It existed in many versions in the 16th-century before it was given its final form by Guru Arjan in the 17th century. The verse is repeated in the Sikh scripture before numerous Shabad, or hymns. It is rather 'Guru Nanak's mystical awareness of the one that is expressed through the many.' The remaining ten words after the first two are literally translated as true name, the creator, without fear, without hate, timeless in form, beyond birth, self-existent, (known by) the grace of Guru.
The general view favors the monotheistic interpretation, but not the Semitic understanding of monotheism.
Some consider it monotheistic, others monist. Sometimes the disagreements include capitalizing g in god, or r in reality, which affects the implied meaning in English. These are rendered as 'There is one god', 'One reality is', 'This being is one' and others. It has been variously translated, with the interpretation of the first two words particularly contested. They summarize the essential teaching of Guru Nanak, thus constituting a succinct doctrinal statement of Sikhism. It consists of twelve words in the Punjabi language, written in Gurmukhi script, and are the most widely known among the Sikhs. The Mūl Mantar ( Punjabi: ਮੂਲ ਮੰਤਰ, IPA: ) is the opening verse of the Sikh scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib.
