Verse 139 of 450
Salok Bhagat Kabir, Salok 81 — too vast for all the ink in the seas
ਕਬੀਰ ਸਾਤ ਸਮੁੰਦਹਿ ਮਸੁ ਕਰਉ ਕਲਮ ਕਰਉ ਬਨਰਾਇ ॥
kabeer saat samundeh mas kara-o kalam kara-o banraa-ay.
Kabir, if I could change the seven seas into ink and make all the vegetation my pen,
ਬਸੁਧਾ ਕਾਗਦੁ ਜਉ ਕਰਉ ਹਰਿ ਜਸੁ ਲਿਖਨੁ ਨ ਜਾਇ ॥੮੧॥
basuDhaa kaagad ja-o kara-o har jas likhan na jaa-ay. ||81||
and the earth my paper, even then, I could not write the Praises of the Lord. ||81||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Kabir says: if I made the seven seas into ink, and all the trees and plants into pens,
and the whole earth into paper, even then I could not write down the praises of the One.
The One is bigger than all the words in the world.
The One is greater than anything words could ever hold.
Kabir imagines the biggest writing set possible: saat samundeh mas, the seven seas as ink; kalam kara-o banraa-ay, all the plants as pens; basudhaa kaagad, the whole earth as paper.
Even then, har jas likhan na jaa-ay: the praise of the One cannot be written down. There is always more.
A Question to Sit With
What have you seen that was too wonderful to describe?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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