A question someone online asked about an icon image of Guru Nanak: “Can you please tell me more about the symbol on Guru Nanak’s palm?” What are the letters and what do they mean? Some might assume the language is Hindi and the Word is AUM or OM. Close but not quite. ੴ means “God is One.” It is made up of two characters, the Punjabi character for the number ‘one’ and the Punjabi letter ‘Urha’ for ‘Onkar’ or ‘OMkaar’, meaning ‘God’ (or God of Sound). In many icon images of Guru Nanak, one often sees the same symbol on Guru Nanak’s palm. When a spiritual Master is waving to us in this way, showing the palm of the hand, this means he is giving us his blessing. The symbol: Ekankar (Ik Onkar ੴ, ਇਕ ਓਅੰਕਾਰ) means “God is One.” It is made up of two characters, the Punjabi character for the number ‘one’ and the Punjabi letter ‘Urha’ for ‘Onkar’ meaning ‘God’. Ik Onkar/Ek Ong Kaar/Ekankar -- these are also alternate spellings of “AUM” or “OM” — the OMkaar and refers to the Sound Current, the Divine Sound of the cosmos. “Ek Ong Kaar” is in the opening verses of Guru Nanak’s Jap Ji (Morning Prayer), along with countless other references to Ekankar (Ik Onkar ੴ, ਇਕ ਓਅੰਕਾਰ) found in the Adi Granth/Sikh Scriptures of India. Ik Onkar is also the first phrase in the Mool Mantra, the opening phrase of Guru Nanak’s Jap Ji (Morning Prayer) in the Guru Granth (Sikh Scriptures or Adi Granth).
