⟵ Back to videos

Explore Alahania (Mahala 1)

The Guru Granth Sahib Project

Thursday
,
28
March
2024

Alahani is a mournful or sorrowful Panjabi folk song. When a person dies, friends and relatives usually visit the deceased’s family to share their sorrow and memories of their loved one’s life and deeds.

Alahani is a mournful or sorrowful Panjabi folk song. When a person dies, friends and relatives usually visit the deceased’s family to share their sorrow and memories of their loved one’s life and deeds. Expressing such feelings creates the core of the folk poetic form Alahani.


The Alahania composition revealed by Guru Nanak Sahib redirects and transforms the sorrow and grief of death and separation from loved ones into a serene state, urging the being to embrace the will of IkOankar (the Divine). By illustrating the insignificance and impermanence of the material world, this composition inspires the mind towards a perpetual connection with the eternal companion, IkOankar.

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.

Suggest a correction →
No items found.

In This Video

Jasleen Kaur

Research Associate

Jasleen Kaur is a Research Associate at the Sikh Research Institute. She has received a Religious Studies B.A./M.A. from the University of Virginia, focusing on South Asian Religions through the lens of literature and poetry.

View profile ⟶

Latest Videos

Thursday
,
21
November
2024

Explore Patti (Mahala 3)

Patti is a poetic form based on the Gurmukhi alphabet. Historically, students used a wooden tablet, known as patti in Panjabi, to practice writing the alphabet.The Guru Granth Sahib includes many compositions based on the alphabet.

watch now ⟶
Thursday
,
14
November
2024

Key Challenges & Advice for the Sikh Community’s Future

As individual achievements within the Sikh community continue to rise, a new challenge emerges: prosperity often brings caution, with people becoming more reluctant to take risks when there’s more at stake.

watch now ⟶
Wednesday
,
13
November
2024

Diaspora's Role in Justice for 1984 & Speaking on Panjab's Future

What role should the Sikh diaspora play in seeking justice for 1984 and discussing sovereignty and Khalistan, especially from a place of relative safety?

watch now ⟶

Share on Social Media

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Stay informed with our weekly updates, important events and more at SikhRI.

Thank you! Your submission has been received.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.