Raag Bhairao, Shabad (five stanzas with rahau), Bhagat Kabir
As many living beings as there are, that many get swept up in its spell.
The Arc
Look around and you see the pull of wanting everywhere. A fish bites the bait. A moth flies too close to the flame. An elephant is pulled by its longing. Flies get stuck in sugar. Birds, deer, horses and camels are all caught up. Even masters with wondrous powers, sages who keep strict discipline, the sun and the moon move inside the same pull. Dogs and lions, cats and foxes, even trees and their roots are planted in it. The gods, the oceans and the earth are soaked in it. Anyone with a belly to fill feels it. You get free by staying close to holy people, the ones who have already stepped clear. At the centre, the Rahao: Maya's charm is so strong that it fools as many living beings as there are.
Key Vocabulary
Maa-i-aa — here, the web of craving and attachment (not merely "illusion" or "wealth"). Mohnee — the bewitching, enchanting power. Dehkaa-ee — fooled, swept up. Siddh / chauraaseeh siddh — the eighty-four accomplished yogis. Kaal — time. Panch doot — the five inner troublemakers: lust, anger, greed, attachment and pride. Udar — belly; "whoever has a belly has Maya." Saadhoo / saadh sangat — a holy soul; the Sangat, people gathered together to remember the One.
Themes and Cross-Connections
The hymn is a study in universality: no creature, no sage, no god is exempt from craving, which removes any ground for looking down on the "weak." This links to the scripture's steady insight that liberation grows in company — the Sangat. Kabir's use of ordinary animals over abstract argument is characteristic of his grounded, weaver's voice.
For Raag Bhairao
Bhairao's bright, awake energy suits a hymn that wants you to see clearly — to notice the enchantment rather than drift in it. The closing note is a doorway: the company of holy people is the way through.
Hukumnama
Subject: Wanting can fool every living thing Preview: a fish on a hook, a moth at the flame, a fly in sugar, sun and moon, trees planted in the same soil.
Today: Look around and you see the pull of wanting everywhere. A fish bites the bait. A moth flies too close to the flame. An elephant is pulled by its longing. Flies get stuck in sugar. Birds, deer, horses and camels are all caught up. Even masters with wondrous powers, sages who keep strict discipline, the sun and the moon move inside the same pull. Dogs and lions, cats and foxes, even trees and their roots are planted in it. The gods, the oceans and the earth are soaked in it. Anyone with a belly to fill feels it. You get free by staying close to holy people, the ones who have already stepped clear.
The charm of Maya is so strong that it fools every living being.
For today: When you feel a strong pull to grab one more thing, pause, name the pull, and take one slow breath.
As many living beings as there are, that many get swept up in its spell.
The Arc
Look around and you see the pull of wanting everywhere. A fish bites the bait. A moth flies too close to the flame. An elephant is pulled by its longing. Flies get stuck in sugar. Birds, deer, horses and camels are all caught up. Even masters with wondrous powers, sages who keep strict discipline, the sun and the moon move inside the same pull. Dogs and lions, cats and foxes, even trees and their roots are planted in it. The gods, the oceans and the earth are soaked in it. Anyone with a belly to fill feels it. You get free by staying close to holy people, the ones who have already stepped clear. At the centre, the Rahao: Maya's charm is so strong that it fools as many living beings as there are.
Key Vocabulary
Maa-i-aa — here, the web of craving and attachment (not merely "illusion" or "wealth"). Mohnee — the bewitching, enchanting power. Dehkaa-ee — fooled, swept up. Siddh / chauraaseeh siddh — the eighty-four accomplished yogis. Kaal — time. Panch doot — the five inner troublemakers: lust, anger, greed, attachment and pride. Udar — belly; "whoever has a belly has Maya." Saadhoo / saadh sangat — a holy soul; the Sangat, people gathered together to remember the One.
Themes and Cross-Connections
The hymn is a study in universality: no creature, no sage, no god is exempt from craving, which removes any ground for looking down on the "weak." This links to the scripture's steady insight that liberation grows in company — the Sangat. Kabir's use of ordinary animals over abstract argument is characteristic of his grounded, weaver's voice.
For Raag Bhairao
Bhairao's bright, awake energy suits a hymn that wants you to see clearly — to notice the enchantment rather than drift in it. The closing note is a doorway: the company of holy people is the way through.
Hukumnama
Subject: Wanting can fool every living thing Preview: a fish on a hook, a moth at the flame, a fly in sugar, sun and moon, trees planted in the same soil.
Today: Look around and you see the pull of wanting everywhere. A fish bites the bait. A moth flies too close to the flame. An elephant is pulled by its longing. Flies get stuck in sugar. Birds, deer, horses and camels are all caught up. Even masters with wondrous powers, sages who keep strict discipline, the sun and the moon move inside the same pull. Dogs and lions, cats and foxes, even trees and their roots are planted in it. The gods, the oceans and the earth are soaked in it. Anyone with a belly to fill feels it. You get free by staying close to holy people, the ones who have already stepped clear.
The charm of Maya is so strong that it fools every living being.
For today: When you feel a strong pull to grab one more thing, pause, name the pull, and take one slow breath.