Salok Vaaraan Te Vadheek (Mehl 1), Salok 1 — Pride That Cannot Bow, and Towers That Fall
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
There is only One. Its Name is Truth. It is the Creator of all. It is fearless and full of love, beyond time, never born, shining on its own. And the One is found by the Guru's grace — a gift that is always here, waiting for an open heart.
O young bride, standing so tall and proud in your youth, let your heart grow deep and steady.
She says: "O mother-in-law, how can I bow? My young body is too stiff and proud to bend."
O friend, I have seen mansions as high as mountains, their walls plastered bright white —
I have seen even those come crashing down. O bride, do not be so proud of your young body.
Pride in the body makes a person too stiff to bow, and even the tallest mansions fall.
The picture is a young bride, proud of her youthful body, who tells her mother-in-law she cannot bend. The verse uses a bodily image for the stiffness that pride brings: a person too pleased with themselves to honor anyone. Against it stands gahiree gambheeree, a heart that is deep and steady.
Then comes the answer. Gach je lagaa: mansions plastered white, as high as mountains, and yet say bhee dhahday dith mai, I have seen even those fall. If stone towers do not last, a body that is young today has nothing solid to be proud of.
When did you last find it hard to say sorry or to bow to someone, and what was your pride protecting?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI