Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Whatever the Pandits and the Mullahs have written down,
I have left behind; I take none of it.
No one else's rulebook can hand you the meeting with the One; you go yourself.
Pandit mulaa jo likh dee-aa — whatever the pandits and mullahs wrote down. These were the scholars and teachers of the Hindu and Muslim faiths. Chhaad chalay ham kachhoo na lee-aa — I left it behind and took none of it.
This is Kabir's boldest line, and he treats both sides the same. He is not against learning. He is saying no one else's rules can hand you the living thing. Only meeting the One yourself can do that.
Think of reading a recipe for your grandmother's soup. It is useful. But it is not the same as sitting at her table and tasting it. Kabir wanted to taste it himself.
What's something you can only understand by experiencing it, not just by being told?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI