Sabad is inaccessible for most of the Sikh population. Although there are translations available in Panjabi text belonging to the early twentieth century by many celebrated Sikh giants, and some in English from recent times, there is a need for a fresh perspective that illuminates the panorama and magnitude within the Guru Granth Sahib to contemporary audiences in their current social, cultural, and linguistic context.

Given the above challenges, it is important to develop a well-researched resource of the Guru Granth Sahib, that caters to the global Sikh audience, utilizing unique technology to create global collaborations. In this light, the current project seeks to create a comprehensive interpretation and commentary of the Guru Granth Sahib in both Panjabi and English. Panjabi is for today’s 80% Sikh population, and English is for the 7.5 billion people awaiting the Guru’s Wisdom. When the world seeks Sabad in other languages, they will most likely apply the translation tools that use English as a basis.

Towards this end, this project is making use of current information technology tools coupled with the power of the world-wide web, to create a controlled collaborative effort between different subject-matter experts (SMEs) for research and production of interpretation, and commentary on the Guru Granth Sahib.

The end product of this huge collaborative work will be an automated platform, that provides open and intuitive online access to the infinite wisdom of the Guru Granth Sahib, in both Panjabi and English parallelly. The offerings on the platform will include, but will not be limited to:

1. A live website in both Panjabi and English that is searchable.
2. Access to individual word’s grammatical function in the text, in addition to the literal and implied meaning, as well as the etymology of words like any standard dictionary.
3. A literal translation of the original text in Panjabi and English.
4. Interpretation of the text in modern Panjabi and English.
5. Commentary which is free from culture-specific understanding to connect with the global audience.
6. Incorporation of historical, musical, and poetical dimensions.

Translating Texts
When translating texts, there are at least three different levels to consider:

1. Particular words and terms: Each word has multileveled meanings and implications that can never be carried over into another language. When a word is used, it carries with it layers of historical development, contextual nuances, and half-hidden associations that are often unconsciously present even to the original verbalizer.
2. General concepts and ideas, along with their historical development and implications: At the level of ideas, as with individual words, one is often led in different directions by what seem to be near-equivalent terms. For example, if one uses the terms “scripture” or “canon” for the Guru Granth Sahib, one is immediately suggesting ideas, connotations, and implications that derive from the use and development of these ideas in the English context, some of which have Judeo-Christian undertones that would not be applicable in the Sikh context. Similarly, if one uses the terms “ved” or “shastra” (Hindu texts) for Guru Granth Sahib, it is equally inapplicable as they have Dharmic-Hindu overtones from the Indological contexts of “shruti” (heard) or “smriti” (memorized).
3. The intended audience; both of the original text and the translation: How much knowledge does one assume on the part of the reader? Does one aim for a strict, literal translation to remain “true” to the text, or does one aim for a translation that reads smoothly and meaningfully in the “host” language? How much “extra” information needs to be provided to make the English rendering as intelligible as the original was to its intended audience? This project is meant for a global audience, thus, contextualization and clarification are both offered to help better situate readers with no prior knowledge.

The ideal option is that translators’ choices are made through a combination of a number of factors: consistency with previous choices in translating these or similar terms, maintaining consistencies in literal translations and interpretive transcreations for English meaning, judgments on how much to rely on explanations through footnotes, perceptions of the needs and wants of the audience, and so forth.

Note: As there is no one-to-one correspondence between words in different languages, there is great danger of misrepresentation if a given word in one language is always translated with the same word in another disregarding the context. Hence, strict adherence to a “consistent” translation is not advisable. This, however, does not necessarily advocate arbitrariness or blatant inconsistency. A reasoned consistency is a laudable goal, but only with the caveat that the translator should be open to possible exceptions depending on the context.

The Method

This section provides an overview of the message contained in the Bani (composition). For example, Introduction to Asa Ki Var will include a brief on saloks (a heroic poetic form, similar to a ballad, written in stanzas) and pauris (a distinct pattern or a verse structure of Panjabi heroic-poetry).

Research (word meaning, grammar & etymology)

This section deals with the meaning of a word, its grammatical position in the line and its origin. Consequently, it has been divided into three subsections: Meaning, Grammar, and Etymology.

Word Meaning: It lists all possible sets of literal meanings and the implied meaning of the given word in the original text. Literal sets of meanings are separated from each other with a comma (,) and separated from an implied set of meanings with a semicolon (;).

Grammar: It lists all the grammatical aspects/functions of the word in the original text.

1. The word is categorized based on the following aspects:
   • noun, case declension; gender, number
   • pronoun, case declension; person, gender, number
   • adjective/pronominal adjective, case declension like noun/pronoun
   • verb, tense; person, gender, number
   • adverb
   • particle
   • participle
   • postposition
   • conjunction
   • exclamatory
2. A semicolon (;) is used to separate parts of speech designations/aspects of the word from their person, gender, and number.

Etymology:

1. Attempts have been made to give the etymology for each word. Commonly, the etymology of a word is given from Old Panjabi, Lehndi, Braj, Sindhi, Apbhransh, Prakrit, Pali, Sanskrit, etc. The corresponding words in Sanskrit and Arabic/Persian have been written in both Gurmukhi as well as Sanskrit and Arabic/Persian scripts, but the variants found in other languages have been written in Gurmukhi only. In Sanskrit, the masculine and feminine form of a verb is the same. However, meanings have been given in the masculine form to match the prevailing norms in the linguistic sources.
2. The words of the Guru Granth Sahib, which have their corresponding singular or plural forms available in respective languages, have been written in the same forms. For the words that have not been found, their matching forms have been included.
3. Slash (/) has been used if more than one variant of a word is available in a language. A semicolon (;) has been used to separate one language form from the other as well as where the meaning of words changes. Inverted commas (“xyz”) are used when quoting the original text from a source.
4. Generally, no reference to any source is mentioned while giving etymology and linguistic forms of words, but if there is a need for reference, the information is included in the footnotes.
5. If the meaning of a word remains the same as in Sanskrit, Pali, Arabic, etc., then the meaning of that word in other languages is not given.
6. Where there is a need for detail, the required information about the various uses of a particular word in the Guru Granth Sahib is provided in the footnotes.
7. Attempts are made to refer to almost all of the latest and old dictionaries as well as literary sources to show the linguistic forms.

Meaning (literal translation & interpretive transcreation)

Literal Translation (italic)
The italics text is the literal translation of the Guru Granth Sahib in which all words, their grammatical position, meanings, and contexts available in the original text have been retained. Because English (the target language) differs from the languages in the Guru Granth Sahib as it does not have its roots in orality, retaining the structural form and aural tonality of these languages in English is difficult. In order to bridge the gap between the two languages while still maintaining poetic balance and beauty, additional words have occasionally been added within parentheses in the English italics for readability, clarity, and poetic balance. At times, the sentence structure is switched around for readability and understanding.

Interpretive Transcreation (non-italic)
The non-italics text is the interpretive transcreation that provides an explanation of the original text. This does not attempt to match its Panjabi counterpart or to map on to the original text. It does not require parentheses as it is not a translation. Instead, it serves to elaborate, contextualize, and expound on the original text and its literal translation for better understanding.

Summary
Provides a brief summary of the message contained in the preceding saloks and the pauri, wherever required.

Dimensions (historical, musical, poetical)

Historical
Wherever required, historical details are given for a word/line/sabad. This will be helpful to understand the historical significance of the word/line/sabad and comprehend their meaning better in modern times. Information about the historical and cultural milieu (social setting and environment), origin of the sabad, etc. are shared from Sikh traditional sources such as Guru Granth Sahib interpretations, rahitname (lifestyle codes), sakhi (witness-narratives), parchi (Panjabi writing on the life stories of the Gurus, saints, and bhaktas), janamsakhi (birth-narrative), etc. as well as from the contemporary historical and cultural South Asian works.

Musical
The following information has been given about the musical aspect:

• The literal meaning of rag
• Usage of rag in the Guru Granth Sahib
• The historical dimensions of rag
• Taste and nature of rag
• The musical form of rag, aroh, avroh, vadi, etc.

Poetical
The Guru Granth Sahib is Divine-revelation. Its poetic beauty is also diverse and immeasurable, transcending established norms of literary poetics; it is beyond human capacity to describe it fully. Still, known standards of poetics are utilized, hinting at poetic aspects of the Banis. Attempts have been made to provide a brief overview of figures of speech, poetic forms, and the elements of stylistics used in a salok/pauri.

Footnotes

Footnotes serve multiple functions based on the need of the tagged text. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:

1. Provide additional or supporting information.
2. Define words/terms, phrases/idioms, symbols, ideas, etc.
3. Provide information, contextualization or direction on articulation/pronunciation of the text.
4. Provide context to the interpretation offered in the text (historical, cultural, linguistic, literary, poetic, etc.).
5. Citation, in original, from within the Guru Granth Sahib to further support a given position.

Commentary

The commentaries are contemporary adaptations of each sabad (salok/pauri) to explain their message to a global audience. Their details are:

• Audience: Global
• Language: Contemporary English and Panjabi
• Consistency: Contextualizing the message of Asa Ki Var and the Guru Granth Sahib
• Purpose: Inspiration, learning, and life transformation

Transcription or transliteration is the practice of representing a written letter or a word from one script to another. It is also the system of rules for that practice. Simply put transcription and transliteration attempt to accurately capture the sound values across writing systems.

Transliteration attempts to be exact. With the help of transliteration, an informed reader should be able to recreate the original spelling of the transliterated words. Transliteration is commonly employed in situations where high precision is required. It is necessary when using words or concepts expressed in a language with a script other than one’s own.

Transcription is slightly different in that it takes into account the sound values represented by the writing systems. Transcription assists in speech and pronunciation, rather than the exact written representation. For example:

• ਪਰਮਦਭੁਤੰ ‒ paramadabhutaṅa (transliteration)
• ਪਰਮਦਭੁਤੰ ‒ parmadbhutaṅ (transcription)
• Psychology- ਪਸਯਕੋਲੋਜੀ (transliteration)
• Psychology- ਸਾਈਕੌਲੋਜੀ (transcription)

If relations between letters and sounds are similar in both languages, transliteration may be nearly identical to its transcription. Transcription has a superficial attraction in that it is generally more readable, primarily because it expresses sounds associated with one script using another script.

In regards to Gurmukhi, transcription proves utilitarian because the script is highly phonetic. Because this project concerns the spoken aspects of the script, transcription is utilized throughout this volume. When writing proper nouns outside of the context of line meanings and footnotes, common spellings will be used instead of transcription-accurate spellings.

Ex: Duni Cand → Duni Chand
       Shekh Ibrahim → Sheikh Ibrahim

Considering that the pronunciation of Guru Granth Sahib is closely related to its interpretation, an accurate and standardized transcription system assumes a very important role since meanings tend to change with even a slight variation in tone or nasalization. An accurate transcription would thus supplement the correct articulation of phones.

Developing a standardized transcription would aid both the Sikh Diaspora and the western scholars, who wish to better grasp the language of Guru Granth Sahib. A universally accepted system will go a long way in advancing the language and its understanding. Due to shortcomings in the English language in general, and the Roman script in particular, it has proved challenging to develop a technique for transcription with the capacity to consistently and accurately transfer text from Gurmukhi characters to Roman characters. Numerous attempts have been made in the past, and gratefully, modern linguistic standards and thorough research have finally made Gurmukhi-Roman transcription a reality.

A majority of the characters used to transcribe Gurmukhi into English have been derived from a universally recognized system of linguistics. For those Gurmukhi letters lacking an equivalent representation in the Roman alphabet, a symbol comparable to a character with an associable sound has been generated to represent those alphabets. As each Gurmukhi letter represents a unique audible sound, it has been assigned its own symbol for transcription into the Roman script.

TRANSCRIPTION GUIDELINES

Since speech precedes writing, identifying speech sounds is vital for establishing correct pronunciation of a word. The sound being produced while uttering a word is more important than the rules in establishing the correct transcription output. Hence the pronunciation precedes the transcription rules. Transcription rules only help in understanding and establishing commonly identifiable patterns.

CONSONANTS

1. The consonants begin from s (ਸ), and continue through ṛ (ੜ).
2. In pronunciation, a consonant that stands independent of a vowel character will be followed by an implicit “a” (muktā).
   1. a. The above statement is only true for consonants devoid of vowel characters. However, if the consonant is the final letter of the word, then the implicit “a” is omitted in transcription.
      Example 1: ਨਦਰ (na + da + ra = nadar)
      Example 2: ਸਤ (sa + ta = sat)
   2. The implicit “a” is applicable at the end of a single character word.
      Example 1: ਨ (na)
      Example 2: ਤ (ta)
3. There are instances where the implicit “a” is overlooked. In these cases, the “a” can be omitted as it aids in pronunciation. The inclusion of the implicit “a” is not inaccurate, but more functional.
   Example 1: ਦਰਸਨ (da + ra + sa + na = darsan)
   Example 2: ਕਰਤਾ (ka + ra + tā = kartā)
4. When a consonant with a short “a” is followed by a vowel character supported by a vowel base (specifically ਉ and ਇ), then the vowel symbol will be indicated by a corresponding dieresis (ï or ü) vowel.
   Example 1: ਸਉ (sa + u = saü)
   Example 2: ਗਇ (ga + i = gaï)

VOWELS

1. There are three vowel bases (ੳ, ਅ, ੲ).
2. In addition to the implicit “a” that follows consonants independent of vowels, there are ten vowel characters (see vowel chart).
3. Of the three vowel bases, only ਅ can stand independent of another vowel character. Example 1: ਅਗਨ (a + ga + na = agan)
   Example 2: ਅਕਾਲ (a + kā + la = akāl)
4. If a vowel character is directly followed by another vowel base and character, then the implicit “a” will be omitted.
   Example 1: ਜਾਇ (jā + i = jāi)
   Example 2: ਕੀਓ (kī + o = kīo)
5. If a vowel character combines with a vowel base to produce the first letter in the word, there will be no “a” preceding the vowel.
   Example 1: ਊਪਰਹੁ (ū + pa + ra + hu = ūparahu)
   Example 2: ਆਸਣੁ (ā + sa + ṇu = āsaṇu)
6. If a vowel character is present with a consonant rather than a vowel base, then there will be no “a” between the consonant and the vowel.
   Example 1: ਸੂਰਾ (sū + rā = sūrā)
   Example 2: ਮੋਹਿ (mo + hi = mohi)

ṬIPPĪ ( )

1. When a ṭippī is representing one of the five sounds (ṇ, ṅ, ñ, n, m), it will not be followed by an implicit “a.”
   Example 1: ਖੰਡ (kha + ṇ + ḍa = khaṇḍ)
   Example 2: ਚੰਗਾ (ca + ṅ + gā = caṅgā)
2. If a ṭippī is representing one of the five sounds (ṇ, ṅ, ñ, n, m), and the letter following the ṭippī falls within rows 2-6 (consonant chart), then the ṭippī will make the sound of the last letter in the corresponding row.
   Example 1: ਅੰਤ (a + n + ta = ant)
   Example 2: ਸੰਗਤਿ (sa + ṅ + ga + ti = saṅgati)
   1. If a letter following the ṭippī falls in row 1 or 7 (consonant chart), then the ṭippī predominantly makes a “n” sound (consonant nasalization) and occasionally a “ṁ” sound (vowel nasalization).
      Example 1: ਸੰਸਾ (sa + n + sā = sansā)
      Example 2: ਮੁੰਲਾ (mu + ṁ + lā = muṁlā)
   2. When a ṭippī represents one of the five sounds (ṇ, ṅ, ñ, n, m), and the letter emphasized by the ṭippī represents the same sound (ṇ, ṅ, ñ, n, m), then it will create a double sound (compound), and should be transcribed accordingly.
      Example 1: ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤ (a + mma + ri + ta = ammrit)
      Example 2: ਮੰਨੀਐ (ma + nnī + ai = mannīai)
3. If a ṭippī is at the end of the word, and therefore unsupported by another consonant, then the default sound is “aṅ.”
   Example 1: ਸੈਭੰ (sai + bhaṅ = saibhaṅ)
   Example 2: ਕਰਮੰ (ka + ra + maṅ = karmaṅ)
   1. If a ṭippī concludes a term in a compound word, then the ṭippī will create the “ṅ” sound.
      Example 1: ਅਹੰਕਾਰ (a + ha + ṅ + kā + ra = ahaṅkār)
      Example 2: ਅਹੰਬੁਧਿ (a + ha + ṅ + bu + dhi = ahaṅbudhi)
4. All vowel nasalization are denoted by “ṁ.”
   Example: ਤੂੰ (tū + ṁ = tūṁ)
5. The ṭippī has two possible connotations. It commonly symbolizes an additional sound incorporating one of five characters (ṇ, ṅ, ñ, n, m), and sometimes denotes a nasalization (ṁ). Identification of correct usage in various instances can only be determined with the knowledge of the language.

BINDĪ ( )

1. The bindī can play two different roles. Predominantly, it calls for vowel nasalization (and in a few instances, consonant nasalization) that produces a “ṁ” sound. It occasionally forms a “n” sound. One can know the role of bindī only with an understanding of the language.
2. When creating a “n” sound, there will be no implicit “a” sound following the “n” sound.
   Example: ਸਾਂਤਿ (sā + ṁ + ti = sāṁti)
3. All vowel nasalizations are denoted by “ṁ.”
   Example 1: ਤੂਹੈਂ (tū + ha + aiṁ = tūhaiṁ)
   Example 2: ਹਾਂ (ha + āṁ = hāṁ)

VISARG ( )

1. The Visarg is represented by a “ḥ.” It is pronounced as a softer “h,” and an implicit “a” precedes the “ḥ.”
   Example 1: ਦ੍ਰਿੜੰਤਣਃ (dri + ṛa + n + ta + ṇa + ḥa = driṛantaṇaḥ)
   Example 2: ਲਿਖੵਣਃ (li + kha + ya + ṇa + ḥa = likhyaṇaḥ)

SUBSCRIPTS

1. There are eight subscripts used within Guru Granth Sahib.
2. The subscript appears below the consonant.
3. The subscript is pronounced directly after the consonant above it; there is no implicit “a” between the two.
   Example 1: (ascaraj)
   Example 2: (dastagīrī)
4. If a vowel supports a consonant and the subscript, then the subscript will follow the consonant but precede the vowel in pronunciation.
   Example 1: (bisṭā)
   Example 2: (snehaṅ)

Subscripts
*Due to technological limitations in the Gurmukhi Unicode font, certain letters cannot be placed under other letters as subscripts where they actually belong. As a temporary measure, images of the words have been used as placeholders for representational purposes.

HALANT-LIKE SYMBOL ( )

1. Appearance of this symbol in Guru Granth Sahib is represented through the same in the roman script as well.
   Example 1: ਜਿਨੑੀ (ji + n̖ī = jin̖ī)
   Example 2: ਧਿਆਵਨਿੑ (dhi + ā + va + n̖i = dhiāvan̖i)

PROLONGATION (ਅ)

1. When appearing at the end of a word and directly following a vowel character, the A represents a prolongation of the sound preceding it.
   Example 1: ਜੀਅ (jī + a = jīa)
   Example 2: ਲੋਅ (lo + a = loa)

Cardinal Numbers

NUMERALS

1. Gurmukhi numerals are transcribed through the respective Roman digits as per the table above. However, a number may be properly spelt in the transcription if the original in the Gurmukhi script indicates so.
   Example 1: ੧ (1)
   Example 2: ਇਕੁ (i + ku = iku)

ADOPTIONS

1. Farsi
   1. If an equivalent sound for a Farsi inspired letter exists in the Roman script, then that Roman letter is used in the transcription.
      Example 1: ਫ਼ (f)
      Example 2: ਜ਼ (z)
   2. If there is no corresponding sound already inscribed in the Roman alphabet, then the sound will be indicated with a line underneath the corresponding Roman letters.
      Example 1: ਗ਼ (gh)
      Example 2: ਖ਼ (kh)
   3. The contemporary version of the Gurmukhi script has adopted five new sounds that are indicated with a dot under the corresponding Gurmukhi letter: ਗ਼ (gh), ਜ਼ (z), ਫ਼ (f), ਖ਼ (kh), ਸ਼ (sh).
   4. Beside these five, the Gurmukhi script has later adopted another sound represented by ਲ਼ (ḷ).
2. Adhak (ѳੱ )
   1. The adhak conveys which syllable should be stressed. Though used within secondary writings of the Sikhs, the adhak came into use after the Guru Granth Sahib was compiled. Therefore, it does not appear within the text of the Guru Granth Sahib.
   2. Gurmukhi characters emphasized by the adhak will be written twice in the Roman script.
      Example: ਵਡਮੁੱਲਾ (va + ḍa + mu + llā = vaḍmullā)
   3. If more than one Roman alphabet is utilized to represent a Gurmukhi letter that is emphasized by the adhak, then only the first letter will be doubled.
      Example: ਭੱਠੀ (bha + ṭṭhī = bhaṭṭhī)