|| 7 || Day and night, he remains detached, and serves the Primal Lord. O Nanak, those who are imbued with the Lord’s Lotus Feet, are content with the Naam, the Name of the Lord. || 8 || 19 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: No matter how much one may describe the Lord, His limits still cannot be known. I am without any support; You, O Lord, are my only Support; You are my almighty power. || 1 || This is Nanak’s prayer, that he may be adorned with the True Name.When selfconceit is eradicated, and understanding is obtained, one meets the Lord, through the Word of the Guru’s Shabad.

|| 1|| Pause || Abandoning egotism and pride, one obtains contemplative understanding. When the mind surrenders to the Lord Master, He bestows the support of the Truth. || 2 || Day and night, remain content with the Naam, the Name of the Lord; that is the true service. No misfortune troubles one who follows the Command of the Lord’s Will. || 3 || One who follows the Command of the Lord’s Will is taken into the Lord’s Treasury. The counterfeit find no place there; they are mixed with the false ones.

|| 4 || Forever and ever, the genuine coins are treasured; with them, the true merchandise is purchased. The false ones are not seen in the Lord’s Treasury; they are seized and cast into the fire again. || 5 || Those who understand their own souls, are themselves the Supreme Soul. The One Lord is the tree of ambrosial nectar, which bears the ambrosial fruit. || 6 || Those who taste the ambrosial fruit remain satisfied with Truth. They have no doubt or sense of separation – their tongues taste the divine taste.

|| 7 || By His Command, and through your past actions, you came into the world; walk forever according to His Will. Please, grant virtue to Nanak, the virtueless one; bless him with the glorious greatness of the Truth. || 8 || 20 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: One whose mind is attuned to the Lord’s Name speaks the truth. What would the people lose, if I became pleasing to You, O Lord? || 1 || As long as there is the breath of life, meditate on the True Lord. You shall receive the profit of singing the Glorious Praises of the Lord, and find peace.

|| 1 || Pause || True is Your Service; bless me with it, O Merciful Lord. I live by praising You; You are my Anchor and Support. || 2 || I am Your servant, the gate-keeper at Your Gate; You alone know my pain. How wonderful is Your devotional worship! It removes all pains. || 3 || The Gurmukhs know that by chanting the Naam, they shall dwell in His Court, in His Presence. True and acceptable is that time, when one recognizes the Word of the Shabad.

|| 4 || Those who practice Truth, contentment and love, obtain the supplies of the Lord’s Name. So banish corruption from your mind, and the True One will grant you Truth. || 5 || The True Lord inspires true love in the truthful. He Himself administers justice, as it pleases His Will. || 6 || True is the gift of the True, Compassionate Lord. Day and night, I serve the One whose Name is priceless.

|| 7 || You are so sublime, and I am so lowly, but I am called Your slave. Please, shower Nanak with Your Glance of Grace, that he, the separated one, may merge with You again, O Lord. || 8 || 21 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: How can coming and going, the cycle of reincarnation be ended? And how can one meet the Lord? The pain of birth and death is so great, in constant skepticism and duality.

|| 1 || Without the Name, what is life? Cleverness is detestable and cursed. One who does not serve the Holy True Guru, is not pleased by devotion to the Lord. || 1 || Pause || Coming and going is ended only when one finds the True Guru. He gives the wealth and capital of the Lord’s Name, and false doubt is destroyed. || 2 || Joining the humble Saintly beings, let us sing the blessed, blessed Praises of the Lord. The Primal Lord, the Infinite, is obtained by the Gurmukh.

|| 3 || The drama of the world is staged like the show of a buffoon. For an instant, for a moment, the show is seen, but it disappears in no time at all. || 4 || The game of chance is played on the board of egotism, with the pieces of falsehood and ego. The whole world loses; he alone wins, who reflects upon the Word of the Guru’s Shabad. || 5 || As is the cane in the hand of the blind man, so is the Lord’s Name for me. The Lord’s Name is my Support, night and day and morning.

|| 6 || As You keep me, Lord, I live; the Lord’s Name is my only Support. It is my only comfort in the end; the gate of salvation is found by His humble servants. || 7 || The pain of birth and death is removed, by chanting and meditating on the Naam, the Name of the Lord. O Nanak, one who does not forget the Naam, is saved by the Perfect Guru. || 8 || 22 || AASAA, THIRD MEHL, ASHTAPADEES, SECOND HOUSE: ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU: The Shaastras, the Vedas and the Simritees are contained in the ocean of Your Name; the River Ganges is held in Your Feet. The intellect can understand the world of the three modes, but You, O Primal Lord, are totally astounding. || 1

|| Servant Nanak meditates on His Feet, and chants the Ambrosial Word of His Bani. || 1 || Pause || Three hundred thirty million gods are Your servants. You bestow wealth, and the supernatural powers of the Siddhas; You are the Support of the breath of life. His beauteous forms cannot be comprehended; what can anyone accomplish by discussing and debating?

|| 2 || Throughout the ages, You are the three qualities, and the four sources of creation. If You show Your Mercy, then one obtains the supreme status, and speaks the Unspoken Speech. || 3 || You are the Creator; all are created by You. What can any mortal being do? He alone, upon whom You shower Your Grace, is absorbed into the Truth. || 4 || Everyone who comes and goes chants Your Name.When it is pleasing to Your Will, then the Gurmukh understands. Otherwise, the self-willed manmukhs wander in ignorance.