ਆਸਾ ਮਹਲਾ ੫ ॥
aasaa mehlaa 5.
Aasaa, Fifth Mehl:
ਨਿਮਖ ਕਾਮ ਸੁਆਦ ਕਾਰਣਿ ਕੋਟਿ ਦਿਨਸ ਦੁਖੁ ਪਾਵਹਿ ॥
nimakh kaam su-aad kaaran kot dinas dukh paavahi.
For a moment of sexual pleasure, you shall suffer in pain for millions of days.
ਘਰੀ ਮੁਹਤ ਰੰਗ ਮਾਣਹਿ ਫਿਰਿ ਬਹੁਰਿ ਬਹੁਰਿ ਪਛੁਤਾਵਹਿ ॥੧॥
gharee muhat rang maaneh fir bahur bahur pachhutaavahi. ||1||
For an instant, you may savor pleasure, but afterwards, you shall regret it, again and again. ||1||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
For a moment's indulgence of craving, you suffer in pain for ages.
For an instant you may taste pleasure, but afterward you regret it, again and again.
A moment's indulgence can cost a very long regret — see the bad bargain before you make it.
A moment of giving in to craving can cost a very long regret.
Guru Arjan does the math out loud. "A moment" of indulgence. Then "millions of days" of pain. The pleasure is real, but it is short. The cost is long.
Think of eating a whole bag of candy in five minutes, then feeling sick all night. Guru Arjan names the uneven trade plainly. He wants us to see the bad bargain before we make it. Another Aasaa shabad makes the same point.
A Question to Sit With
When has a brief indulgence cost you far more than it gave?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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