paüṛī.
dānu mahinḍā talī khāku je milai ta mastaki lāīai.
kūṛā lālacu chaḍīai hoi ik mani alakhu dhiāīai.
phalu tevaho pāīai jevehī kār kamāīai
je hovai pūrabi likhiā tā dhūṛi tin̖ā dī pāīai.
mati thoṛī sev gavāīai.10.
dānu mahinḍā talī khāku je milai ta mastaki lāīai.
kūṛā lālacu chaḍīai hoi ik mani alakhu dhiāīai.
phalu tevaho pāīai jevehī kār kamāīai
je hovai pūrabi likhiā tā dhūṛi tin̖ā dī pāīai.
mati thoṛī sev gavāīai.10.
paüṛī. |
dānu mahinḍā talī khāku je milai ta mastaki lāīai. |
kūṛā lālacu chaḍīai hoi ik mani alakhu dhiāīai. |
phalu tevaho pāīai jevehī kār kamāīai |
je hovai pūrabi likhiā tā dhūṛi tin̖ā dī pāīai. |
mati thoṛī sev gavāīai.10. |
Guru Nanak says that the real charity or service is to take the dust of the soles of the feet of those who have gotten to this fifth step (who have gotten rid of the temporary and the greed and become very focused in the mind, connected to the Eternal) and apply it to the forehead. What the Guru is exploring is the question of who we learn from, and how we can learn in humility.
The way we act in life bears fruit or results according to the kind of action we have taken (which is to say, we reap what we sow). And so this kind of mentorship, from those who have reached this fifth step, is something that comes to us if it has been written for us. But this is not just about destiny, it is rising from the 1Force. The statement is really that anyone from the source or the origin, anyone rooted in this 1-Ness, has access to the possibility of reaching this point, of being mentored and of being humble in their learning. Each one of us has this potential embedded in our very being.
If we do not have that mentorship from those who have reached this stage, the service we perform in the world becomes worthless, because we do not have the mental and emotional capacity to understand what it is we are doing. This is not just about having the thought of changing. This is not just about behavioral changes. This is about changing our hearts and minds, not just our intellect, and pairing that with behavioral changes that we process through this new internal discovered truth. If the way we think and process has not been transformed through the procedure outlined in the previous verse, then the efforts we do make in changing our behaviors go to waste, and we become frustrated. This is not about surrounding ourselves with certain people. It is not about going to people who have claimed to experience the Wisdom. It is about an active mentorship from someone who has done the hard work and who can guide us as we go through the same internal and external transformation, leading us to the internal truth discussed in previous ballads and connecting us to the Eternal.
The way we act in life bears fruit or results according to the kind of action we have taken (which is to say, we reap what we sow). And so this kind of mentorship, from those who have reached this fifth step, is something that comes to us if it has been written for us. But this is not just about destiny, it is rising from the 1Force. The statement is really that anyone from the source or the origin, anyone rooted in this 1-Ness, has access to the possibility of reaching this point, of being mentored and of being humble in their learning. Each one of us has this potential embedded in our very being.
If we do not have that mentorship from those who have reached this stage, the service we perform in the world becomes worthless, because we do not have the mental and emotional capacity to understand what it is we are doing. This is not just about having the thought of changing. This is not just about behavioral changes. This is about changing our hearts and minds, not just our intellect, and pairing that with behavioral changes that we process through this new internal discovered truth. If the way we think and process has not been transformed through the procedure outlined in the previous verse, then the efforts we do make in changing our behaviors go to waste, and we become frustrated. This is not about surrounding ourselves with certain people. It is not about going to people who have claimed to experience the Wisdom. It is about an active mentorship from someone who has done the hard work and who can guide us as we go through the same internal and external transformation, leading us to the internal truth discussed in previous ballads and connecting us to the Eternal.
My charity is the dust of the feet of those who have Identification (Nam) in their heart. If received, then it may be applied to the forehead.
Let us forsake the transient greed of the world and its material objects, and with a focused mind, contemplate the imperceptible Creator.
One faces consequences in life according to one’s actions.
The company of those who adore Identification (Nam) is received, only if such a fortune is pre-written.
The service performed in life with limited understanding becomes worthless.
Let us forsake the transient greed of the world and its material objects, and with a focused mind, contemplate the imperceptible Creator.
One faces consequences in life according to one’s actions.
The company of those who adore Identification (Nam) is received, only if such a fortune is pre-written.
The service performed in life with limited understanding becomes worthless.
My charity is dust of the soles (of the feet); if received, then it may be applied on the forehead.
Let us forsake false greed (and) contemplate the Unseen single-mindedly.
As is the action done, so is the fruit received.
If it is pre-written, then the dust of (the feet of) those is received.
With little intellect the service is lost.
Let us forsake false greed (and) contemplate the Unseen single-mindedly.
As is the action done, so is the fruit received.
If it is pre-written, then the dust of (the feet of) those is received.
With little intellect the service is lost.
First line of the pauri ‘dānu mahinḍā talī khāku’ (my charity is dust of the soles) is a symbolic statement, that indicates intense dedication and respect towards the lovers of IkOankar, by expressing a desire to apply the dust of their feet on the forehead. This statement, which is popular as an axiom, is a beautiful example of a proverb.
In the second line, the word ‘alakhu’ (the unseeable/invisible One) is describing a quality/speciality of IkOankar; consequently there is eulogy here.
By employing simple linguistic expression in the third and the fourth line, it has been suggested that one has to bear the consequences of one’s actions, and the dust of the feet of the lovers of IkOankar is received only by good fortune. Here, the phrase ‘pūrabi likhiā’ (pre-written) has a special significance. In the South-Asian tradition, there is a belief that the destiny of a being is prewritten/preordained. That belief is exploited here in the form of a symbolic statement/an axiom that points to an individual’s fortune and actions.
The line ‘mati thoṛī sev gavāīai’ (with little intellect the service is lost) also employs simple linguistic expression and informs that service rendered with our own limited understanding goes in vain.
In the second line, the word ‘alakhu’ (the unseeable/invisible One) is describing a quality/speciality of IkOankar; consequently there is eulogy here.
By employing simple linguistic expression in the third and the fourth line, it has been suggested that one has to bear the consequences of one’s actions, and the dust of the feet of the lovers of IkOankar is received only by good fortune. Here, the phrase ‘pūrabi likhiā’ (pre-written) has a special significance. In the South-Asian tradition, there is a belief that the destiny of a being is prewritten/preordained. That belief is exploited here in the form of a symbolic statement/an axiom that points to an individual’s fortune and actions.
The line ‘mati thoṛī sev gavāīai’ (with little intellect the service is lost) also employs simple linguistic expression and informs that service rendered with our own limited understanding goes in vain.