Guru Nanak (1469 – 1539 CE) was the founder of the Sikh faith. Born in what is today Pakistan in a family of merchants, he showed interest in spiritual matters from a young age, but followed a conventional life, marrying, having two children, and working as a clerk until a profound illumination turned him into a wandering guru. He taught that God is One, that caste and religion are irrelevant, and that spiritual attainment may be attained through attuning to the sacred vibrations of the Divine Name. He travelled widely, even going as far as Mecca and Medina, before settling in the Punjab for the last years of his life. The following verses have been included in the holy book of the Sikhs, the Guru Granth Sahib, as one of the principal prayers or japjis.

From listening,
     Siddhas, Pirs, Gods, Naths*–
     the spiritually adept;

From listening,
     the earth, its white foundation,
     and the sky;

From listening,
     continents, worlds, hells;

From listening,
     death cannot approach.

Nanak says,
     those who hear
     flower forever.

From listening,
     sin and sorrow
     disappear.

*Nath means literally ‘master’, but refers to followers of a particular form of Shaivite yoga.

Translation John Stratton Hawley and Mark Juergensmeyer