ਗਉੜੀ ਮਹਲਾ ੫ ॥
ga-orhee mehlaa 5.
Gauree, Fifth Mehl:
ਵਡੇ ਵਡੇ ਜੋ ਦੀਸਹਿ ਲੋਗ ॥
vaday vaday jo deeseh log.
Those who seem to be great and powerful,
ਤਿਨ ਕਉ ਬਿਆਪੈ ਚਿੰਤਾ ਰੋਗ ॥੧॥
tin ka-o bi-aapai chintaa rog. ||1||
are afflicted by the disease of anxiety. ||1||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Even the people who look the greatest -- the richest, the most powerful -- carry a hidden ache of worry inside. Bigness on the outside does not make the inside calm.
Outward greatness does not buy inner peace.
Vaday vaday jo deeseh log -- those who appear great and powerful. Chintaa rog -- the disease of anxiety. Guru Arjan opens by unmasking a common assumption: outward greatness does not buy inner peace. Note rog, disease -- worry is treated as something to be healed, not a moral failing. This sets up the question of what real greatness is.
A Question to Sit With
Have you ever noticed that someone who seemed to have everything still seemed unhappy?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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