ਸੋਗੁ (sog)
Meaning: noun: Grief, sorrow.
Quote:
ਹਰਖੁ ਸੋਗੁ ਜਾ ਕੈ ਨਹੀ ਬੈਰੀ ਮੀਤ ਸਮਾਨਿ॥
ਕਹੁ ਨਾਨਕ ਸੁਨਿ ਰੇ ਮਨਾ ਮੁਕਤਿ ਤਾਹਿ ਤੈ ਜਾਨਿ॥
ਜਿਸ ਦੇ ਮਨ ਵਿਚ ਖੇੜਾ ਅਤੇ ਗਮ (ਦਬਾਉ) ਨਹੀਂ (ਪਾਉਂਦੇ) ਅਤੇ ਜਿਸ ਲਈ ਵੈਰੀ ਤੇ ਮਿੱਤਰ ਇਕੋ ਜਿਹੇ ਹਨ; ਨਾਨਕ ਦਾ ਕਥਨ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਹੇ ਮਨ! ਸੁਣ, ਉਸੇ ਮਨੁਖ ਦੀ ਹੀ ਤੂੰ ਮੁਕਤੀ ਸਮਝ।
harakh sog jaa kai nahee bairee meet samaan.
kahu naanak sun re manaa mukati taahi tai jaan.
One who is not affected by happiness and sorrow, and for whom friends and enemies are alike; Nanak says, listen, O mind! Know that person only liberated. -Guru Teg Bahadar, Guru Granth Sahib, 1427
Message: This life has been given to us by the Divine. In it there is happiness and sorrow, friends and enemies. None of these can be intrinsically bad as they are a creation of the Divine.
How then should one relate to them?
Guru Teg Bahadar in his compositions reminds us to look beyond the emotions and relationships to the underlying source of these.
While experiencing the pull of the opposites, do not get enmeshed emotionally in them, do not choose one from the other. Rather, be mindful of who has provided these experiences. Where have they come from? Try to get closer to the Divine who is present in all of these.
Detachment from sorrow and grief is only possible when one is aware of the Divine presence in these experiences and one is able to reach out to Him.
The Divine, from these inner recesses, then gives us the clarity to see the experience from a different perspective. What really matters is our underlying connection with the Divine, not the worldly surface experiences or the roles we are playing out.
Guru Teg Bahadar was able to live his life with this connection and clarity. Hence, no matter what he had to face in life, he was prepared for it. He had the support and complete trust in Divine grace.
Etymology: From Sanskrit shok (heat, pain, sorrow) → Pali sok → Prakrit sog (sorrow).
