The Incomprehensible Vastness of Creation – Japji Sahib (Paurī 22)

Based on Maskeen Ji’s Discourse on Japji Sahib

Introduction

Human beings are natural seekers. From childhood, we look at the world and ask: What is this? Why is it here? Where did it come from? These questions about origin, purpose, and end are woven into the very structure of the mind. Every healthy intellect wonders about the universe, its limits, its beginnings, and its mysteries.

Throughout history, sages, philosophers, and scientists have tried to answer these questions. Religious texts describe realms upon realms; astronomers map stars and galaxies; thinkers explore infinity. Yet the answers always reveal more mystery than certainty.

In Paurī 22 of Japji Sahib, Guru Nānak Dev Ji addresses this timeless human inquiry. He acknowledges the vast traditions of cosmology — from the Vedas to the Qurān — but points out that they too reach exhaustion. Numbers and scriptures cannot capture infinity. The only truthful response, he says, is humility: “Nanak, just say He is great. Only He Himself knows His own expanse.”

This paurī invites us to embrace wonder, to recognize the limits of human knowledge, and to rest in the greatness of the One who alone knows Himself.

Gurbani and Commentary

Countless Realms

ਪਾਤਾਲਾ ਪਾਤਾਲ ਲਖ ਆਗਾਸਾ ਆਗਾਸ॥
pātālā pātāl lakh āgāsā āgās ||
“There are countless netherworlds, countless skies.”

Guru Nānak begins with a sweeping declaration: creation is immeasurable.

Maskeen Ji explains that many traditions, both Indian and Abrahamic, describe the cosmos as layered. Hindu cosmology speaks of seven heavens and seven netherworlds — a total of fourteen realms. Islamic texts also speak of fourteen tabqāt (layers). Guru Gobind Singh Ji in Bachittar Natak mentions these as well, while elsewhere declaring that countless universes exist even in a single pore of the Divine:

“Rom rom kot brahmand ko nivās.”
(In each pore dwell millions of universes.)

Thus, while older traditions spoke of fourteen worlds, Guru Nānak expands the vision beyond all limits. The word lakh here does not mean merely one hundred thousand. In Punjabi idiom, lakh conveys “countless, beyond numbering.” Beneath this earth are endless layers we cannot see; above are skies upon skies, stretching without end.

Modern astronomy only confirms what Guru Nānak declared centuries ago: our earth is not the center, our galaxy is one among billions, and beyond what we can observe lies an expanse beyond comprehension.

The Limits of Sacred Texts

ਓੜਕ ਓੜਕ ਭਾਲਿ ਥਕੇ ਵੇਦ ਕਹਨਿ ਇਕ ਵਾਤ॥
oṛak oṛak bhāl thake ved kahan ik vāt ||
“Searching and searching, the Vedas grew weary; they could only say one thing.”

The Vedas, the foundational scriptures of ancient India, were composed by brilliant rishis who observed the cosmos deeply. They explored the layers of existence, the cycles of time, the structure of the universe. Yet after immense inquiry, their final conclusion was humility: creation is vast, beyond human grasp.

Maskeen Ji points out the significance of this admission. Even the most authoritative scriptures acknowledge their own limits. They grew weary in the search and ended up with one essential statement: there are countless realms; God’s creation cannot be measured.

This is striking. In an age when religious texts were often taken as final authority, Guru Nānak highlights their humility. Even the Vedas, after all their searching, bowed to the mystery of the Infinite.

The Testimony of Other Scriptures

ਸਹਸ ਅਠਾਰਹ ਕਹਨਿ ਕਤੇਬਾ ਅਸੁਲੂ ਇਕੁ ਧਾਤੁ॥
sahas aṭhārah kahan katebā asulū ik dhāt ||
“The scriptures say there are eighteen thousand worlds; but their essence is one.”

Here Guru Nānak acknowledges the Abrahamic traditions — the Qurān, the Bible, the Torah, the Zabūr. Islamic scholars spoke of eighteen thousand universes (ālam), each a realm of creation by God. Christian and Jewish scriptures too narrate the expanse of the cosmos.

Though the numbers differ — fourteen worlds, eighteen thousand universes, sixty-four sciences, or other symbolic figures — the essence is the same: creation is immeasurable, but its source is One.

Maskeen Ji notes that in India, it was said there are sixty-four kinds of knowledge. In Islamic tradition, the “eighteen thousand worlds” may refer to realms of wisdom and learning. Whatever the number, the point remains: diversity abounds, but behind it lies one Essence, one Origin, one Creator.

The Failure of Calculation

ਲੇਖਾ ਹੋਇ ਤ ਲਿਖੀਐ ਲੇਖੈ ਹੋਇ ਵਿਣਾਸੁ॥
lekhā hoi ta likhīai lekhai hoi viṇās ||
“If it could be accounted for, it would be written; but trying to measure it, calculation itself breaks down.”

Guru Nānak addresses the human urge to calculate, measure, and write. Our intellect wants numbers, accounts, statistics. But the Infinite cannot be reduced to figures.

Maskeen Ji explains two meanings here:

1. What can be written has limits.
   The moment something fits into a ledger, it has an end. Infinity by definition cannot be written. If God’s creation could be numbered, it would no longer be infinite.

2. Counting itself collapses.
   If one tries to calculate creation, numbers themselves run out. Even words like asaṅkh (countless) are placeholders, not true numbers. Mathematics, though powerful, is still a human invention. It too is finite. Eventually, counting dissolves into silence.

This is a powerful critique. Human knowledge — whether religious or scientific — is bounded. We can measure galaxies, estimate ages, calculate particles. But when we confront infinity, numbers fall apart.

The Humble Conclusion

ਨਾਨਕ ਵਡਾ ਆਖੀਐ ਆਪੇ ਜਾਣੈ ਆਪੁ॥ ੨੨॥
nānak vaḍā ākhīai āpe jāṇai āp ||22||
“So, O Nānak, simply say: He is great. Only He Himself knows His own vastness.”

This is the heart of the paurī.

What is the seeker to do when faced with mystery? Not reduce it to premature answers, not confine it to numbers, but surrender in humility. The only true praise is to say: You are great, infinitely great.

But how great? Only He knows. God alone comprehends His own being. Human tongues can only stammer “Great, great.”

Maskeen Ji adds: sometimes people say “great” merely because others say it, echoing without realization. But when one truly experiences the Divine, then even the word “great” overflows with sweetness. Declaring God’s greatness from realization lifts the speaker too — the one who calls God great becomes great himself.

Thus Guru Nānak closes: God’s creation cannot be measured, His greatness cannot be captured. All we can do is marvel, surrender, and say: You are great; only You know Yourself.

Thematic Reflections

1. The Natural Question of the Human Mind

Every mind, says Maskeen Ji, is structured to ask questions. What is the beginning? What is the end? What is the origin of this? A healthy mind cannot avoid these inquiries. Religion, philosophy, and science are all expressions of this same search.

Guru Nānak honors the inquiry but redirects its energy. Instead of collapsing into pride — “I know, I have measured” — he points us to humility. Inquiry is natural; arrogance is not.

2. Scriptures Across Traditions

By mentioning both Vedas and katebā (Abrahamic texts), Guru Nānak shows respect for diverse traditions. All seek to describe creation, all admit its vastness, all point to One Creator. The differences of numbers and language are secondary; the shared essence is humility before the Infinite.

3. Science and Spirituality

Modern astronomy confirms Guru Nānak’s vision. We now know there are billions of galaxies, each with billions of stars. Beneath the atomic scale are particles within particles. The universe expands without end.

Science, like scripture, eventually reaches its limits. Equations collapse at singularities; infinity remains ungraspable. Here, spirituality and science converge: both stand before mystery. Guru Nānak teaches that mystery is not a failure but the very doorway to awe.

4. The Dangers of Ego in Knowledge

Knowledge is precious, but it carries a danger: ego. The more we learn, the more we may boast: I know. Guru Nānak warns: the one who claims to know God’s extent will not be honored. To measure the Infinite is to shrink Him, to insult His vastness.

True knowledge is to know that we do not know. True wisdom is humility.

5. The Practice of Saying “Great”

What remains for the seeker? To say, with heart and wonder: “You are great.”

This is not empty repetition. It is a practice of surrender, an act of humility, a declaration of awe. And when spoken from realization, it carries sweetness, joy, and even transformation. The one who says it authentically becomes great himself, lifted by the greatness he acknowledges.

Practical Takeaways

1. Embrace Mystery:
   Do not fear unanswered questions. Creation’s vastness is beyond numbers, and that is its beauty.

2. Respect All Traditions:
   Whether Vedic, Biblical, or Qurānic, scriptures converge in humility before infinity. Honor their shared essence.

3. Beware Ego in Knowledge:
   Learning is good; arrogance is poison. Never reduce the Infinite to your measure.

4. Practice Wonder:
   Cultivate the habit of saying: “Great are You, O Lord.” Not as empty ritual, but as living awe.

5. Live with Humility:
   Recognize that all human accounts end in silence. Only God knows Himself. Rest in that truth.

Conclusion

Paurī 22 of Japji Sahib addresses one of humanity’s oldest quests: to measure creation, to understand its limits. Guru Nānak acknowledges the wisdom of scriptures across cultures, yet shows that they too grow weary. Numbers fail, texts fall silent, intellect collapses.

And in that silence, a new wisdom arises: humility. The only truthful response is to say: “He is great. Only He Himself knows His own vastness.”

Guru Nānak thus shifts us from arrogance to awe, from calculation to wonder, from pride to humility. To declare God great is not ignorance but the highest wisdom — for it acknowledges both the Infinite’s vastness and our own finitude.

When we say “Great” with realization, our hearts expand, our egos dissolve, and we ourselves are lifted. This is the true fruit of knowledge — not measurement, but marvel; not pride, but praise.