Salok Bhagat Kabir, Salok 56 — when the colors dissolve
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Kabir says: turmeric is yellow, and lime is white.
You will meet the Beloved Lord only when both colors are lost, the way they vanish when the two are mixed.
The Beloved is met when the colors that set us apart are gone.
Hardee, turmeric, is pee-aree, yellow. Choonnaan, lime powder, is oojal, white. Mix the two and something surprising happens: they turn a deep red, and neither yellow nor white is left.
Raam sanayhee, the loving One, is met don-o baran gavaa-ay, when both colors are lost. Baran means color, and it is also the word for a person's caste or social group. So the picture points to letting go of every label that says "I am this and you are that."
Think of two paints swirled into a new color. You can no longer point to where one ends and the other begins.
What are some labels people use to set themselves apart from others?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI