The Japji was composed by Guru Nanak, the first of the ten human Gurus of Sikh faith. The Japji is also a part of the Sikh ‘Nitnem’ or the daily prayer collection. The Japji consists of a ‘Mool Mantra’ followed by 38 hymns and one shalok (couplet). The Japji is considered a document of truth and humanity and has and and is inspiring millions of lives worldover.
JAPUJĪ
let us meditate on
the One
the Eternal
the True
the Creator
beyond fear or faction
beyond time or space
beyond being or becoming
perceived by the grace of the Guru
True in the beginning
True through the ages
True in the present
Nānak, True, He will ever be !
His truth is beyond all reflection
beyond all silences and abstentions
His perception is beyond all hunger and thirst
beyond all projections and pretensions
how can we arrive at His truth ?
how can this wall of ignorance be removed ?
Nānak, one must live in His will
in His nature, in His order ! (1)
in His will
are created forms
in His will
are life and grandeur
nobility and servility are due to Him
there are some who are graced
and other who suffer for ever
in His will
is every one
beyond it
there is none
Nānak, he who comprehends His will brags not ! (2)
some sing His praise for His omniscience
and some celebrate His plenitude
some sing His praise for His noble deeds
and some celebrate His wisdom and thought
some sing His praise for His dispensation and destruction
and some celebrate His creation and consumption
some sing His praise, for He is inaccessible
and some celebrate His eternal presence
there is no limit to His manifestation
there are millions who sing
and millions who describe Him
He is the eternal benevolence
the devotees change from place to place
through the ages, He has sustained all
Nānak, all moves depend upon His will
and all life follows His wondrous disposition ! (3)
the righteous Lord
who dwells in Truth
love is His language of meditation,
His benevolence, His benediction
what can we offer in His majestic audience ?
words of love and affection
can alone adorn His omniscience
in the serenity of the dawn
are offered the hymns of devotion
His grace endows us with form
His benevolence leads to eternal salvation
Nānak, this is the righteous path of truth and transcendence ! (4)
beyond construction or constitution
in His will is His projection, His perception
His devotee is bestowed with His benevolence
Nānak, she vibrates with His music
with His magnificence
let us sing and listen
and tune in the melody of love
let us shed our miseries
and enter the house of bliss
with the grace of the Guru
we hear music
with the grace of the Guru
we acquire knowledge
the Guru is all pervasive
the Guru is Ishvar
the Guru is Gorakh, Brahma
the Guru is Pārvatī Māī
even if I knew
I cannot describe
words and thoughts
do not coincide
the Guru has revealed the mystery of the One
on whom depend all dispensation
I must never forget His manifestation ! (5)
in His will are sacred baths
beyond His will are all farce
in His will is all creation
beyond His will there is no salvation
if in the will of the Guru
a Sikh wavers not
there are pearls and diamonds
in his wisdom and thought
the Guru has revealed the mystery of the One
on whom depend all dispensation
I must never forget His manifestation ! (6)
if one lives for four ages
and extends it to tenfold
if he is known in nine regions
and all follow his hold
if he has a glorious name
and is famous all over
but if he is fallen from His grace
he is no more
he is the lowest of the lowest
a beast, a bastion of all blames
Nānak, He transforms the simplest
into the most talented
and the talented reach the heights of sublimation
but there is none
who can add to His excellence, His formation ! (7)
listen in for the truth
of siddh, pīr, sur, nāth
listen in for the truth
of the earth, the bull and the sky
the regions, the spheres and the underworld
listen in to transcend Time and Death
Nānak, the listeners ever in tune with Him
listen in to eradicate all misery and sin ! (8)
listen in for the truth
of Ishvar, Brahma and Indira
listen in to transform sinners into singers
listen in to comprehend
His mysteries and manners
listen in to reach the innermost depths of knowledge
Nānak, the listeners are ever in tune with Him
listen in to eradicate all misery and sin ! (9)
listen in for truth
temperance and knowledge
listen in for divine reflection
and perception
listen in for steady concentration
and convention
Nānak, the listeners are ever in tune with Him
listen in to eradicate all misery and sin ! (10)
listen in for the revelation of truth
listen in to acquire the state of
sheikh, pīr, pātshāh
listen in to be on the righteous coarse
listen in to discern His sublime discourse
Nānak, the listeners are ever in tune with Him
listen in to eradicate all misery and sin ! (11)
believe in to be in a state of transcendence
a state beyond all pretence
no prayer, no pen, no scribe
can delineate the state of His omniscience
believe in is a state of absolute purity
only a believer can achieve that serenity ! (12)
believe in to crystallise your perception
believe in to apprehend the entire universe
believe in to surmount all illusions
believe in that Death may not demand submission
believe in is a state of absolute purity
only a believer can achieve that serenity ! (13)
believe in to lead the righteous path
believe in to step in with honour and glory
believe in to follow the straight and the narrow
believe in to discern His truth and transcendence
believe in is a state of absolute purity
only a believer can achieve that serenity ! (14)
believe in to reach the door of salvation
believe in for all preservation
believe in for the harmony of the Guru and the Sikh
Nānak, believe in to escape all dependence
believe in is a state of absolute purity
only a believer can achieve that serenity ! (15)
the listeners, the believers, the elders
are honoured in His audience
they are accepted and counted
they embellish the company of the kings
they are ever tuned to the Word of the Guru
but their words and thoughts do not coincide
His infinite deeds are beyond their mind
the bull of Dharma, the son of dispensation
patiently and steadily follows the Order
one can never estimate the weight on the bull
there is one earth after another
there is no end to His universe
none can support His enormous pressure
the races, the castes, the colours are infinite
and beyond all description
only he who attempts realises their extension
who can fathom
His energy, His form, His compassion
His one Word led to infinite expansion
to the flow of endless waters
His wondrous nature is beyond all reflection
beyond any attempt at comprehension
what He wills is the righteous path
He is the eternal Nirankār ! (16)
infinite are the meditations
and infinite are the devotions
infinite are the rituals
and infinite are their recitations
infinite are the yogīs
and infinite are their renunciations
infinite are the devotees
and infinite are the thinkers
infinite are the seekers of truth
and infinite are the sages
infinite are the gallant warriors
and infinite are those who face danger and death
infinite meditate in silence
and infinite sit in eternal contemplation
His wondrous nature is beyond all reflection
beyond every attempt at comprehension
what He wills is the righteous path
He is the eternal Nirankār ! (17)
infinite are the fools
who live in the darkest recesses
infinite are the thieves
who loot and plunder
and infinite are those
who remain always under
infinite are the criminals
who kill and murder
infinite are the sinners
who sin and suffer
and infinite are those
who live in dirt and squalor
infinite are involved in stinking deeds
and infinite are those
who indulge in rage and rancour
thus reflects Nānak on the affairs of this world
His wondrous nature is beyond all reflection
beyond every attempt at comprehension
what He wills is the righteous path
He is the eternal Nirankār ! (18)
infinite are the names
and infinite are the places
infinite are the regions and spheres
they are all beyond the reach of the seers
with words we compose music
we sing cosmic hymns
with words we acquire knowledge
we articulate our perceptions
with words we communicate
we arrive at divine projections
with words we establish eternal unions
we present our reflections
in His Word is every creation
in His Word is every relation
all acts follow His dictate
His Word saturates every state
His wondrous nature is beyond all reflection
beyond every attempt at comprehension
what He wills is the righteous path
He is the eternal Nirankār ! (19)
hands, feet and body
drenched in dirt
are cleansed with water
and soiled clothes
are washed with soap
but only meditation cleanses the stinking sinner
sin and service leave their traces for ever
as you sow
so do you reap
Nānak, as He wills
so is there advent and end ! (20)
rituals and renunciations
charities and recitations
are only outer manifestations
but listening and believing
devotion and love
cleanse the inner self
before Thy benevolence and beatitude
I can only offer my servitude
bereft of Thy blessing
there is no devotion, no meditation
Thou art the Word
Thou art the Utterance
Thou art the Creation
the universe is an expression
of Thy beatitude and benediction
who knows the time, the hour
the day, the week
the season, the month
when it all came to be
the brahmans have not located the time in the Purānas
the qāzīs have not mentioned the hour in the Qurān
the yogīs know not the day, the week, the season, the month
only the Creator knows the hour of His creation
how can I discern and discourse
divide and describe
Nānak, each claims to be the wisest of the scribes
the Lord is great
as He wills
so it is done
Nānak, he who pretends to know
is lost in the row ! (21)
there are millions of underworlds
and no count of skies
the Vedas searched in vain
and came to the same refrain
some have counted eighteen thousand
some more
there can be no count
there can only be delusions
Nānak, He alone can discern His own dimensions ! (22)
descriptions and discourses
lead not to knowledge
rivers and streams get lost in the ocean
reflections and perceptions do not attain His projections
a Sultān with sway over seven seas
and mountains of gold
compares not with the smallest insect
who forgets not his Lord ! (23)
there is no limit to His description, His discourse
there is no limit to His deeds, His dispensation
there is no limit to His perception, His projection
there is no limit to His reflection, His selection
there is no limit to His form
there is no beginning, no norm
many have attempted to reach His limits
they are all lost in His infinite
His form is beyond all perception
beyond all count and conception
the great Lord resides at higher planes
greater is His name
only He who rises to His level can perceive Him
He alone knows His abode
Nānak, all grace is within His mode ! (24)
His compassion is beyond all description
His generosity is beyond all prescription
many a gallant warrior is at His door
one cannot count the seekers’ rows
many are stuck in their ambitious muck
there are many who find and forget
and there are fools who never regret
there are the ones whose lot is hunger, thirst and misfortune
this too is within His will and boon
fetters and freedom are in His will
none can alter His order
he who goes beyond His will
he alone suffers His mill
He knows what is in store
others can say no more
Nānak, he is made the King of kings
who is in tune with Him and sings ! (25)
precious are the virtues
and precious is their reception
precious are the traders
and precious is their conception
precious things are received
and precious is their consumption
precious is His love
and precious is His reflection
precious is the order
and precious is the court
precious is the measure
and precious is its treasure
precious is His compassion
and precious is His grace
precious are His deeds
and precious are His dictates
it is beyond all price
it is beyond all estimation
one can only realise it in meditation
there are Vedas and Purānas
there are infinite readings and discourses
there are Brahma, Indra, Gopi and Govind
but none can reach Him
there are Ishvar and siddhās
there are many buddhās
demons and gods
noblemen and sages
all describe His images
many attempt to perceive Him
all leave in despair
one group follows another
but none is able to repair
as He wills, so it is done
Nānak, He alone knows His truth
man tries in vain
fool of fools, insane ! (26)
imagine the wondrous abode
where the protector of all resides
where the musicians sing
where the hymns vibrate
where different tunes adore His state
all sing Thy praise
the air, the water, the fire
Dharamrāj in His palace
with Chitra and Gupta
the keepers of deeds and duties
there are, Ishar, Brahma, Devi
all sing in unison
Indra on his throne
gods in His attendance
the siddhās in meditation
the sages in deep thought
the disciples, the ascetics
the seekers of truth
and the brave warriors
all are tuned to the same hymn
the brahmans, the rishīs
throughout the ages sing along
the maidens fair
and the creatures of the underworld
join the chorus
the most precious
the sixty-eight pilgrimages
the valiant soldiers
in the four corners of the universe
in all spheres and centres
sing Thy praise
they alone can sing
who follow Thy will
Thy devotees are ever in tune
there are so many others
one can count not
Nānak, they all enjoy the same boon
He is the everlasting truth
the true Lord
truth is His designation
He is
He will ever be
the Creator of the universe
as He wills
so it is done
none dare oppose Him
the King of kings
Nānak, in His will are all things ! (27)
let your earrings be of patience
your begging bowl of hard work
and your ashes of meditation
the fear of death
your rags
the purity of mind
your yogic order
and faith in Him
your staff of a pilgrim
in every class
in every creed
the victory over mind
is the victory in deed
salutations to the highest
whose form is sublime
who has no beginning, no end
who is present through the ages ! (28)
with truth and transcendence
the cosmic music vibrates in the universe
the austerities, the miracles
are all wanton waste
the nāths, the siddhās
must follow His dictate
as He wills
so is union and separation
it all depends upon deeds and devotion
salutation to the Highest
whose form is sublime
who has no beginning, no end
who is present through the ages ! (29)
from one mother is born the order of the universe
with three disciples
the creator, the protector, the destroyer
as He wills
so it is realised
all follow His command
His vision surveys all
yet He is invisible
it is a strange spectacle
salutations to the Highest
whose form is sublime
who has no beginning, no end
who is present through the ages ! (30)
in every cosmos is His abode
in all spheres there is even mode
the Creator transcends His creation
Nānak, His truth saturates every action
salutations to the Highest
whose form is sublime
who has no beginning, no end
who is present through the ages ! (31)
if there are millions of tongues
vibrating His name
there will be one eternal verse
of the Lord of the universe
many a step leads to His path
but only a few reach His abode
the tales of heaven
lure many a lowly rogue
Nānak, His grace alone can lead us there
duplicities and divisions
are dissolved in His divine discourse! (32)
one cannot force
word or silence
request or receiving
one cannot force
thought or perception
system or salvation
Nānak, He alone has the will
to frame and force
as He desires
so it is ordained ! (33)
seasons, periods, nights and days
wind, water, fire and earth
form the temple of His gaze
there are all kinds of colour and life
there are infinite names
with deeds and devotion
the truth of the True prevails
and the five chosen shine
the false and the true are differentiated
Nānak, thus is His judgement enunciated ! (34)
in Dharam Khand there are deeds and devotions
let us describe the Gyān Khand
where infinite are the winds, waters, fires
and infinite are the Krishnas and Maheshas
infinite are the brahmans
and infinite are the forms, colours, costumes
infinite are the spheres of deeds
and infinite are the words of wisdom
infinite are the Indras, suns and moons
and infinite are the spheres and regions
infinite are the siddhās, buddhās, nāths
and infinite are the gods and goddesses
infinite are the ways, words
infinite are those who know
and infinite are those who follow
Nānak, there is no end to the devotees’ rows ! (35)
knowledge is supreme in Gyān Khand
there are music, spectacles and celebrations
form reigns in Saram Khand
there are created the most beautiful curves
whose forms one can articulate not
all attempts lead to deception
there are formed
consciousness, intelligence and reflection
in this cosmic domain
the surās and the siddhās
acquire wisdom and perception ! (36)
only deeds matter in Karam Khand
where the warriors and the valiant heroes dwell
who are swayed by His grace, by His benevolence
where the devotees are immersed in His devotion
whose forms are beyond any perception
they die not, nor are they deceived
they resonate with His grace
in beatitude, they enjoy His sublime gaze
the formless dwells in Sach Khand
radiating grace and benediction
there are infinite regions and spheres
they are all beyond the reach of the seers
there is light, there is form
as He wills, so is His norm
there is vision
there is growth
there is reflection
Nānak, its articulation is beyond all perception ! (37)
discipline is the oven
and patience is the goldsmith
with the hammer of knowledge
He strikes on the plate of intelligence
with the bellows of fear
and the fire of faith
from the pot of love
flows the nectar of reflection
in the atelier of Truth
is formed the True Word
this is given to those
who are blessed
Nānak, He is ever gracious ! (38)
air is the Guru
water, the father
and, earth is our mother
in the nursing hands
of day and night
plays the whole world
He watches every good and bad deed
as we act, so do we reap
those who spend their lives
in deep thought and meditation
Nānak, they radiate with glory
and enjoy eternal salvation !
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Psalms of truth- Japuji Sahib
There are sme things which affect you, some which amuse you and still others which have a direct or indirect effect on us. But, few are the things which completely transform your life for the good; and Japuji is one of them. There are millions including me, who have witnessed and are still experiencing the magic of Japuji.
