Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
He washes on the outside, but inside his mind is filthy — and so he loses his place in both worlds.
Here he is sunk in lust, anger, and attachment; hereafter he will sigh and weep.
This one says washing your body cannot clean a dirty heart.
Guru Arjan pictures a person who washes carefully on the outside. Inside, his mind is still muddy. baahar Dho-ay antar man mailaa — he washes outside, but the mind inside is dirty. Think of scrubbing the outside of a lunchbox while old food still sits inside it.
The real dirt is inside. It comes from the Panch Vikaar, the five thieves of the heart, like strong desire, anger, and clinging. While they still run things inside, outer washing wins nothing. He loses his place in both worlds, here and hereafter. No outer bath can reach that inner dirt. (See also Shabad 99 and Shabad 103.)
What kind of 'dirt' can no amount of outer cleaning remove?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI