ek bhagati bhagvān jih prānī kai nāhi mani.
jaise sūkar suān nānak māno tāhi tanu.44.
-Guru Granth Sahib 1428
Guru Teghbahadar Sahib reminds beings of the purpose of life, which is to remember and reflect on the virtues of IkOankar (the Divine). The saloks describe how life is wasted in the entanglements of familial and material attachments distracting from the purpose of life. They inspire seekers to search for deeper meaning beyond the attachment to family and temporary material things and develop a relationship with IkOankar. These saloks gently nudge seekers to live in awareness of IkOankar and see the entire world from that place of realization.
Commentary
Literal Translation
Interpretive Transcreation
Poetical Dimension
Calligraphy
In the forty-fourth stanza, Guru Teghbahadar says, O being! One who does not have the devotion of the adorable One, the one who is to be Adored, in their mind, consider their body as that of a pig or a dog.
In the previous stanza, the Guru explored how we can become like the One. In this stanza, the Guru tells us what happens if we do not inculcate devotion in our minds. Our bodies become like that of a pig or a dog. Here a particular dimension of animalistic behavior is explored for humans to overcome it. What is a pig? A pig is an animal that consumes filth, that eats anything and everything that is gluttonous. What is a dog? A dog also consumes filth. A dog wanders aimlessly, lost, begging, always hungry, never satiated. This is about the body and what it is consuming, greed and aggression, filth in the context described above.
When we cannot pull ourselves out of our pride and attachment and greed and ego, we find ourselves becoming animalistic, willing to consume anything, ravenous in our consumption, and never satisfied. We find ourselves wandering and lost, full of aggression, begging, and always hungry for more. But there is hope! If we have devotion in our minds, we can get rid of these tendencies. We can make our bodies beautiful like the Beautiful; we can make ourselves worthy of being adored like the adorable One. Am I that pig? Am I that dog? If so, how do I change my filthy and greedy behavior?
In the previous stanza, the Guru explored how we can become like the One. In this stanza, the Guru tells us what happens if we do not inculcate devotion in our minds. Our bodies become like that of a pig or a dog. Here a particular dimension of animalistic behavior is explored for humans to overcome it. What is a pig? A pig is an animal that consumes filth, that eats anything and everything that is gluttonous. What is a dog? A dog also consumes filth. A dog wanders aimlessly, lost, begging, always hungry, never satiated. This is about the body and what it is consuming, greed and aggression, filth in the context described above.
When we cannot pull ourselves out of our pride and attachment and greed and ego, we find ourselves becoming animalistic, willing to consume anything, ravenous in our consumption, and never satisfied. We find ourselves wandering and lost, full of aggression, begging, and always hungry for more. But there is hope! If we have devotion in our minds, we can get rid of these tendencies. We can make our bodies beautiful like the Beautiful; we can make ourselves worthy of being adored like the adorable One. Am I that pig? Am I that dog? If so, how do I change my filthy and greedy behavior?
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