Verse 67 of 450
Salok Bhagat Kabir, Salok 9 — the one thing worth conquering
ਕਬੀਰ ਸੋਈ ਮਾਰੀਐ ਜਿਹ ਮੂਐ ਸੁਖੁ ਹੋਇ ॥
kabeer so-ee maaree-ai jih moo-ai sukh ho-ay.
Kabir, kill only that, which, when killed, shall bring peace.
ਭਲੋ ਭਲੋ ਸਭੁ ਕੋ ਕਹੈ ਬੁਰੋ ਨ ਮਾਨੈ ਕੋਇ ॥੯॥
bhalo bhalo sabh ko kahai buro na maanai ko-ay. ||9||
Everyone shall call you good, very good, and no one shall think you are bad. ||9||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Kabir says: put an end only to the thing whose ending brings peace.
Then everyone will call you good, very good, and no one will think you are bad.
The only thing worth defeating is the ego that wants to defeat others.
The one thing worth putting to an end is the thing whose ending brings peace: your own ego.
So-ee maaree-ai jih moo-ai sukh ho-ay: strike down only that which brings peace when it is gone. Kabir uses the language of battle and points it inward, at haumai, the ego (the feeling of being a separate self). Ending it harms no one, and everyone around calls you bhalo bhalo, good, very good.
A Question to Sit With
What is one prideful habit you would be happier without?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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