“We’ve had three houses on the market now,” Rose was despondent. “for over two years. They are just not selling. It is beginning to hurt…”
“He moves in mysterious ways,” Rosh patted her hand. “He bears us no ill. He is working on it…”
“Is He?” asked Rose. “I just can’t see it at the moment. You sure our file hasn’t gone missing …”
“No,” Rosh shook his head. “A lot more than a few houses not selling can go wrong in life…”
“Look around,” he said, pointing at the vivid colours in the garden around them. “Life is vivid, but what can we see if we stay asleep?”
“He does his work, but we remain blind to it. Mere Sahib de rang neyare, rang niyare …”
He remembered the absolutely amazing rendition of this song in the Punjabi film Ardaas by Gippy Grewal and Sunidhi Chauhan. He hummed it softly for her now, blissfully.
Her spirit began to lift.
“Isn’t that the Punjabi song you were hearing yesterday?” asked him, joining them outside. “It’s got a very uplifting, inspiring beat. Pity, I don’t get the meaning of the lyrics.”
“Translating Punjabi poetry is out of my league,” said Rose “You tell us the meaning, Rosh.”
“Its theme is gratefulness - something you keep reminding me about, son,” said Rosh. “The secret of happiness is gratefulness in your heart. Gratitude for your fellow man. And for your maker.”
Ek Onkar Satnam, Karta Purakh, Nirbhoh, Nirvair, Akal Murat, Ajooni Saibhang
“God is one. Truth his name. He is the doer – creater of all. Fearless. Without malice. Embodiment of timelessness. Formless. Unborn. Indestructible.”“He is beyond birth and death. He is the enlightened one. He manifests as the guru's grace, through whom you were reminded of His name. Meditate on it. As it was true in the beginning. Remained true throughout the Ages. Is true today. And Nanak says, will remain true forever.”
Gur parsad Jap. Aad sach, jugaad sach. Hai bhi sach. Nanak, hosi bhi sach
“Awareness of this unchanging Truth is your Guru’s gift to you. What to do with it? This realization of the Absolute - that always was, is, and always will be. Nanak says, remember.”
Beda paar laga lae tu, bandya satguran de naal lag ke
“Crossover safely, human, by tying your boat (life) to the true teachers. They will show the way. Guide you in crossing the ocean of life. As you can see, Guru is very important in the Sikh faith.”
Kujj naal na jaanaa ae, sab kujjh rae jaanaa ae jagg te
“Nothing will go with you. It will all be left behind here. Then why err, why accumulate?”
Te Bhullan bakhsh dinde, bakhshan haare, main balhaare
“He, the forgiver, forgives our trespasses. I am so grateful.”
Mere sahib de, rang neyare, main jaavan vaare
"My Master’s blessings are unparalleled, I am ecstatic."
Satnam satnam ji, jap lae Waheguru Vaheguru ji
"Chant the good name, the true name. Chant glories to the Guru, the teacher."“Isn’t ‘rang’ colour, and ‘nyara’ unique?” Smith asked. “So, a multicolored Lord? My vivid God!”
“That too,” Rosh laughed. “Interesting, that you transliterated it like that. Our God is indeed colorful. He manifests in vivid colors. Just look around.”
“When grandpa Dev couldn’t shower himself in his last years, I used to bathe him. When the cold water hit his body, he used to chant ‘Hare Raam, Hare Raam’.”
“The colder the water, the louder his chanting. I used to ask him why he chanted ‘Hare (Green) Ram’ and not ‘Neele (Blue) Ram’, ‘Peele (Yellow) Ram’, ‘Lal (Red) Ram’ or ‘Bhure (Brown) Ram’.”
“He used to smile, but just keep chanting. I remember my question even today, because he never answered it. He wanted me to find my own answers. It is your questions that change your lives in the end, never their answers."
"Hare' also means to remember, so 'Hare Ram' meant remembering Ram (God). Other combinations I had made up were non-sensical in that sense, but he could very well have chanted ‘Lal Ram’ – so long as he did it soulfully.”
Data sab nu hi jaane, koyi raja, koi bhikhari
“The Benefactor knows all, the rich and the poor. It matters not what language they speak or whether they even speak. It is immaterial what name they use to address Him, how they perceive Him, and whether they even perceive Him.”
Oho aap hi taa hai, saare jag da lakhari
"He is still the one, who cares for the whole creation (writes our destinies)."
Taan hi aap karda ae, paar utaare, main jaawan vaare
"That’s why he himself, sees us through, I am awed."
Mere malik de rang neyare, main jaavan vaare.
"My Master’s facets are unique, I find them awesome."
Satnam satnam ji, jap lae Waheguru Vaheguru ji.
"So, chant His name with gratitude. Chant Guru's name with gratitude."
Ki ki kari jaavan dasso, Sahib di Vaddiyayi
"What else can I reveal about the magnanimity of the Lord, tell me?"
Jinne kakkhaan di kamayi vich, barkat payi
“Who makes people with meagre means, prosper.”
Hath fadke karde ne, aap kinaare, main balhare
“Holds their hands until they are beached safely, I sing His glories."
Mere rabba de rang neyare, main jaavan vaare.
"My Lord’s legends are singularly distinctive, I sing odes to Him."
Satnam satnam ji, jap lae Waheguru Vaheguru ji.
"Chant the true name. Thank your Guru. Be aware of their blessings. Acknowledge them!"“What will that do? Don't they weave their magic regardless? They do. But, we still need to flip a switch inside us, so there is light. For us to see it. The garden is all around us, but we see nothing of it while it is dark."
“Both plenty and paucity, you see, exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities. We see nothing in the dark, where there may be everything. We need light to see. And it is always our conscious choice whether we will flick that light on or not...”
“When we choose light, we see the abundance that is present. Love, health, money, job, family, friends, nature and things that give us pleasure. The nothingness of dark vanishes instantly. We experience Eden on Earth."
"A Heaven, rich in colours, where one is content with what one has…”
“It is easy to be thankful,” Rose sighed, “when one is happy.”
“It is not happiness that makes us grateful,” Rosh smiled. “It is gratefulness, that makes us happy.”
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