Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
A carver shapes a stone and even stands on it while working — treating it as just a stone.
So how could that same stone, once carved, be the living power everyone bows to?
This one says the holy is not something people make with their hands.
Kabir points to a simple mix-up. A sculptor carves the stone into a statue. While he works, he even rests his feet on its chest. He treats it as the plain stone it is.
Then Kabir asks: if this were truly a living god, would it let itself be stood on? It would have eaten up the sculptor!
It is said with a wink, not to be cruel. It is like making a snowman and then being scared of it. You know you built it. Kabir uses plain common sense to point past the object to the living One. No chisel can carve that One. The One is not something we make. The One is the life that made us.
Can the biggest, most alive things — like love, or life itself — be carved or bought? Why not?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI