Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The world's excitements are like the safflower's color — bright for a moment, then quickly faded and washed away.
But my Beloved's love is a color that never fades — deep and fast, like the madder-red dye. So says Ravidas, the tanner.
The song ends with one of Gurbani's favorite images: two dyes. The safflower (kasumbh) gives a gorgeous color that fades fast and rinses out — like the thrills of the world, exciting but temporary. The madder plant (majeeth) gives a deep red that soaks in and never washes out — like the Beloved's love, which permanently changes you. Ravidas is choosing the color that lasts. And once more he signs proudly as chamaar, the tanner — declaring that the fastest, truest color in the world has dyed his heart.
What's something in your life with color that lasts, not the kind that fades away fast?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI