Mool Mantar Meaning, Word by Word: Ik Onkar, Sat Naam, Karta Purakh and the Rest Explained

The Mool Mantar (ਮੂਲ ਮੰਤਰ, "the root verse") is the opening line of the Guru Granth Sahib and the most concentrated statement of Sikh belief: ੴ ਸਤਿ ਨਾਮੁ ਕਰਤਾ ਪੁਰਖੁ ਨਿਰਭਉ ਨਿਰਵੈਰੁ ਅਕਾਲ ਮੂਰਤਿ ਅਜੂਨੀ ਸੈਭੰ ਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥ — Ik Onkar, Sat Naam, Karta Purakh, Nirbhau, Nirvair, Akaal Moorat, Ajooni, Saibhang, Gur Prasaad. Composed by Guru Nanak, it says that there is one Creator, whose name is Truth, who made everything, who is without fear and without hatred, beyond time and beyond birth, self-existent, and known through the Guru's grace. Here is every word with its Gurmukhi, pronunciation and meaning, what the ੴ symbol is, and the reading rule that trips up almost everyone who sounds it out for the first time.

The Mool Mantar, Word by Word

Word	Gurmukhi	Pronunciation	Literally	Meaning
Ik Onkar	ੴ	ik oan-KAAR	ik (one) + Onkar (the primal creative sound / the Creator)	There is one God, one Creator of all
Sat Naam	ਸਤਿ ਨਾਮੁ	sat naam	sat (true, truth) + naam (name)	Whose name is Truth — reality itself, not a title
Karta Purakh	ਕਰਤਾ ਪੁਰਖੁ	KUR-taa PU-rukh	karta (doer, maker) + purakh (being, person)	The Creator, the Being who does everything
Nirbhau	ਨਿਰਭਉ	nir-BHAU	nir (without) + bhau (fear)	Without fear
Nirvair	ਨਿਰਵੈਰੁ	nir-VAIR	nir (without) + vair (enmity)	Without hatred or enmity — hostile to no one
Akaal Moorat	ਅਕਾਲ ਮੂਰਤਿ	a-KAAL MOO-rat	a-kaal (not subject to time) + moorat (form, image)	Timeless, deathless form — beyond time
Ajooni	ਅਜੂਨੀ	a-JOO-nee	a (not) + jooni (birth, womb)	Unborn — beyond birth and death, outside the cycle of rebirth
Saibhang	ਸੈਭੰ	sai-BHUNG	self-existent (from swayambhu)	Self-existent, self-illuminated — created by no one
Gur Prasaad	ਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ	gur pra-SAAD	gur (Guru) + prasaad (grace, gift)	Known by the Guru's grace

What It Says, in One Breath

Read together: There is one Creator of all, whose name is Truth; who made everything and acts in everything; who fears nothing and hates no one; who is beyond time and beyond birth; who exists of itself alone — and who is realised through the Guru's grace. The first eight terms describe God; the ninth tells you how a human being comes to know that God: not by effort alone, but by grace, through the Guru.

Everything else in Sikhi unfolds from these nine phrases. Ik rules out every division of humanity by caste or creed — one Creator, one creation. Nirvair is why the gurdwara feeds everyone who walks in. Akaal is in the greeting Sat Sri Akaal ("the Timeless One is truth") and in Akaal Takht, the seat of Sikh authority. Karta Purakh is why work and the world are not to be renounced but lived in honestly.

The ੴ Symbol

The first word of the Mool Mantar is written not with letters but with a symbol: ੴ. It is the Gurmukhi numeral ੧ (one) joined to the vowel letter ਓ (o, for Onkar) whose tail is drawn out into a long open curve — read as "Ik Onkar" (also spelled Ek Onkar). The open tail is traditionally understood as the endlessness of the One. You'll see ੴ on the Nishan Sahib flag outside every gurdwara, above doorways, on the first page of every Sikh prayer book, in jewellery and tattoos — it is the Sikh symbol in the way the cross or the crescent is for other faiths, alongside the Khanda.

Reading It in Gurmukhi: The Rule Everyone Trips On

Sound out ਨਾਮੁ letter by letter and you get naamu; ਪੁਰਖੁ gives purakhu; ਮੂਰਤਿ gives moorati. But the words are read naam, purakh, moorat. In the grammar of Gurbani, a sihari (ਿ) or aunkar (ੁ) at the end of a word is a grammatical marker — it shows case, number or gender — and is not pronounced as a full vowel. The same applies to ਨਿਰਵੈਰੁ (nirvair) and ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ (prasaad). Modern Punjabi dropped these endings centuries ago, which is why they look strange to anyone who learned to read from newspapers. Inside a word the signs are normal: ਸਤਿ is sat, but the ਿ in ਨਿਰਭਉ is a full i. Our guide to reading Gurbani covers the other rules; the signs themselves are explained in Gurmukhi vowel signs.

Written	Sounded out	Read as
ਸਤਿ ਨਾਮੁ	sa-ti naa-mu	sat naam
ਕਰਤਾ ਪੁਰਖੁ	kar-taa pu-ra-khu	karta purakh
ਨਿਰਵੈਰੁ	nir-vai-ru	nirvair
ਅਕਾਲ ਮੂਰਤਿ	a-kaal moo-ra-ti	akaal moorat
ਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ	gur pra-saa-di	gur prasaad

Where You'll Hear the Mool Mantar

• At the start of Japji Sahib, Guru Nanak's morning prayer and the first composition in the Guru Granth Sahib — so every Sikh who does nitnem (daily prayers) begins the day with it.
• At the head of each section of the Guru Granth Sahib, in full or in its short form ੴ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ (Ik Onkar Satgur Prasaad, "One God, realised by the True Guru's grace"), which also opens most individual shabads.
• In kirtan and simran — sung, or repeated meditatively; many Sikhs recite it at moments of fear or decision.
• As a first text for learners: it's short, it's everywhere, and once you can read it you've met the hardest reading rule in Gurbani.

The Mool Mantar is Sikhi's answer to "what do you believe?" — which is why, if you're learning Punjabi for a Sikh partner or to reconnect with your own family, it's worth knowing not just to read but to understand. For the wider vocabulary of the gurdwara, see Sikh prayer and gurdwara words, and for a first visit, gurdwara etiquette.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Ik Onkar mean?

Ik Onkar (ੴ) means "there is one God" or "one Creator" — ik is "one" and Onkar is the primal creative force or sound from which all creation comes. It is the first word of the Guru Granth Sahib and the central Sikh symbol.

What is the Mool Mantar?

The Mool Mantar ("root verse") is the opening statement of the Guru Granth Sahib, composed by Guru Nanak: Ik Onkar, Sat Naam, Karta Purakh, Nirbhau, Nirvair, Akaal Moorat, Ajooni, Saibhang, Gur Prasaad — a nine-part description of God and how God is known.

What does Sat Naam mean?

Sat Naam (ਸਤਿ ਨਾਮੁ) means "True Name" or "whose name is Truth" — God is identified with truth and reality itself. Satnam Waheguru, repeated together, is one of the most common Sikh expressions of devotion.

How do you pronounce the Mool Mantar?

Ik oan-kaar, sat naam, kar-taa pu-rakh, nir-bhau, nir-vair, a-kaal moo-rat, a-joo-nee, sai-bhang, gur pra-saad. The sihari and aunkar at the ends of ਨਾਮੁ, ਪੁਰਖੁ, ਨਿਰਵੈਰੁ, ਮੂਰਤਿ and ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ are grammatical and are not pronounced as full vowels.

Read the Mool Mantar in the Original Script

Nine words, one page of Gurmukhi — and the whole of Sikhi opens from there. Alfaazo teaches the Gurmukhi script letter by letter with stroke-by-stroke writing guides and native audio, alongside everyday Punjabi, in bite-sized lessons you can finish in five minutes a day. Free on iOS and Android.