ONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS ISSUE

|| 4 || Those who have not served the True Guru – why did they even bother to come into the world? They are bound and gagged and beaten at Death’s door, but no one hears their shrieks and cries. They waste their lives uselessly; they die and are reincarnated over and over again. || 5 || Seeing this world on fire, I rushed to the Sanctuary of the True Guru. The True Guru has implanted the Truth within me; I dwell steadfastly in Truth and self-restraint. The True Guru is the Boat of Truth; in the Word of the Shabad, we cross over the terrifying world-ocean. |

| 6 || People continue wandering through the cycle of 8.4 million incarnations; without the True Guru, liberation is not obtained. Reading and studying, the Pandits and the silent sages have grown weary, but attached to the love of duality, they have lost their honor. The True Guru teaches the Word of the Shabad; without the True One, there is no other at all.

|| 7 || Those who are linked by the True One are linked to Truth. They always act in Truth. They attain their dwelling in the home of their own inner being, and they abide in the Mansion of Truth. O Nanak, the devotees are happy and peaceful forever. They are absorbed in the True Name. || 8 || 17 || 8 || 25 || SIREE RAAG, FIFTH MEHL: When you are confronted with terrible hardships, and no one offers you any support, when your friends turn into enemies, and even your relatives have deserted you, and when all support has given way, and all hope has been lost – if you then come to remember the Supreme Lord God, even the hot wind shall not touch you. || 1 || Our Lord and Master is the Power of the powerless. He does not come or go; He is Eternal and Permanent. Through the Word of the Guru’s Shabad, He is known as True.

|| 1 || Pause || If you are weakened by the pains of hunger and poverty, with no money in your pockets, and no one will give you any comfort, and no one will satisfy your hopes and desires, and none of your works is accomplished – if you then come to remember the Supreme Lord God, you shall obtain the eternal kingdom. || 2 || When you are plagued by great and excessive anxiety, and diseases of the body; when you are wrapped up in the attachments of household and family, sometimes feeling joy, and then other times sorrow; when you are wandering around in all four directions, and you cannot sit or sleep even for a moment – if you come to remember the Supreme Lord God, then your body and mind shall be cooled and soothed.

|| 3 || When you are under the power of sexual desire, anger and worldly attachment, or a greedy miser in love with your wealth; if you have committed the four great sins and other mistakes; even if you are a murderous fiend who has never taken the time to listen to sacred books, hymns and poetry – if you then come to remember the Supreme Lord God, and contemplate Him, even for a moment, you shall be saved. || 4 || People may recite by heart the Shaastras, the Simritees and the four Vedas; they may be ascetics, great, self-disciplined Yogis; they may visit sacred shrines of pilgrimage and perform the six ceremonial rituals, over and over again, performing worship services and ritual bathings. Even so, if they have not embraced love for the Supreme Lord God, then they shall surely go to hell.

|| 5 || You may possess empires, vast estates, authority over others, and the enjoyment of myriads of pleasures; you may have delightful and beautiful gardens, and issue unquestioned commands; you may have enjoyments and entertainments of all sorts and kinds, and continue to enjoy exciting pleasures – and yet, if you do not come to remember the Supreme Lord God, you shall be reincarnated as a snake. || 6 || You may possess vast riches, maintain virtuous conduct, have a spotless reputation and observe religious customs; you may have the loving affections of mother, father, children, siblings and friends; you may have armies well-equipped with weapons, and all may salute you with respect; But still, if you do not come to remember the Supreme Lord God, then you shall be taken and consigned to the most hideous hell!

|| 7 || You may have a body free of disease and deformity, and have no worries or grief at all; you may be unmindful of death, and night and day revel in pleasures; you may take everything as your own, and have no fear in your mind at all; but still, if you do not come to remember the Supreme Lord God, you shall fall under the power of the Messenger of Death. || 8 || The Supreme Lord showers His Mercy, and we find the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy. The more time we spend there, the more we come to love the Lord. The Lord is the Master of both worlds; there is no other place of rest. When the True Guru is pleased and satisfied, O Nanak, the True Name is obtained. || 9 || 1 || 26 || SIREE RAAG, FIFTH MEHL, FIFTH HOUSE: I do not know what pleases my Lord. O mind, seek out the way!

|| 1 || Pause || The meditatives practice meditation, and the wise practice spiritual wisdom, but how rare are those who know God! || 1 || The worshipper of Bhagaauti practices self-discipline, the Yogi speaks of liberation, and the ascetic is absorbed in asceticism. || 2 || The men of silence observe silence, the Sanyaasees observe celibacy, and the Udaasees abide in detachment.

|| 3 || There are nine forms of devotional worship. The Pandits recite the Vedas. The householders assert their faith in family life. || 4 || Those who utter only One Word, those who take many forms, the naked renunciates, the wearers of patched coats, the magicians, those who remain always awake, and those who bathe at holy places of pilgrimage – || 5 || Those who go without food, those who never touch others, the hermits who never show themselves, and those who are wise in their own minds –

|| 6 || Of these, no one admits to any deficiency; all say that they have found the Lord. But he alone is a devotee, whom the Lord has united with Himself. || 7 || Abandoning all devices and contrivances, I have sought His Sanctuary. Nanak has fallen at the Feet of the Guru. || 8 || 2 || 27 || ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU: SIREE RAAG, FIRST MEHL, THIRD HOUSE: Among Yogis, You are the Yogi; among pleasure seekers, You are the Pleasure Seeker. Your limits are not known to any of the beings in the heavens, in this world, or in the nether regions of the underworld. || 1 || I am devoted, dedicated, a sacrifice to Your Name.

|| 1 || Pause || You created the world, and assigned tasks to one and all. You watch over Your Creation, and through Your Allpowerful Creative Potency, You cast the dice. || 2 || You are manifest in the Expanse of Your Workshop. Everyone longs for Your Name, but without the Guru, no one finds You. All are enticed and trapped by Maya. || 3 || I am a sacrifice to the True Guru. Meeting Him, the supreme status is obtained. The angelic beings and the silent sages long for Him; the True Guru has given me this understanding. || 4 || How is the Society of the Saints to be known? There, the Name of the One Lord is chanted. The One Name is the Lord’s Command; O Nanak, the True Guru has given me this understanding.

|| 5 || This world has been deluded by doubt. You Yourself, Lord, have led it astray. The discarded soul-brides suffer in terrible agony; they have no luck at all. || 6 || What are the signs of the discarded brides? They miss their Husband Lord, and they wander around in dishonor. The clothes of those brides are filthy – they pass their life-night in agony. || 7 || What actions have the happy soul-brides performed? They have obtained the fruit of their pre-ordained destiny. Casting His Glance of Grace, the Lord unites them with Himself. || 8 || Those, whom God causes to abide by His Will, have the Shabad of His Word abiding deep within. They are the true soul-brides, who embrace love for their Husband Lord.

|| 9 || Those who take pleasure in God’s Will remove doubt from within. O Nanak, know Him as the True Guru, who unites all with the Lord. || 10 || Meeting with the True Guru, they receive the fruits of their destiny, and egotism is driven out from within. The pain of evil-mindedness is eliminated; good fortune comes and shines radiantly from their foreheads. || 11 || The Bani of Your Word is Ambrosial Nectar. It permeates the hearts of Your devotees. Serving You, peace is obtained; granting Your Mercy, You bestow salvation. || 12 || Meeting with the True Guru, one comes to know; by this meeting, one comes to chant the Name. Without the True Guru, God is not found; all have grown weary of performing religious rituals.

|| 13 || I am a sacrifice to the True Guru; I was wandering in doubt, and He has set me on the right path. If the Lord casts His Glance of Grace, He unites us with Himself. || 14 || You, Lord, are pervading in all, and yet, the Creator keeps Himself concealed. O Nanak, the Creator is revealed to the Gurmukh, within whom He has infused His Light.