# Kirtan Sohila Path

> Kirtan Sohila is the Sikh night bani, five shabads occupying angs 12 and 13 of the Guru Granth Sahib, three composed by Guru Nanak, one by Guru Ram Das and one by Guru Arjan. It is recited before sleep, at the close of evening gurudwara ceremonies, and at the antam sanskar, the Sikh funeral rite. A sohila is a song of joy sung at a wedding, and the bani applies that imagery to the meeting of the soul with the Divine.

- **Composed by:** Guru Nanak (three shabads), Guru Ram Das (one) and Guru Arjan (one)
- **Where it sits:** Guru Granth Sahib, angs 12 and 13
- **Structure:** Five shabads across four raag settings: Gauri Deepaki, Aasa, Dhanasari and Gauri Poorbi
- **When recited:** Before sleep, at the close of evening gurudwara ceremonies, and at the antam sanskar
- **How long:** About 5 minutes
- **In Nitnem:** The night bani of Nitnem, recited last in the daily cycle. Not one of the five banis of the Amrit Sanchar
- **This page:** https://sevahey.com/paths/kirtan-sohila/

## What Sevahey does not do

Sevahey does not perform paths. No Sevak recites Kirtan Sohila for you, and this page carries no text, transliteration or recording of the bani. Sevahey also does not conduct or arrange an antam sanskar, and no part of a Sikh funeral rite can be booked through it. What Sevahey arranges is an ardas at a gurudwara, which is a different thing and described below.

This page explains the bani and does not reproduce it. Sevahey publishes no scripture text, transliteration, or recording; for the words themselves, read the Guru Granth Sahib or use a gurudwara's own resource.

## About Kirtan Sohila

Kirtan Sohila closes the Sikh day. It is short, roughly five minutes, and it sits early in the Guru Granth Sahib at angs 12 and 13, among the compositions placed before the volume's arrangement by raag begins in earnest.

The five shabads come from three Gurus and four raag settings. Guru Nanak composed the first three, set in Raag Gauri Deepaki, Raag Aasa and Raag Dhanasari. Guru Ram Das composed the fourth and Guru Arjan the fifth, both in Raag Gauri Poorbi. Reading them in sequence moves from the household to the cremation ground and back to the household again, which is the reason the same bani carries both of its uses.

The name is the key to it. A sohila is the song sung at a wedding, and the bani takes that vocabulary and turns it on the union of the soul with the Divine, which is why a composition recited over the dead is built from wedding imagery rather than lament. The third shabad, in Raag Dhanasari, is the one known separately as the Aarti, and it answers the temple rite of lamps and incense by describing the sky itself as the tray and the stars as the lamps.

That double placement is what devotees ask about most. Kirtan Sohila is recited at bedtime as a matter of daily discipline and it is recited at the antam sanskar as the body is committed to the fire, and Sikh practice treats the two as the same act rather than a coincidence of custom. Sleep and death are addressed in the same words, which is a position about death rather than a convenience of liturgy. Unlike Japji Sahib, Jaap Sahib, Tav-Prasad Savaiye, Chaupai Sahib and Anand Sahib, Kirtan Sohila is not one of the five banis of the Amrit Sanchar.

## The five shabads of Kirtan Sohila

_Three Gurus and four raag settings, in the order they are recited._

| Raag | Composed by | Place in the bani |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Raag Gauri Deepaki | Guru Nanak, the first Guru | First shabad |
| Raag Aasa | Guru Nanak, the first Guru | Second shabad |
| Raag Dhanasari | Guru Nanak, the first Guru | Third shabad, known separately as the Aarti |
| Raag Gauri Poorbi | Guru Ram Das, the fourth Guru | Fourth shabad |
| Raag Gauri Poorbi | Guru Arjan, the fifth Guru | Fifth shabad |

## Where Kirtan Sohila is recited

| Occasion | Practice |
| --- | --- |
| Before sleep | Recited at home as the last of the daily Nitnem banis, after the evening Rehras Sahib |
| Close of evening ceremonies | Recited when the Guru Granth Sahib is taken to its resting place for the night |
| Antam sanskar | Recited at the Sikh funeral rite, as the body is committed to the fire |
| Moving into a new home | Commonly recited at the first night in a house, extending the bedtime use |

## Dates

- **1469–1539** — The life of Guru Nanak, who composed the first three shabads of Kirtan Sohila
- **1534–1581** — The life of Guru Ram Das, the fourth Guru, who composed the fourth shabad
- **1563–1606** — The life of Guru Arjan, the fifth Guru, who composed the fifth shabad and compiled the Adi Granth
- **1604** — The Adi Granth is completed and installed at Harmandir Sahib, with Sohila placed at angs 12 and 13
- **1945** — The SGPC's Sikh Rehat Maryada is published, naming Kirtan Sohila as the bani recited before sleep and at the antam sanskar

## Where traditions differ

One widely repeated claim about this bani deserves care. The third shabad, the Aarti in Raag Dhanasari, is traditionally said to have been composed by Guru Nanak at the Jagannath temple in Puri, in answer to the lamp ceremony performed there. That account comes from the janamsakhis, which are devotional biographies compiled well after Guru Nanak's lifetime and which differ among themselves on the itineraries and settings of his travels. The shabad and its authorship are not in question; the specific setting is traditional rather than documented, and sources that state the Puri occasion as established fact are reporting a tradition without saying so.

## What can be offered in your name

The families who look up Kirtan Sohila are often looking it up for the worst reason, in the days around a death. Sevahey has nothing to offer for the funeral itself, and says so above. What it can do begins later, at the anniversaries: an ardas at a gurudwara in the name of someone who has died, with the granthi speaking the name and the gotra aloud before the Guru Granth Sahib, and a verified Sevak sending you the proof and the hukamnama the same day. Families abroad who cannot travel for a barsi most often ask for exactly this.

- **Seva:** Ardas — https://sevahey.com/seva/ardas/
- **Performed by:** a verified, named Sevak
- **Proof:** GPS-tagged photos, the hukamnama where it applies, timing, and a handwritten note — usually same day

## Questions

### What is Kirtan Sohila?

Kirtan Sohila is the Sikh night bani, made up of five shabads at angs 12 and 13 of the Guru Granth Sahib. Three were composed by Guru Nanak, one by Guru Ram Das and one by Guru Arjan. Devotees recite it before sleep, at the close of evening gurudwara ceremonies, and at the antam sanskar, the Sikh funeral rite.

### When is Kirtan Sohila recited?

Last in the Sikh daily cycle, before sleep, after the evening Rehras Sahib. Kirtan Sohila is also recited in the gurudwara when the Guru Granth Sahib is taken to its resting place for the night, at the antam sanskar, and commonly on a family's first night in a new home.

### Why is Kirtan Sohila recited at Sikh funerals?

Because Sikh practice treats sleep and death in the same terms rather than as separate occasions. Kirtan Sohila is recited nightly before sleep and again at the antam sanskar as the body is committed to the fire, using the same words in both places. The bani is built from wedding imagery describing the meeting of the soul with the Divine, so it reads as union rather than lament.

### How many shabads are in Kirtan Sohila?

Five, drawn from three Gurus and set in four raags. Guru Nanak composed the first three, in Raag Gauri Deepaki, Raag Aasa and Raag Dhanasari. Guru Ram Das composed the fourth and Guru Arjan the fifth, both set in Raag Gauri Poorbi. The whole bani takes about five minutes to recite.

### What does the name Kirtan Sohila mean?

A sohila is a song of joy of the kind sung at a wedding, and kirtan is devotional singing. Kirtan Sohila applies that wedding vocabulary to the union of the soul with the Divine, which explains why a bani recited over the dead is composed in the language of celebration rather than mourning.

### What is the Aarti in Kirtan Sohila?

The Aarti is the third shabad of Kirtan Sohila, composed by Guru Nanak in Raag Dhanasari. It answers the temple rite of lamps and incense by describing the sky itself as the tray and the stars as the lamps, relocating the ceremony from the shrine to the cosmos. Tradition places its composition at the Jagannath temple in Puri, though that setting comes from the janamsakhis rather than from documented record.

### Is Kirtan Sohila part of Nitnem?

Yes, as the night portion. Kirtan Sohila is the last bani of the daily Nitnem cycle across Sikh traditions, recited after the evening Rehras Sahib. Unlike the morning order, which the SGPC and the Damdami Taksal set out differently, the place of Kirtan Sohila at the end of the day is not disputed between traditions.

### Is Kirtan Sohila one of the five banis of the Amrit Sanchar?

No. The five banis recited at the Khalsa initiation are Japji Sahib, Jaap Sahib, Tav-Prasad Savaiye, Chaupai Sahib and Anand Sahib. Kirtan Sohila is a Nitnem bani and the bani of the antam sanskar, but it has no part in the Amrit Sanchar.

### How long does Kirtan Sohila take to recite?

About five minutes, which makes it among the shortest of the Nitnem banis alongside Tav-Prasad Savaiye. Its brevity suits its position at the end of the day, and it is commonly held from memory and recited without a book.

### Can Sevahey arrange a Kirtan Sohila path or a Sikh funeral?

No to both. Sevahey does not perform paths, no Sevak recites a bani on anyone's behalf, and Sevahey does not conduct or arrange an antam sanskar. What a verified Sevak can do is request an ardas in your name and gotra at the gurudwara you choose, including on a death anniversary, and send you the hukamnama and same-day proof.

Sevahey is a service platform. It does not perform paths, and does not promise a spiritual, medical, financial, legal, or personal outcome from any prayer, seva, or ritual.