basantu mahalā 9.
pāpī hīai mai kāmu basāi.
manu cancalu yā te gahio na jāi.1. rahāu.
jogī jaṅgam aru sanniās.
sabh hī pari ḍārī ih phās.1.
jihi jihi hari ko nāmu samhāri.
te bhavsāgar utare pāri.2.
jan nānak hari kī sarnāi.
dījai nāmu rahai gun gāi.3.2.
-Guru Granth Sahib 1186
Guru Teghbahadar Sahib describes the fickle lust-filled mind that refuses to cease wandering. Even for devoted seekers, lust is a challenging desire to overcome. This Sabad advises that Nam (Identification with IkOankar) and the reflection of IkOankar (the Divine) can shake the grip of lust from the mind.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
In the second composition, Guru Teghbahadar says, lust dwells in my vice-filled heart. Under the influence of this sensual desire, the mind is not under control. The Guru uses the first-person voice to identify with the collective voice, as all humans deal with and struggle with lust. The sinner’s heart is the one in which lust lives, as lust drives us to transgression. It is due to this driver, powerful and hungry, our minds waver, unable to be controlled or made steady, constantly in a frenzy. Importantly, the Guru is questioning or disrupting classically religious ideas that we have about sinners, that sin is a religious thing, driven by past karma or the devil or something outside of our control. Instead, sin becomes very clearly associated with the cause of lust. This lust is what creates a frenzy in our minds and drives us to transgress.
Lust dwells in my vice-filled heart. The Guru takes a tone of great compassion, emphasizing that everyone is bound by lust, even the Yogis and ascetics and those who claim to be connected to the One through their detachment or extreme physical feats. Mention of those who are considered the holiest, or proclaim themselves to have won the battle against lust, is important in reminding us that even those who have worked so hard to rid themselves of lust are still struggling with it; the struggle is not an easy one. We see lust in its social, political, and religious elements. The Guru has specifically mentioned the religious angle, for they claim to have transcended that vice. We see it everywhere, polluting the environment, and creating transgressions or sins. Lust is not just sexual. It is not just about a physical act, but about entertaining lust at every level, thinking about it, recalling it, watching it, planning for it, vocalizing it, working towards it. Lust is a thing that swallows up our attention and our efforts and feeds on itself until we are satisfied, which is a thing that never seems to happen. It is this all-encompassing, all-engrossing lust that controls and binds all of us like a noose around each of our necks.
Lust dwells in my vice-filled heart. Who has won this battle against lust? Those who have remembered the Nam, or Identification, of the 1-Light, IkOankar (One Universal Integrative Force, 1Force, the One). Those within whom the 1-Light dwells are able to capture and savor Identification within. These are the ones who are able to make it across the world-ocean, who are able to make their lives on earth fruitful while they are here. The antidote, then, of lust is Identification. When Identification comes to dwelling within, there is no room for lust.
Lust dwells in my vice-filled heart. The Guru addresses IkOankar at the end of this composition, stating that it is because this lust is so hard to get rid of that the devotee has come to the sanctuary of the One. The Guru shows us how to ask for help and ask for the bestowing of Nam. So that we, the devotees, may always live in praise of IkOankar’s virtues and leave this world having made our time here fruitful. Just as the entire world seems to struggle with the condition of lust, so too does the entire world have access to this refuge if they are looking for it.
The Guru discusses lust and its hold on all of us with care and candor, understanding that this experience is common and nothing to be ashamed of or shamed for. In fact, it is the lack of acknowledgment of this very common struggle that is more dangerous, leading it shame-based or fear-based teaching and causing people to think they must hide their struggles with lust from others for fear of being judged or deemed “sinners.” Lust is a powerful force, an intense desire that feeds itself. We ought to realize and acknowledge this, and instead of taking a shaming tone, align with the Guru’s understanding and gentle guidance towards Nam as the antidote. Will we escape the noose of lust through Identification? Will we move from a place of shame to a place of understanding, even in our struggles with lust? Will we learn to seek the refuge of IkOankar and live in praise of the virtues? When lust leaves the body and Nam enters, spring arrives.
Lust dwells in my vice-filled heart. The Guru takes a tone of great compassion, emphasizing that everyone is bound by lust, even the Yogis and ascetics and those who claim to be connected to the One through their detachment or extreme physical feats. Mention of those who are considered the holiest, or proclaim themselves to have won the battle against lust, is important in reminding us that even those who have worked so hard to rid themselves of lust are still struggling with it; the struggle is not an easy one. We see lust in its social, political, and religious elements. The Guru has specifically mentioned the religious angle, for they claim to have transcended that vice. We see it everywhere, polluting the environment, and creating transgressions or sins. Lust is not just sexual. It is not just about a physical act, but about entertaining lust at every level, thinking about it, recalling it, watching it, planning for it, vocalizing it, working towards it. Lust is a thing that swallows up our attention and our efforts and feeds on itself until we are satisfied, which is a thing that never seems to happen. It is this all-encompassing, all-engrossing lust that controls and binds all of us like a noose around each of our necks.
Lust dwells in my vice-filled heart. Who has won this battle against lust? Those who have remembered the Nam, or Identification, of the 1-Light, IkOankar (One Universal Integrative Force, 1Force, the One). Those within whom the 1-Light dwells are able to capture and savor Identification within. These are the ones who are able to make it across the world-ocean, who are able to make their lives on earth fruitful while they are here. The antidote, then, of lust is Identification. When Identification comes to dwelling within, there is no room for lust.
Lust dwells in my vice-filled heart. The Guru addresses IkOankar at the end of this composition, stating that it is because this lust is so hard to get rid of that the devotee has come to the sanctuary of the One. The Guru shows us how to ask for help and ask for the bestowing of Nam. So that we, the devotees, may always live in praise of IkOankar’s virtues and leave this world having made our time here fruitful. Just as the entire world seems to struggle with the condition of lust, so too does the entire world have access to this refuge if they are looking for it.
The Guru discusses lust and its hold on all of us with care and candor, understanding that this experience is common and nothing to be ashamed of or shamed for. In fact, it is the lack of acknowledgment of this very common struggle that is more dangerous, leading it shame-based or fear-based teaching and causing people to think they must hide their struggles with lust from others for fear of being judged or deemed “sinners.” Lust is a powerful force, an intense desire that feeds itself. We ought to realize and acknowledge this, and instead of taking a shaming tone, align with the Guru’s understanding and gentle guidance towards Nam as the antidote. Will we escape the noose of lust through Identification? Will we move from a place of shame to a place of understanding, even in our struggles with lust? Will we learn to seek the refuge of IkOankar and live in praise of the virtues? When lust leaves the body and Nam enters, spring arrives.
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