Anand Sahib Translation: Paurees 16-20

This sacred
Wisdom Song
Of Bliss-

The Sound of it
Is so beautiful.

The Sound of it
Is so beautiful
That the Teacher of Truth tells us -

Listen to it
In every moment
With all of your being.

There are those who
Accept what they hear
When they listen
And allow it
To dwell deep within them.

From the very beginning
Of Creation
The moment of the soul’s
Awakening was written.

And for those who
Listen and surrender
That moment has come.

It is now.

Some wander
Endlessly

Talking about this
With words.

But talking and wandering
Won’t bring the experience
You’re searching for.

Says Naanak,
This sacred
Wisdom Song
Of Bliss -

The Sound of it
Is so beautiful.

The Teacher of Truth tells us
Listen to it
With all of your being. (16)

Those devoted servants
Who meditate
On the Divine Essence
Inside of themselves
And inside of
Everything around them

Realize their
Original Purity.

Meditating
On the Divine Essence
Inside of themselves
And inside of
Everything around them

They realize their
Original Purity.

That meditation happens
When you
Consciously flow
With the Sound of Wisdom.

They live in a pure way
In the midst of mother, father
And siblings.

The live in a pure way
Among community -
And their experience
Of purity multiplies.

Talking about
What is pure.

Listening
To what is pure.

Only those people
Realize their
Original Purity

Who invite
Their Pure Spirit
To dwell
In their own minds.

Says Naanak
Those people
Realize their Original Purity
Who
Flow with the Sound of Wisdom
And continually meditate
On the Divine. (17)


Performing rituals
And rites

Won’t give you ease -

The ability to be at ease
With whatever happens
In life.

And without
Feeling at ease
With whatever happens
In life

The mental disturbances
That come from
Fear, doubt and worry
Will never depart.

The mental disturbances
That come from
Fear, doubt and worry
Will never depart

Even by practicing
So many disciplines
And constantly following
Every religious rule.

All the mental disturbances
That fear gives birth to, darling,

Muddy your own
Subconscious mind

And keep you
From seeing
Your Inner Divinity.

What discipline
Will wash
That dirt away?

The mind
Shall be cleansed
When you attach yourself
To the Shabad-
To the Sound Current
That cuts the ego.

Only then
Will Essential Divinity
Permeate
Your awareness.

Says Naanak,
The Teacher’s
Sound of Wisdom
Gives this gift.

You become at ease-
Balanced and peaceful -
In the midst of everything
And anything.

And in this way,
The mental disturbances
That come from fear, doubt and worry
Depart. (18)


The inner being
Is clouded with
Filth.

But the outer image
Is pure.

The outer image
Is pure.

But the inner being
Is clouded with
Filth.

Those who
Live like this
Have gambled
With their lives
And lost.

There is a thirst inside
Which is so great.

And because of that thirst
We attach ourselves
To things that
Make us sick

Forgetting about death.

In all the sacred writings,
The Divine Spirit
Within us
Is considered the highest,
Most exalted pursuit.

Those who have
Not learned
To listen deeply

To listen
With all of their being

Wander lost
Like ghosts.

Says Naanak
When people abandon
The experience of
Ultimate Reality
And attach themselves
To deception

They have gambled
With their lives
And lost. (19)


The inner being
is pure.

The outer image
Is pure.

The outer image
Is pure.

The inner being
Is pure.

This happens
When you put
Your effort
Into doing those actions

Which are so
Worthwhile

That the Teacher
of Truth

Has given you
To do.

There is a state
Of awareness
Where one soul,
One spirit
Can directly communicate with,
Feel and perceive
Another soul,
Another spirit
Through love.

But when you just love
The illusions around you
You will never have
That experience.

Take your earthly
Desires and longings
And merge them
Into a love
For Truth.

Love all of it
In a balanced way.

Such a life
Is a rare
And precious jewel.

Those who have earned
This jewel
Of a Spirit-based life

Trade
In a noble business.

Says Naanak
Those whose minds
Have surrendered
And accepted
Their purity

Dwell with the
Sound of Wisdom
Forever. (20)

All Love in the Divine,

Ek Ong Kaar Kaur