Verse 424 of 450
Salok Sheikh Farid, Salok 123 — a crane I took for a swan
ਮੈ ਜਾਣਿਆ ਵਡ ਹੰਸੁ ਹੈ ਤਾਂ ਮੈ ਕੀਤਾ ਸੰਗੁ ॥
mai jaani-aa vad hans hai taaN mai keetaa sang.
I knew him as a great swan, so I associated with him.
ਜੇ ਜਾਣਾ ਬਗੁ ਬਪੁੜਾ ਜਨਮਿ ਨ ਭੇੜੀ ਅੰਗੁ ॥੧੨੩॥
jay jaanaa bag bapurhaa janam na bhayrhee ang. ||123||
If I had known that he was a only wretched crane, I would never in my life have crossed paths with him. ||123||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
I thought he was a great swan, so I stayed close to him.
If I had known he was only a poor crane, I would never in my life have gone near him.
I took a crane for a swan — look past the outside.
Someone who looks like a swan may turn out to be a crane, so look past the outside.
Mai jaani-aa vad hans hai: I took him for a great swan, a pure and wise soul. Taa(n) mai keetaa sang: so I kept his company. Bag bapurhaa: a poor crane, someone who only looked holy.
Janam na bhayrhee ang: I would never have gone near him. Think of a shiny apple that is brown inside. The outside can fool us; what matters is what someone is like within.
A Question to Sit With
How can you tell what someone is like on the inside?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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