Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The One shaped each of us like a vessel and fills each in its own way — some lives sweet, some tested by fire.
And grace makes a heart beautiful — the One adorns those it looks upon with kindness.
This shalok returns to the potter-and-vessel image: He Himself fashioned the vessel of the body, and He Himself fills it. And it's honest that vessels are filled differently: into some, milk is poured, while others remain on the fire; some sleep on soft beds, while others stay watchful. Lives really do differ — some sweet and easeful, some tested and hard. The verse doesn't pretend otherwise. But it ends on where beauty comes from: He adorns those upon whom He casts His Glance of Grace. What makes a life truly lovely isn't whether it got 'milk' or 'fire,' soft bed or hard watch — it's grace, the One's kind attention, which can make any vessel beautiful. Your circumstances aren't the measure of you; grace is, and it's available to every vessel.
What makes a life beautiful, if it isn't whether things were easy or hard?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI