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 ratī ratu na niklai je tanu cīrai koi.
jo tan rate rab siu tin tani ratu na hoi.51.
-Guru Granth Sahib 1380
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
In the fifty-first stanza, Sheikh Farid says, O Farid! Not even a bit of blood comes out, even if one cuts the body. The bodies that are imbued with the Divine there is no blood in those bodies. What is being said here? We know that if we were really to cut someone’s body, blood would come out. This is the nature of the body! So what kind of body is being talked about here? Sheikh Farid speaks of that body which is full of love, imbued in devotion, dyed in the color of the Divine. The last stanza discussed the external and the internal, emphasizing the importance of cultivating internal virtues rather than merely wearing external garbs. Here, we continue to hear about the body and its internal drenching instead on internal clipping.
Sheikh Farid says that when the body becomes imbued with the Divine such that there is no difference between the devotee and the beloved One, when the body itself becomes Divine-like, then no blood comes out of it. The color of love that runs through the veins does not run out. When those devotees of the One are so in love, they stop thinking about their bodies so much! They are so connected to IkOankar (One creative and Pervasive Force, 1Force, the One) that they do not worry about what will happen to their bodies. They do not worry about food, drink, or sleep. They think only of the One. This is the carefree nature of the lovers of the beloved One. This is the kind of impossibility of this love, the vastness or miraculousness of that state. Sheikh Farid is talking about a different reality—a metaphysical reality—a different way of being. Will we become so in love that we are indistinguishable from the One we love? Will we become so carefree in love that we ‘shed’ these bodies?
