Naam, in Sikh usage, refers not to any single word but to God's presence and nature as it can be known and held in mind, and simran means remembrance or recollection. Naam simran is therefore the discipline of keeping that remembrance continuously present, whether through silent repetition, the recitation of Gurbani (the compositions of the Gurus recorded in the Guru Granth Sahib), or communal kirtan, devotional singing. Guru Nanak's own teaching places naam simran alongside kirat karni, honest labor, and vand chakna, sharing what one has, as one of three pillars of Sikh practice, so that inward remembrance is meant to run alongside, not instead of, an active working life.
The Guru Granth Sahib repeatedly distinguishes naam simran from empty ritual repetition. Mechanical recitation without inward attention is criticized throughout the scripture in the same terms as ritual bathing performed without a change of heart; the discipline is valued specifically for its effect on the practitioner's inner state, gradually displacing haumai, the self-centered ego Sikh doctrine identifies as the fundamental barrier between a person and God, with humility and awareness of the divine presence in all things.