ਕਿਰਤੁ ਪਇਆ ਨਿੰਦਕ ਬਪੁਰੇ ਕਾ ਕਿਆ ਓਹੁ ਕਰੈ ਬਿਚਾਰਾ ॥
kirat pa-i-aa nindak bapuray kaa ki-aa oh karai bichaaraa.
Such is the fate of the wretched slanderer - what can the poor creature do?
ਤਹਾ ਬਿਗੂਤਾ ਜਹ ਕੋਇ ਨ ਰਾਖੈ ਓਹੁ ਕਿਸੁ ਪਹਿ ਕਰੇ ਪੁਕਾਰਾ ॥੨॥
tahaa bigootaa jah ko-ay na raakhai oh kis peh karay pukaaraa. ||2||
He is ruined there, where no one can protect him; with whom should he lodge his complaint? ||2||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Such is the fate of the wretched slanderer — what can the poor soul do?
He is ruined where no one can shield him; to whom can he even bring his complaint?
There is something pitiable in the one trapped by their own contempt.
A note of pity, not gloating: "what can the poor creature do?" The slanderer is trapped in a ruin of his own making, with no one to shield him and no one to appeal to. Guru Arjan looks on the slanderer with sorrow — the contempt that harms others has cornered the one who carries it.
A Question to Sit With
Can you feel compassion even for someone whose own bitterness has cornered them?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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