Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
There is one merchant, and there are five traders.
Twenty-five oxen carry goods that are false and will not last.
Nine poles hold up ten bags.
And the body is tied up with seventy-two ropes.
The body is like a busy trading caravan, and its parts are counted out in a riddle of numbers.
Bhagat Kabir pictures the body as a trading caravan on the road. The one merchant is the soul. The five traders are the five senses — seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and touching. The twenty-five oxen are the elements that make up the body. The nine poles and ten bags are the body's openings and gates. Seventy-two ropes tie the whole thing together.
And what is all this effort hauling? Kaach — false goods, things that will not last. Think of a delivery truck working hard all day, only to carry boxes full of packing foam. The caravan is busy, but the cargo is empty.
If your day were a cart, what are you loading it up with?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI