The
saloks of Sheikh Farid
Ji guide the seeker towards life’s true purpose, the devotion to the one absolute Divine, IkOankar. In these saloks, he reminds us that our time in this world is finite; therefore, one must turn to IkOankar without delay. Yet, attachment to transient possessions and relationships causes many to forget this truth, becoming entangled in vices that lead to restlessness and inner turmoil. In contrast, those who cultivate virtues such as love, humility, patience, contentment, selfless service, and righteousness experience the bliss of connection with IkOankar even while living a householder’s life. Their life becomes serene and suffused with inner joy.
pharīdā duhu dīvī balandiā malaku bahiṭhā āi.
gaṛu lītā ghaṭu luṭiā dīvaṛe gaïā bujhāi.48.
-Guru Granth Sahib 1380
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
In the forty-eighth stanza, Sheikh Farid says, O Farid! While both lamps were burning, the Angel of Death came and sat. The Angel took the fort, looted the body, blew out the lamps, and left. The imagery of our dying moment is made vivid. Death comes to destroy the building of this body. Much like Sheikh Farid spoke in a previous stanza about the mansions, pavilions, and attics we build in life—the physical structures that we think will outlast us—the body, too, becomes a sort of building facing its own temporality. Death will come for these bodies. We go through life awake and aware, still having light in our eyes, all the while the Angel of Death comes to sit, as if perched upon our shoulders. In that moment, the fortress of the body is taken, the inner-being is seized, and the light is extinguished.
If we recall the beginning of this series of stanzas, Sheikh Farid urges us to be alert and aware of death and our limited time. He urges us to be thoughtful about our actions so that we do not allow these bodies to be looted. This body is perishable. It can be looted by death at any time. So it is up to us to know our purpose for being here, to make an effort to practice devotion, and to use this limited time wisely. Death can come for us even when both lamps are lit, when our eyes are wide open—even when we are not fading, or deteriorating, or trembling with old age. Will we heed this call now? Will we make these lives fruitful before our lamps are blown out?
