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ਅਲਾਹੁ ਅਲਖੁ ਅਗੰਮੁ ਕਾਦਰੁ ਕਰਣਹਾਰੁ ਕਰੀਮੁ ॥
alāhu alakhu agammu kādaru karaṇhāru karīmu.
Allah is Unseeable, the Unattainable, the All-Powerful, the Creator-Maker, the Bountiful.
Through the Persian-influenced Sabad of Guru Nanak Sahib, Asha Marie Kaur explores our feeling of "place" in light of COVID-19.
How do we cope when the physical places we frequent are beyond our reach? Guru Nanak Sahib's redefines the Sufi principle of "maqam" or spiritual waystation and provides insights.
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Asha Marie Kaur is a Research Assistant with SikhRI. She has a BA in Political Science and International Studies from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where she was born and raised.
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Persian-based Sabad is difficult to read and understand for both native Panjabi speakers and native Persian speakers. Panjabi grammar and South Asian vernacular speech is imported into Persian and vice versa, creating new deviations of standard pronunciations. The hybridized language of Gurbani takes influence from the languages of South Asia at the time (Panjabi, Persian, Sanskrit, Braj, and many more) in which the bani was revealed, but often defies the rules of language and poetry to create new meaning. The language of Gurbani stands alone, therefore the following commentary was created to help guide readers through the meaning of this Sabad and enrich understanding.
The Sikh Research Institute recognizes its ethical responsibility to promptly correct any factual small or large errors. Please get in touch with us via email to request a correction if you have identified a mistake.
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Gatha refers to a song or verse, rooted in the word gai, to speak, sing, or recite. It can also refer to a profound discourse with the self beyond simple praise or devotion.
Harinder Singh explores Bhai Vir Singh's unique framing of Sikh history at Bhai Vir Singh Sahitya Sadan, Delhi.
The essence of this composition is revealed in the stanza of rahau (Pause). In it, worldly accounting (entanglements) is described as useless.
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