Salok Bhagat Kabir, Salok 75 — let hands and heart say the same thing
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Kabir says: why do you show off your wooden prayer beads to people?
You do not remember the Lord in your heart, so what good are these beads?
Prayer beads help when the heart is remembering too.
A japnee is a string of prayer beads, used by people of many faiths to count prayers. Kabir asks, ki-aa dikhlaavahi lo-ay: why show them to people? The beads are kaath kee, only wood.
Hirdai raam na chaythee, if you do not remember the One in your heart, ih japnee ki-aa ho-ay, what use are these beads? Kabir aims at showing off, in any faith. The practice itself is good when the heart is in it.
Think of carrying a basketball everywhere so people think you play, without ever shooting a hoop.
When do your outside actions and your inside feelings match?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI