Some wander around the forests, wearing religious robes, but the Fascinating Lord remains distant from them.

Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa

This one says: saying good things is not the same as being changed by them.

kathan sunaavan geet neeke gaavan — they talk, they preach, they sing lovely songs. They do all the outward acts of faith, and they do them well. Yet man meh dharate gaar — inside their minds, the grime stays.

This is the gap between putting on a show and truly changing. Nice words are easy. You can say all the right things and not be moved at all. Think of a shiny coat of paint over a wall that is cracked underneath.

Guru Arjan is not against preaching or singing. He does both himself! His warning is that they can turn into a polished surface over a heart that hasn't changed. The real test is never how well you talk about goodness. It is whether the talking has cleaned anything inside.