In this Dark Age of Kali Yuga, the five thieves instigate alliances and conflicts.
ਕਾਮੁ ਕ੍ਰੋਧੁ ਲੋਭੁ ਮੋਹੁ ਅਭਿਮਾਨੁ ਵਧਾਏ ॥
kaam kroDh lobh moh abhimaan vaDhaa-ay.
Sexual desire, anger, greed, emotional attachment and self-conceit have increased.
ਜਿਸ ਨੋ ਕ੍ਰਿਪਾ ਕਰੇ ਤਿਸੁ ਸਤਸੰਗਿ ਮਿਲਾਏ ॥
jis no kirpaa karay tis satsang milaa-ay.
One who is blessed by the Lord's Grace, joins the Sat Sangat, the True Congregation.
ਹਮਰਾ ਹਰਿ ਧੜਾ ਜਿਨਿ ਏਹ ਧੜੇ ਸਭਿ ਗਵਾਏ ॥੪॥
hamraa har Dharhaa jin ayh Dharhay sabh gavaa-ay. ||4||
My alliance is with the Lord, who has destroyed all these alliances. ||4||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
In plain words
In this troubled age, the five thieves stir up alliances and conflicts.
Lust, anger, greed, attachment, and pride have all grown strong.
But the one blessed by grace joins the true company — my alliance is with the One, who has dissolved all these alliances.
Most conflict is really the five passions in disguise — and the One dissolves them at the root.
The deeper layer
The deepest diagnosis: the five thieves (the Panch Vikaar — kaam, krodh, lobh, moha, ahankaar) are what "instigate alliances and conflicts". Partisanship is not really about the causes people name; it is driven by the passions. The cure is Sat Sangat — and the One who has "destroyed all these alliances," dissolving the very ground of division.
A Question to Sit With
Which of the five — wanting, anger, greed, clinging, pride — most often turns people against each other?
