GAGAN MEIN THAAL AARTI BY GURU NANAK DEV JI

                                   

 ‘Gagan Mein Thaal’ : Aarti Written by Guru Nanak Dev Ji

This celestial Aarti was composed by Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the first Guru of Sikhism, in the early 16th century. It is enshrined in the Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Raag Dhanasari, on page 663.

 The Shabad was composed during Guru Nanak’s first Udasi, his great spiritual journey to the East. In 1506-1510, he arrived at the revered Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha and stayed for some days in Puri.

One evening, the temple’s magnificent ritual Aarti commenced. Priests held a jewelled platter filled with lamps, incense, flowers and whisks, circling it before the deity. Guru Nanak did not join. When asked why, he replied that the Almighty, who created the universe, cannot be worshipped with a mere platter. The entire cosmos is already performing His Aarti. He then sang this hymn that had been composed by him.  It shifted worship from ritual to realisation ,  from a man-made ceremony to nature’s eternal worship.

 In Sikh tradition, it  is sung as a hymn of praise. It is recited daily after Rehras Sahib and Ardas in the evening at Harmandir Sahib, Amritsar, and in most Gurdwaras worldwide. It is also recited upon completion of an Akhand Paath. Among Nihang Singhs and at Takht Patna Sahib and Hazur Sahib, an elaborate form  of Aarti with lamps, conch shells and bells is still performed. Here is the Aarti

"Gagan mai thaal, rav chand deepak bane, tarika mandal janak moti.

Dhoop mal-aanlo, pawan chavro kare, sagal banrai phoolant jyoti. ||1||

Kaisi aarti hoye, bhav khandana teri aarti.

Anhata shabad vajant bheri. ||1|| Rahao ||

Sahas tav nain, nan nain heh tohi kau, sahas murat nana ek tohi.

Sahas pad bimal, nan ek pad gandh bin, sahas tav gandh iv chalat mohi. ||2||

Sabh meh jyot, jyot hai soye.

Tis dai chaanan, sabh meh chaanan hoye.

Gur sakhi jyot pargat hoye.

Jo tis bhaavai, so aarti hoye. ||3||

Hari charan kaval makarand lobhit mano, an-dino mohi aahi piyaasa.

Kripa jal deh Nanak sarang kau, hoye jaate terai naam vaasa. 

(Sky is the platter, Sun and Moon are the lamps, stars are the pearls.

Fragrant wind is incense, wind is the fan, all forests are flowers and light.

What an Aarti is this, O Destroyer of fear, Your Aarti!

The unstruck sound of the Universe plays like drums.

You have thousands of eyes, yet You have no eye. Thousands of forms, yet no form.

Thousands of lotus feet, yet no feet. Without nose, You have thousands of fragrances.

In all there is Your Light, Your Light is in all.

By Guru's wisdom, that Light is revealed. Whatever pleases Him, that itself becomes Aarti.

My mind like a bee craves the nectar of Your lotus feet, day and night I thirst for You.

Give Your mercy-water to Nanak, the chatak bird, so I may live in Your Name.

The Tagore Connection:

Rabindranath Tagore held this Aarti in the highest esteem. When actor Balraj Sahni, then a teacher at Santiniketan, asked Tagore why he did not write an anthem for the world as he had written Jana Gana Mana for India, Tagore answered, “It has already been written  in the 16th century by Guru Nanak, not for the world, but for the entire universe.” So inspired was he that he translated it into Bengali himself, beginning: “Gagane thal rabi chandra dipak jwale, taraka mandal chamake mukuti…”

This universal Aarti has been sung by almost all great Hazuri Ragis and artists including the most famous version by Bhai Harbans Singh Ji Jagadhari Wale, Bhai Nirmal Singh Ji Khalsa whose version was composed by Uttam Singh for the film Nanak Shah Fakir, Bhai Balwinder Singh Ji Hazuri Ragi, Bhai Surinder Singh Ji Jodhpuri, Bhai Satwinder and Harvinder Singh Ji Delhi Wale, Bhai Gurmej Singh Ji, Bhai Ravinder Singh Ji and Bhai Harjinder Singh Ji Srinagar Wale who has kept its traditional style alive, as well as by Sufi and classical voices like Jagjit Singh, Ustad Shafqat Ali Khan, Hans Raj Hans and Anup Jalota.

( Avtar Mota )

PS

After completing his Masters, Balraj Sahni and his wife Damayanti joined Tagore's Vishwa-Bharati University, Shantiniketan as teachers of English and Hindi from 1937 to 1939 and worked directly under Gurudev, who even named their son Parikshit. It was during these intimate interactions at Santiniketan that the famous conversation took place where Sahni asked Tagore to write an anthem for the world and Tagore replied that it had already been written some centuries ago by Guru Nanak as ,"Gagan Mein Thaal".

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