ਗਉੜੀ ਕਬੀਰ ਜੀ ॥
ga-orhee kabeer jee.
Gauree, Kabir Jee:
ਬੇਦ ਕੀ ਪੁਤ੍ਰੀ ਸਿੰਮ੍ਰਿਤਿ ਭਾਈ ॥
bayd kee putree simrit bhaa-ee.
The Simritee is the daughter of the Vedas, O Siblings of Destiny.
ਸਾਂਕਲ ਜੇਵਰੀ ਲੈ ਹੈ ਆਈ ॥੧॥
saaNkal jayvree lai hai aa-ee. ||1||
She has brought a chain and a rope. ||1||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Some people treat their rulebooks as if the rules themselves were the whole point.
And rules held that way can become a chain and a rope — something that ties you down instead of setting you free.
A rule clung to for its own sake can become a chain instead of a guide.
Kabir personifies the Simriti as "the daughter of the Vedas" and says it can arrive carrying "a chain and a rope." The image can be read as a warning not against any one scripture but against inherited religious formulations clung to as ends in themselves. A teaching meant to guide can become a leash when we forget the love it was pointing at.
A Question to Sit With
When has following a rule too rigidly kept you from doing the kind thing it was meant for?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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