Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
People imagine climbing up to the brightest, happiest heavens they can dream of.
But if you get there on shallow effort — doing good things only to earn a reward — you cannot stay. The visit ends and you come right back. A prize you had to buy always runs out.
A reward you reach by shallow effort does not last.
Indar lok siv lokeh jaibo: people may rise to the realm of Indra or the realm of Shiva, the bright heavens of the old stories. Ochhay tap kar baahur aibo: but through ochhay tap, thin effort done only for a reward, they must come back again.
It is like a stay in a fancy hotel. The room is lovely, but when your time is up, you check out. Kabir is pointing at the emptiness of doing good only to collect a prize. It is not an attack on any practice, or on the heavens of the old stories.
What's the difference between doing good for a reward and doing good because you mean it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI