ਓਛੀ ਮਤਿ ਮੇਰੀ ਜਾਤਿ ਜੁਲਾਹਾ ॥
ochhee mat mayree jaat julaahaa.
My intellect is lowly - I am a weaver by birth,
ਹਰਿ ਕਾ ਨਾਮੁ ਲਹਿਓ ਮੈ ਲਾਹਾ ॥੩॥
har kaa naam lahi-o mai laahaa. ||3||
but I have earned the profit of the Name of the Lord. ||3||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
My standing is low — I'm a weaver by birth —
but I have earned the profit of the One's Name.
Birth may rank a person low, but devotion earns the one profit no high birth can buy — worth is of the heart, not the caste.
A landmark line of dignity over caste: Kabir names his low social rank plainly — "a weaver by birth" — and then, without shame, claims the highest wealth: "I have earned the profit of the Name." Birth ranked him low; devotion made him rich. The verse quietly overturns the whole hierarchy of worth: the humble weaver has earned the one profit that matters, which no high birth could buy. Rank is of the body; the real profit is of the heart.
A Question to Sit With
What worth does someone carry that has nothing to do with their 'rank' in the world's eyes?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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