Week 6 of WordWise Wednesdays is here!
The Word of the Week is:
अनहद / अनाहत
Anhad/ Anahat
Anhad, also called Anahat, means unstruck (without two things colliding) or limitless or boundless.
Anhad is often used with the suffixes ‘naad’, ‘bani’, or ‘shabd’, and refers to the eternal, cosmic vibration with no beginning or end.
It has profound spiritual significance in Yogic philosophy, Gurbani, & Bhakti poetry of Saint Kabir.
Anhad Naad is self-created and independent of any physical instrument or friction. It is described as the primordial echo or background hum of the universe, like Aum or Ik Onkar.
Anhad Naad/ Bani is described as the eternal, infinite vibration that cannot be perceived by external senses & can be experienced only through deep spiritual awareness & meditation.
Etymology:
– Originating from Sanskrit, where अन means not/without, and हद means limit, or आहत means to strike or beat, अनहद or अनाहत translates to “unstruck,” “unhurt,” or “limitless”.
– नाद (Naad) means sound in Sanskrit.
– In Pali, it means pure or immaculate.
– In Prakrit it means eternal.
– In Prakrit, Braj, Punjabi, and Hindi, anāhata evolved into anhad or anhat.
– Had Anhad (हद अनहद) translates literally from Hindi/Urdu/Sanskrit as “Bounded and Boundless” or “Limit and the Limitless”.
Insights:
– Guru Nanak Dev ji has described the experience of Anhad Naad as the highest state of spiritual realisation, where the soul transcends the material world (maya) and merges with the divine.
– In Yoga, the term Anhad Naad is associated with the awakening of the Kundalini through the practice of Yoga.
– A famous quote of Saint Kabir:
हद हद टपे सो औलिया, बेहद टपे सो पीर।
हद अनहद दोनों टपे, सो वाको नाम फ़क़ीर॥
Meaning: He who walks within boundaries (Had) is a Saint (Auliya). He who transitions into the boundless (Behad) becomes a Master (Peer). But the one who completely transcends both the limited (Had) and the unlimited (Anhad), that soul is a true Mystic (Faqir).
– A verse from Gurbani:
ਮਾਈ ਰੀ ਪੇਖਿ ਰਹੀ ਬਿਸਮਾਦ ॥
ਅਨਹਦ ਧੁਨੀ ਮੇਰਾ ਮਨੁ ਮੋਹਿਓ ਅਚਰਜ ਤਾ ਕੇ ਸ੍ਵਾਦ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥
Hindi: माई री पेखि रही बिसमाद ॥
अनहद धुनी मेरा मनु मोहिओ अचरज ता के स्वाद ॥१॥
Meaning: O mother, I am wonder-struck, gazing upon the Lord. My mind is captivated by the unstruck celestial melody; its flavour is amazing! ||1||Pause||
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