One Light: Text, Subtext and Supertext in the Translation of Gurbani

Gurbani gives us a code to help us understand ourselves as human beings on a spiritual journey. The Guru guides us to train the mind to find the Divine in our own hearts and within the entire Creation. Poetry engages language in a unique way. It uses text to deliberately provoke images, feelings, and ideas encoded in the subtext to convey the subtlety of existence. When it comes to Gurbani, the Guru also offers a view of the Universe and humanity that transcends the limits of any one linguistic, cultural or historical paradigm. We can name this the “supertext” of Gurbani. When approaching Gurbani, how do we take into consideration the text, subtext and supertext in the process of translation? This is the question we will explore together in this seminar.