1244

1The Vedas are only merchants; spiritual wisdom is the capital; by His Grace, it is received.

2O Nanak, without capital, no one has ever departed with profit. ||2||

3Pauree:

4You can water a bitter neem tree with ambrosial nectar.

5You can feed a venomous snake lots of milk.

6The self-willed manmukh is resistant; he cannot be softened. You might as well water a stone.

7Irrigating a poisonous plant with ambrosial nectar, only poisonous fruit is obtained.

8O Lord, please unite Nanak with the Sangat, the Holy Congregation, so that he may be rid of all poison. ||16||

9Shalok, First Mehla:

10Death does not ask the time; it does not ask the date or the day of the week.

11Some have packed up, and some who have packed up have gone.

12Some are severely punished, and some are taken care of.

13They must leave their armies and drums, and their beautiful mansions.

14O Nanak, the pile of dust is once again reduced to dust. ||1||

15First Mehla:

16O Nanak, the pile shall fall apart; the fortress of the body is made of dust.

17The thief has settled within you; O soul, your life is false. ||2||

18Pauree:

19Those who are filled with vicious slander, shall have their noses cut, and be shamed.

20They are totally ugly, and always in pain. Their faces are blackened by Maya.

21They rise early in the morning, to cheat and steal from others; they hide from the Lord's Name.

22O Dear Lord, let me not even associate with them; save me from them, O my Sovereign Lord King.

23O Nanak, the self-willed manmukhs act according to their past deeds, producing nothing but pain. ||17||

24Shalok, Fourth Mehla:

25Everyone belongs to our Lord and Master. Everyone came from Him.

26Only by realizing the Hukam of His Command, is Truth obtained.

27The Gurmukh realizes his own self; no one appears evil to him.

28O Nanak, the Gurmukh meditates on the Naam, the Name of the Lord. Fruitful is his coming into the world. ||1||

29Fourth Mehla:

30He Himself is the Giver of all; He unites all with Himself.

31O Nanak, they are united with the Word of the Shabad; serving the Lord, the Great Giver, they shall never be separated from Him again. ||2||

32Pauree:

33Peace and tranquility fill the heart of the Gurmukh; the Name wells up within them.

34Chanting and meditation, penance and self-discipline, and bathing at sacred shrines of pilgrimage - the merits of these come by pleasing my God.

35So serve the Lord with a pure heart; singing His Glorious Praises, you shall be embellished and exalted.

36My Dear Lord is pleased by this; he carries the Gurmukh across.

37O Nanak, the Gurmukh is merged with the Lord; he is embellished in His Court. ||18||

38Shalok, First Mehla:

39Thus speaks the wealthy man: I should go and get more wealth.

40Nanak becomes poor on that day when he forgets the Lord's Name. ||1||

41First Mehla:

42The sun rises and sets, and the lives of all run out.

43The mind and body experience pleasures; one loses, and another wins.

44Everyone is puffed up with pride; even after they are spoken to, they do not stop.

45O Nanak, the Lord Himself sees all; when He takes the air out of the balloon, the body falls. ||2||

46Pauree:

47The treasure of the Name is in the Sat Sangat, the True Congregation. There, the Lord is found.