Take with thee God's praise as thy merchandise, so that, when the Merchant seeth it, He shall be satisfied.

How shall they whose wares are not genuine, be happy?

By trading in counterfeit goods the soul and body become counterfeit.

Like a deer shared in a noose, such a trader shall suffer great misery and ever lament.

The counterfeit shall not be received in the great God's treasury, and they shall not behold Him.

The counterfeit have neither caste nor honour; the counterfeit are none of them acceptable.

The counterfeit who do counterfeit work, shall lose their honour in transmigration.

[1. The four fires are--hinsa, cruelty; moh, worldly love; krodh, anger; and lobh, avarice.

2. Sach, literally truth, but in the compositions of the Gurus the word often means happiness.]

{p. 265}

Nanak, instruct thy heart by the Guru's word and advice.

They who are imbued-with the love of God's name have no load of sin and no superstition.

They in whose hearts God dwelleth are without fear, and great shall be their gain by repeating His name.

The omnipresence of God:--

He Himself is the Relisher; He Himself is the relish

He Himself is the Enjoyer;

He Himself is the robe; He Himself the couch and the Spouse--

My Lord, who ]is dyed with love, pervadeth everything--

He Himself is the fisherman and the fish; He Himself is the water and the net.

He Himself is the lead of the net; He Himself is the bait within it.

O my friends, my Darling is in every way playful.

He ever enjoyeth the virtuous wife; see what a state is mine![1]

Nanak representeth, Thou art the lake, and Thou art the swan;

Thou art the lotus and the water lily, Thou art pleased on beholding them.[2]

The following was a remonstrance to a Mulla and a Qazi who had entered on a discussion with the Guru:--

He is the Lord who hath caused the garden of the world to flourish[3] and grow green,

And who restraineth sea and land; hail to the Creator!

Thou must die, O Mulla, thou must die.

By all means fear the Creator.

[1. Who, not being virtuous, am divorced from God.

2. The lotus opens its leaves by day and the water-lily by night. God is the sun and moon which behold them by day and night alternately.

3. Maula, a name of God in Arabic, The Hindi verb maulna means to bloom or blossom. There is in the original a pun on the word.]

{p. 266}

Thou art a Mulla or a Qazi only when thou really knowest God's name.

Even if thou be very learned thou must depart; none may remain when his measure of life is full.

He is a Qazi who hath renounced pride, and made the name of God alone his support.

He is, was, and shall be: He was not born, neither shall He die; True is the Creator.[1]