Columnists
The Month of Saavan
[July 16 - August 15]
Poems translated from Punjabi by GURMEET KAUR
1 Guru Nanak [Raag Tukhaari, GGS:1108]
In the month of Saavan - verdant
Thunders
- of hope
Showers
- of life
Revitalize
Body and Mind -
Sweetly awaken
Love besets
The Lover cometh not home!
Soul bride -
Endures
Lightening
Of realization
Daunts!
Life passes by -
Lonely bed side
Haunts
Oh Mother!
What sleep?
What hunger?
Without the beloved -
The comfort of garments
Pleases not!
Says Nanak:
Only
The ambrosial embrace
Fulfills ...
Shriveled bride
Satiates ...
In the month of Saavan - verdant.
2 Guru Arjan [Raag Maajh, GGS:133]
In the month of Saavan - verdant
Exuberance:
Falling in love
With -
Thy lotus feet.
Imbuement:
Body and mind
Seeking solace -
In the One True Naam
Illusion:
Of Maya breaks
Fake - seem the worldly
Bonds
Delectable:
Nectar drops
The Guru brought -
The taste forth
Capable:
Of greening
Meadows, forests and hearts -
Boundless lover
Yearning:
For union
Thy grace -
The only solution
She's given:
To the companions
Who have -
Found thee
Prays Nanak:
Show mercy,
Through shabad -
Adorn her
Enraptured:
Decked with
Garland of naam -
She revels
In the month of Saavan - verdant.
July 16, 2010
Conversation about this article
1: Mlle S. (Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A.), July 16, 2010, 11:23 PM.
So beautiful ... thanks for a calm and quiet awakening on this rainy day.
2: Sangat Singh (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), July 17, 2010, 9:11 AM.
'Mori run jhun la-ai bhaine savan a-i-ay' [GGS:557.13] - 'The peacocks are singing so sweetly, O sister; the rainy season of Saavan has come!' The refrain in both 'BaraMaah's is one of deep anguish of a woman in separation. Her love is transformed into that of spiritual import, and transcends the bound by time and space. The quest is for her Timeless Beloved, and the journey itself is one of utter ecstasy. At the end, it still remains 'kirat karam ke vichhure kar kirpa melalo ram' - 'By the actions we have committed we are separated from You. Please show Your Mercy and unite us with Yourself, O Lord!'. Just picture when Guru Nanak would say: 'Mardanaya, pluck the strings of the rabab, Bani ayee ...' What exquisite, matchless love poetry transformed into the spiritual realm. Thank you, Gurmeet ji, for your lovely lyrical rendering.