Word
From Punjabi/Sanskrit "shabad" (word, sound) — a hymn composed by a Sikh Guru or Bhagat, set to a musical measure (Raag) and recorded in Sikh scripture.
In Sikh theology the Shabad is not merely a song but the Guru's own living voice — singing it in kirtan is considered a direct way of communing with the divine Word itself.
The Sikh Ardas is the congregational prayer that opens with Guru Gobind Singh's Var Sri Bhagauti Ji Ki and ends with a prayer for the good of all.
15 versesA shabad by Bhagat Ravidas describing Begampura, a perfect city free from pain, taxes, and fear — a vision of social equality and spiritual liberation.
2 versesBhagat Ravidas's Raag Maaroo shabad at Ang 1106: the Lord who shelters the poor, raises the lowly and saves Namdev, Kabir, Trilochan, Sadhna and Sain.
4 versesGuru Arjan Dev's Gujri slok (Ang 517), also recited in Rehras Sahib: the Lord the Protector saves His devotees and destroys the slanderers.
3 versesBhagat Ravidas's Raag Dhanasari hymn (Ang 694), the verbatim shabad on separation from the Lord and longing for union.
3 versesBhagat Ravidas teaches that soul and God are one: waves are water in the ocean, a king dreams he is a beggar, a rope is mistaken for a snake.
6 versesThe Divine Realm of Sorrowless Devotion
Devotional Singing and the Power of Ragas
Devotional Singing of Divine Verses
Sant Kabir's dohas, including 541 compositions preserved in the Guru Granth Sahib, insist that God is found in compassion and truth, not in temple or mosque.
Kabir Panth devotees gather in satsang to sing bhajans like Chadariya Jhini Re Jhini, reflecting on life's fragility through shared devotional song.
Uniting Consciousness with Divine Sound