ਕਾਇਆ ਨਗਰੁ ਢਹੈ ਢਹਿ ਢੇਰੀ ॥
kaa-i-aa nagar dhahai dheh dhayree.
The body-village crumbles and collapses into a pile of dust.
ਬਿਨੁ ਸਬਦੈ ਚੂਕੈ ਨਹੀ ਫੇਰੀ ॥
bin sabdai chookai nahee fayree.
Without the Shabad, the cycle of reincarnation is not brought to an end.
ਸਾਚੁ ਸਲਾਹੇ ਸਾਚਿ ਸਮਾਵੈ ਜਿਨਿ ਗੁਰਮੁਖਿ ਏਕੋ ਜਾਤਾ ਹੇ ॥੧੫॥
saach salaahay saach samaavai jin gurmukh ayko jaataa hay. ||15||
One who knows the One Lord, through the True Guru, praises the True Lord, and remains immersed in the True Lord. ||15||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
This body is like a little village that stands for a while and then returns to the earth.
What lasts is the Word — it carries you beyond every ending.
The one who follows the Guru and knows the One praises it and rests, merged in what never fades.
The body is a village for a season; the Word lasts beyond it.
Kaa-i-aa nagar dhahai — the body-village crumbles. It is a gentle reminder to treasure the Word, which brings the fayree, the long round of coming and going, to a peaceful close. The body ending only points to what does not end.
A Question to Sit With
What is something in you that you hope lasts far beyond this year?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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