ਚਾਕੀ ਚਾਟਹਿ ਚੂਨੁ ਖਾਹਿ ॥
chaakee chaateh choon khaahi.
You lick the grinding bowl, and eat the flour.
ਚਾਕੀ ਕਾ ਚੀਥਰਾ ਕਹਾਂ ਲੈ ਜਾਹਿ ॥੨॥
chaakee kaa cheethraa kahaaN lai jaahi. ||2||
Where have you taken the kitchen rags? ||2||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
You lick the grinding bowl and eat up the flour.
And where have you taken the kitchen rags?
Grabbing what is not yours always gets noticed in the end.
Greed sneaks a taste of what is not its own. Chaakee chaateh choon khaahi — you lick the grinding bowl and eat the flour. Chaakee is the grinding stone; choon is the flour. Then Kabir asks, where have you taken the kitchen rags?
It is a funny picture of a creature caught in the act. Think of a little brother with cookie crumbs all over his face, saying, "What cookies?" Kabir laughs at greed so we can spot it in ourselves.
A Question to Sit With
What is the difference between sharing something and just taking it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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