Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Touching the dust of the good to my face, I burn away the poison of craving and anger.
I count myself the lowest of all, and in that way I settle peace into my mind.
Two of the panch vikaar are named — craving (kaam) and anger (krodh) — and their "poison" is burned away by the humblest possible act: touching the dust of the good to one's forehead. Humility is the antidote to the passions because the passions all feed the ego, and humility starves it. "I judge myself the lowest of all" is, once more, not self-hatred but the deliberate laying-down of the ranking game (as in Shabad 11). And notice the surprising result: this brings peace to the mind. The ego's constant self-comparison is exhausting; stepping out of it, choosing the low place, is where the mind finally rests.
Why might letting go of needing to be 'better than' actually calm you down inside?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI