Today’s post is very SPECIAL as it will lead you to the Mantra of LIFE – What is this Mantra – In simple words, it is seed, which when sowed, gifts us DIRECTION and MOTIVATION…Join me and let us together decode the Secret Code of this Mantra !
This mantra of Life is a Gift from my Guru – It is the FIRST Shalok in the Sri Guru Granth Sahib (SGGS) and the uniqueness of this Shalok is that it appears twice in the SGGS – First as a lesson that was imparted by the Guru Nanak to HIS Beloved Sikh, Bhai Lehna and then the Beloved Sikh applied the Learnings to Life and gave us a feedback through the same Mantra – However this time a few changes were made to the mantra.
Baba Nanak’s radiance shined in Bhai Lehna’s life – Not only was Bhai Lehna able to solve the Mystery of Life concealed in this Shalok – HE also was Blessed by Baba Nanak to become the Second Guru … May we all be Blessed to receive the same grace by Baba Nanak.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/blessed-conversation.jpg?w=800)
Bhai Lehna, after becoming the Second Guru, documented the mantra in his own words. These alterations serve as a mark of expressing Gratitude and making the Mantra all the more Powerful in leading us RIGHT… The Shalok by Guru Angad Dev ji can be read on Ang 146 of SGGS.
Knowing the mantra is a FIRST STEP to FREEDOM…and so if you are really a seeker of FREDOM, Do join me in unravelling the codes and getting forward in LIFE.
Baba Nanak gifted us this Shalok to help us decode the Secret of Human Life – It appears at the end of “Japji Sahib” as the FINAL MESSAGE that one must take away as one completes the recitation of this Precious Bani…Here’s an link to Japji sahib ❤
It is believed that Recitation of the Japji Sahib on a daily basis strengthens the Mind and keeps a person forever in Sync with the Purpose of Human Life – Some scholars say that Japji sahib is a Mini version of the SGGS – A summarized version consisting of 38 Lessons – which can keep us connected to the Guru at all times… Before we get to the decoding, do have a look at the Mantra of Life – The Shalok by Guru Nanak Dev ji can be found on Ang 8 of SGGS.
salok.
Shalok:
pavan guroo paanee pitaa maataa Dharat mahat.
Air is the Guru, Water is the Father, and Earth is the Great Mother of all.
divas raat du-ay daa-ee daa-i-aa khaylai sagal jagat.
Day and night are the two nurses, in whose lap all the world is at play.
chang-aa-ee-aa buri-aa-ee-aa vaachai Dharam hadoor.
Good deeds and bad deeds-the record is read out in the Presence of the Lord of Dharma.
karmee aapo aapnee kay nayrhai kay door.
According to their own actions, some are drawn closer, and some are driven farther away.
jinee naam Dhi-aa-i-aa ga-ay maskat ghaal.
Those who have meditated on the Naam, the Name of the Lord, and departed after having worked by the sweat of their brows
naanak tay mukh ujlay kaytee chhutee naal. ||1||
-O Nanak, their faces are radiant in the Court of the Lord, and many are saved along with them! ||1||
The Mantra, when decoded will take you by Surprise – You will be amazed at the fabulous lessons concealed in these 6 lines…As you read through the Mantra, you will find yourself being directed to a Goal ~~~
Let’s Decipher the Secret Code
Line 1 ~ THREE MENTORS
pavan guroo paanee pitaa maataa Dharat mahat.
Air is the Guru, Water is the Father, and Earth is the Great Mother of all.
Baba Nanak identified that the existence of a Human Life is based on Three things – Air/Water/Earth…Each one of us is a Child of God and when God sends us HERE in this World of Wonders, He gives us THREE MENTORS…It is for us to stay connected and learn “Life Lessons” from these mentors if we seek to be Successful in this Journey of a Human Birth.
Guru, our FIRST MENTOR, is symbolized as AIR – Just as Air sustains Life – Guru sustains us in our Brief visit to this World – Guru helps us to stay focused on Purpose of this Visit – Time and again, the Guru sends us messages (HUKUM of the Day) so that our connectivity is sustained and should we get caught up in the Entanglements – the Guru guides us back to our Path, helping us achieve our Purpose and come our TOPPERS in this School of Life. And so if we wish to Graduate with Honors, let us never let go off this mentor.
Always remember ~~~
Without Air we would all be Physically DEAD and without a Guru, we would be Spiritually DEAD – Also just as we prefer to breathe in fresh Air to stay Healthy and Fit – Let us seek the Pure & True Guru to stay Spiritually Fit & Healthy.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/guru-air.jpg?w=739)
The SECOND MENTOR is our Father. Guru ji wants us to think of WATER as our Father – Just as a father plays an important role in Life – guiding and helping the child to excel in Life – Water, too is important – Water is LIFE !
Allow yourself to recall a moment in time when you watered a dying plant and how the very touch of water bought it back to LIFE – Fathers, too like water, help nourish and refresh their child with every interaction – Father’s presence brightens up a Child’s life 🙂
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/watering.gif?w=1024)
When Guru ji says, “Water is our Father” – Guru ji is secretly revealing to us to embrace the characteristics of Water – Keep flowing in Life and Always be Humble – Have you noticed that water always flows downwards, seems to forever on a journey – The water has a DESTINATION to REACH – It is making its way to the Ocean.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/rivers-to-ocean.gif?w=500)
Merger in the Vastness of Ocean is the Destination the WATER seeks ~ Let us too Learn from WATER and seek similar trails in life...Let us make efforts to walk in the footprints left by our FATHER ~ WATER ❤
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/fathers-steps.jpg?w=750)
The THIRD MENTOR third is our Mother – Guru ji says that EARTH is the GREATEST MOTHER, from HER, we must learn well – Once again, Baba Nanak speaks in a coded language – Let us focus and get to know this well…
Have you ever seen Mother Earth refusing a farmer from ploughing and sowing seeds if he belongs to a low caste – Not really – Mother Earth accepts all with Equality – Every farmer’s efforts is rewarded and each Human Life is sustained – No matter how we behave towards Mother Earth, SHE tolerates us and forever gifts us food to sustain our Life…Mother Nature LOVES us ALL ❤
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/mother-earth.jpg?w=784)
Guru ji is directing us towards lessons of “Tolerance” and “Equality”. Our Beloved Mother Earth is teaching us to be TOLERANT in our existence – We must be broadminded and accept all those who are a part of our journey…Let LOVE be our way of LIFE.
With patience in our decisions, we must always resonate on the ideals of Equality. Never must we develop feelings of enmity towards those who differ from us and/or are walking in the opposite trails – Instead let us offer our prayers to God to guide our Siblings of Destiny (who have gone astray) in the Right Direction – May our Ardas to God be – To be always by their side in all walks of LIFE.
These Three Mentors safe guard us, keeping us intact in this World of Fleeting Pleasure – they help us stay positively focused on the Mission of life, which makes it possible for us to LIVE each passing day with gratitude. The wonders of the world are then enjoyed with care and the Soul does not get entangled in them.
I personally see the three mentors forming a Golden Triangle – A safe zone in which the Soul resides and continues its stay in this World…fulfilling its DUTY and then when the TIME comes to go, leaves the world with COMPLETE GRATIFICATION.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/golden-triangle-of-bliss.gif?w=640)
Having these THREE MENTORS in LIFE is a Excellent Gift – One that keeps us on track – Let us seek the advice and guidance from them seriously and LIVE a Beautiful LIFE.
Line 2 ~ Game of LIFE
divas raat du-ay daa-ee daa-i-aa khaylai sagal jagat.
Day and night are the two nurses, in whose lap all the world is at play.
Coming to the Second Line – Guru ji says that in this World – we not only have three mentors but also, we are given TWO Nurses who take care us in this World – God has not sent us alone in this World – A complete support system is there at our service 24/7 disguised as DAYS & NIGHTS.
We, the children of God get to play the Game of Life in the lap of Days and Nights – Guru ji wants us to see these Blessed Days & Nights as Nurses – Our Guardian Angels who take care us in all phases and at all times – Not only are we looked after in the daytime but as night falls, and our tried self has all hope lost – the night nurse comes with her lamp and calms us down.
Like Florence Nightingale, the British nurse – the icon who is revered across the world as the “Lady with the Lamp” tended to her patients not only during the day but round-the-clock, often wandering the wards at night and caring out duties with a lamp in hand – Days and Nights – BOTH come to GUIDE us, carrying their respective lamps – The Sun & The Moon.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/day-night-lessons-of-life.jpg?w=750)
The Day Nurse lights our way with the lamp of Knowledge and Good times while the Night Nurse lights our ways with the lamp of Ignorance and Bad times. It is the interlacing of these Good and Bad Times – Day and Night Times of Life that helps us embrace the Learnings of Life.
Take a moment of pause and walk down the Memory Lane of your LIFE – Each lesson of Life was implanted as the Days and Nights of Life went by – While some lessons were learnt in the Broad Daylight, there were many that were taught in the Darkness of times…Each Lesson was imparted with an intention to make us Better Humans.
Family and Friends direct us ahead with their Love and Care and yet at times these very family and friends hurt us, crumbling us down and yet when we look back in LIFE and Comprehend – These Lessons were just PERFECT !
Daytime brings LESSON of Knowledge and Brightness while the Night teaches us through Ignorance and Darkness of life.
Line 3 ~ Account Audit
chang-aa-ee-aa buri-aa-ee-aa vaachai Dharam hadoor.
Good deeds and bad deeds-the record is read out in the Presence of the Lord of Dharma.
The third line serves as a reminder to us that we are always “Being watched” – Each act of us is Being Recorded – We cannot hide from our misdeeds and immoral conducts in LIFE.
it is believed that when the Soul takes the Choice to come to this World, it comes with a 3 Specific Purpose
- Settle the Karmic Accounts
- Getting rid of Vices – Get yourself CLEAN
- Gather the Virtues of Goodness and SHINE BRIGHT
This list is handed to the Soul upon departure upon – and a Contract is signed declaring that : The choices that the Soul makes in this journey will get imprinted upon it and upon return the Details will be CHECKED. Just as REPORT CARDS reveal the performance of a child at School – we too have a Score Card that reveals our Karmic account…
A Contract signed between the Soul and God has a TIME FRAME locked – Our Time in this World is FIXED and at the end, upon our return, the Contract is checked and accordingly we are graded by the Messengers of this Agreement…there is no escape or fabrication possible – No one can help us if we FAIL in this Project – So Better to be CONSCIOUS when making CHOICES in LIFE.
The Soul must make the RIGHT CHOICES so that not only the Specific Purposes are resolved but also, the Creator Blesses the Soul with Freedom – No more entanglements and messy muddles – No more Cycles of Pain.
Our Choices can make us Worthy in the eyes of our Creator. Just as we parent want our children to SHINE BRIGHT in the affairs of their LIFE – similar is the expectation of our Parent – God…HE too wishes for us to ace in our Life Trails and Shine Bright.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/shine-bright-beautiful.jpg?w=767)
Line 4 ~ Choices & COnsequences
karmee aapo aapnee kay nayrhai kay door.
According to their own actions, some are drawn closer, and some are driven farther away.
Guru ji says that we are all Children of God and HE loves us equally but HE is not absorbed in Emotional attachments and thus HIS dealings are PERFECT – When we learn the lessons in Life and ace well, HE embraces us and should we refuse to learn these valid lessons on time, HE sends us back – to learn them again.
As we read earlier – there is NO ESCAPE – All Records are CHECKED & RESULTS always Perfectly Balanced as per the EFFORTS of a SOUL in this World !
NO GOOF – UPS in God’s System
God’s lessons are Perfect and so if we wish to seek HIS LOVE & FRIENDSHIP in Life we must learn to live a Conscious Life…Have you noticed that when our mind wanders, we are not able to focus and thus even if the things we seek are lying close by, we fail to see them – They fall into the Blind Spot of our Vision – But when we search with Attentiveness , the very things stand out loud – Similar is the Quest of God within us – The Divine is always with us but only through “Conscious Living” can be be revealed and then we can we see and experience HIM in our Proximity at all times…
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/blessed-life-god-walks.jpg?w=776)
Line 5 ~ Balanced Equation
jinee naam Dhi-aa-i-aa ga-ay maskat ghaal.
Those who have meditated on the Naam, the Name of the Lord, and departed after having worked by the sweat of their brows
Guru ji now shares with us an significant part of this Secret Code – A Balanced equation of Choice & Consequences has a GIFT to offer – Guru ji says that when we strike a Balance between the Human Body Responsibilities and the Soul Responsibilities – We will receive a Trophy of Excellence...this is to Honor us and our Choices that made us WINNERS in this Game of Life.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/raising-champions-1.jpg?w=1024)
To receive this TROPHY is very SIMPLE – All that we need to do is LIVE SIMPLE – The visit to this World is BRIEF and it has a PURPOSE and so it requires us to be meditative and focused upon God in all affairs of LIFE – In simple words – We must live like a Lotus ~ It is surrounded by DIRT and lives and grows in the mud world of and yet it does not let the surrounding DIRT engulf it.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/be-a-lotus-pure-pristine.jpg?w=888)
Let us strive to live a fully engaged life, in honesty and righteousness – Doing so will help our Soul rise above the Messy Muddles of this World and stay focused on Purpose of LIFE…Let us Work hard towards our LIBERATION.
Line 6 ~ radiant Glow
naanak tay mukh ujlay kaytee chhutee naal. ||1||
-O Nanak, their faces are radiant in the Court of the Lord, and many are saved along with them! ||1||
This last Line shares the Message of Coming Together and working as a TEAM – Guru ji says that our duty in this world is to also help others get directed towards the Right Path – Let us never be selfish in our affairs – If we have being given an opportunity to enjoy this Mantra – Decode it and refine our acts – let us SHARE it forward with others – so that others too can get sorted in LIFE – After all we are all connected in this Web of Life – Siblings of Destiny – Let us lead each other HOME.
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/teamwork-dream-work.jpg?w=643)
The significance of the message conveyed in this Shalok is Valuable – It aids us to remember the TRUE PURPOSE of Human Life and how we can use this BRIEF MOMENT in this World of Wonders in the BEST WAYS so that our Encounters are Cherished not only by those who are a part of our Journey but also by our Creator.
Making our Creator Happy with our Choices is the Best Gift we can take back with us. Let us always remember…
“Your Life is God’s Gift to you. What you do with your Life is your Gift to God.”
Take Away from the POST !
When we have a mystery to solve, we look for clues and make efforts to decode the message that can help us solve the Puzzle…Cracking the code makes us happy and we feel GOOD – Similar is LIFE – It is like a Puzzle – A mystery to solve, only then can we be Happy…
The search to decode the Mystery of Life directed me to this Fabulous Mantra – One that made me FEEL GOOD and also POWERFUL for now I had a Glimpse of the Goal that my Soul seeks – The Destination though seems far and not visible, has now been identified and the Map has been handed to me – all that I need to do is START my Journey…
Wish me LUCK as I now make way to my DESTINATION ❤ ~~~ ❤
![](https://myjourneysandreflections.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/travel.jpg?w=743)