Persian Voice in the Guru Granth Sahib

Persian Voice

Persian is one of the many languages found in the Guru Granth Sahib. Guru Nanak Sahib, Guru Arjan Sahib, and several of the bhagats revealed bani (Wisdom) in the Persian language. In commemoration of #Nanakshahi550, The Persian Voice of the Guru is being introduced with an accompanying article that addresses common understandings and illustrates the role of Persian in the Guru Granth Sahib, followed by transcreations of six Sabads (excerpts from the Guru Granth Sahib) by Guru Nanak Sahib. The first transcreation is perhaps the best known Persian Sabad, yak araj guphtam. Said to have been revealed in Mecca, in this Sabad Guru Nanak Sahib describes the nature of death and immortality.

Videos

Tuesday
,
18
August
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 5 - Tuvana Ability or Power

Asha Kaur beautifully explains the meaning of Tuvana and its relation to you and Kudrat.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
11
August
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 4 - Azrael in Sikhi

Did you know Azreal "The angel of death" has been referenced in Gurbani several times? Asha Kaur explains the references and how it relates to Ik Oankar and Love.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
4
August
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 3 - Muqam & Ik Oankar

Asha Kaur explains how Muqam & Ik Oankar are connected, touching on Sufism and how Guru Nanak uses it to make an ultimate relationship with the Divine.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
28
July
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 2 - Explaining Parvardigar

One of Asha's favorite terms for the Creator helps us move away from a fear based relationship to a more Love based connection.

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Tuesday
,
21
July
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 1 "Exploring Al-Rahim"

How did Guru Nanak convey the message of IkOankar using words and phrases from Islamic traditions? In the 1st episode of this video series Asha Kaur explores “Al-Rahim” in the Sikh context.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
21
July
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 1 "Exploring Al-Rahim"

How did Guru Nanak convey the message of IkOankar using words and phrases from Islamic traditions? In the 1st episode of this video series Asha Kaur explores “Al-Rahim” in the Sikh context.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
28
July
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 2 - Explaining Parvardigar

One of Asha's favorite terms for the Creator helps us move away from a fear based relationship to a more Love based connection.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
4
August
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 3 - Muqam & Ik Oankar

Asha Kaur explains how Muqam & Ik Oankar are connected, touching on Sufism and how Guru Nanak uses it to make an ultimate relationship with the Divine.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
11
August
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 4 - Azrael in Sikhi

Did you know Azreal "The angel of death" has been referenced in Gurbani several times? Asha Kaur explains the references and how it relates to Ik Oankar and Love.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
18
August
2020

Persian Voice: Ep 5 - Tuvana Ability or Power

Asha Kaur beautifully explains the meaning of Tuvana and its relation to you and Kudrat.

watch now ⟶

Articles

Monday
,
13
December
2021

O Siblings

Sabad is Infinite; we are finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad.

READ More ⟶
Monday
,
1
November
2021

O Friends, Any Good News?

Sabad is Infinite; we are finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad.

READ More ⟶
Monday
,
16
August
2021

I Am Blind, O Creator

Sabad is Infinite; we are finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad.

READ More ⟶
Friday
,
28
May
2021

O Servant of the Unattainable

Sabad is Infinite; we are finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad.

READ More ⟶
Wednesday
,
20
January
2021

Reflect on the Knower

Sabad is Infinite; we are very finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow, as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad. In this transcreation, we have chosen to keep the repeating words in the Sabad the same. We aspire to learn and retain the Divine attribute as used in the original Sabad and avoid terms like God or Lord.

READ More ⟶
Wednesday
,
26
August
2020

Light into the Dust

This Sabad (Divine Word), in Rag Tilang of the Guru Granth Sahib, is one of the few Sabads by Guru Arjan Sahib revealed in fluent Persian speech.

READ More ⟶
Tuesday
,
17
September
2019

Persian Voice in the Guru Granth Sahib

The Persian language occupies a strange place in Sikhi. Sikhs are universally aware that Persian has a place in our history yet simultaneously unaware of its magnitude.

READ More ⟶
Wednesday
,
25
September
2019

O Creator: Listen

Sabad is Infinite; we are very finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow, as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad. In this transcreation, we have chosen to keep the repeating words in the Sabad the same. We aspire to learn and retain the Divine attribute as used in the original Sabad and avoid terms like God or Lord.

READ More ⟶
Wednesday
,
26
August
2020

Light into the Dust

This Sabad (Divine Word), in Rag Tilang of the Guru Granth Sahib, is one of the few Sabads by Guru Arjan Sahib revealed in fluent Persian speech.

READ More ⟶
Wednesday
,
20
January
2021

Reflect on the Knower

Sabad is Infinite; we are very finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow, as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad. In this transcreation, we have chosen to keep the repeating words in the Sabad the same. We aspire to learn and retain the Divine attribute as used in the original Sabad and avoid terms like God or Lord.

READ More ⟶
Friday
,
28
May
2021

O Servant of the Unattainable

Sabad is Infinite; we are finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad.

READ More ⟶
Monday
,
16
August
2021

I Am Blind, O Creator

Sabad is Infinite; we are finite. This is our understanding at the moment, which was different yesterday and may evolve tomorrow as we deepen our relationship with the Sabad.

READ More ⟶

Podcasts

Monday
,
13
December
2021

O Siblings

In this transcreation, the original Gurmukhi is followed by an English transcription to guide the Sabad’s (Divine Word) pronunciation in its original form.

LISTEN NOW⟶
Monday
,
1
November
2021

O Friends, Any Good News

In this transcreation, the original Gurmukhi is followed by an English transcription to guide the Sabad’s (Divine Word) pronunciation in its original form.

LISTEN NOW⟶
Wednesday
,
20
January
2021

Reflect on the Knower

This is a continuation of the Persian Voice of the Guru's featuring the Sikh Research Institute's Researcher, Asha Marie Kaur.

LISTEN NOW⟶
Monday
,
19
October
2020

Great is Your Nam

In this episode from the Persian Voice of the Guru Granth Sahib series, Asha Marie Kaur tells us of the Persian linguistic influences of a Sabad by Guru Arjan Sahib. 

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Tuesday
,
25
August
2020

Light into the Dust

In an instant, we can be taken out of our mortal thought processes. The world can consume us instantly, and we may continue to be unaware and filled with our ego’s desires until the very last moment.

LISTEN NOW⟶
Tuesday
,
17
September
2019

Introduction: The Politics and Poetics of Persian in Gurbani

Persian is one of the many languages found in the Guru Granth Sahib. Guru Nanak Sahib, Guru Arjan Sahib, and several of the bhagats revealed bani (Wisdom) in the Persian language.

LISTEN NOW⟶
Wednesday
,
25
September
2019

O Creator: Listen

In this transcreation, the original Gurmukhi is followed by an English transcription to guide pronunciation of the Sabad (Divine-Word) in its original form.

LISTEN NOW⟶
Tuesday
,
22
October
2019

Fill This Unbaked Vessel: O’ Creator

In this transcreation, the original Gurmukhi is followed by an English transcription to guide the pronunciation of the Sabad (Divine Word) in its original form.

LISTEN NOW⟶
Tuesday
,
17
December
2019

All Under The Earth (Ham Jer Jimī)

ਹਮ ਜੇਰ ਜਿਮੀ ਦੁਨੀਆ ਪੀਰਾਮ ਸਾਇਕਾ ਰਾਇਆ ॥ ham jer jimī dunīā pīrām sāikā rāiā. هم زیر زمین دنیا پیران شیخ ها راییا All the sheikhs, spiritual teachers, rulers [will be buried] under the ground.

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Monday
,
27
April
2020

Allah the Unseeable

Through the Persian-influenced Sabad of Guru Nanak Sahib, Asha Marie Kaur explores our feeling of "place" in light of COVID-19. 

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Monday
,
25
May
2020

Let Compassion Be the Mosque

The Sikh Research Institute's Asha Marie Kaur speaks on how Guru Nanak Sahib integrates Persian and Arabic vocabulary in Sabad to invoke Islamic practices, laying the foundation for a uniquely Sikh engagement with other faiths.

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