ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨ ਪੜੇ ਕਾ ਕਿਆ ਗੁਨੁ ਖਰ ਚੰਦਨ ਜਸ ਭਾਰਾ ॥
bayd puraan parhay kaa ki-aa gun khar chandan jas bhaaraa.
What is the use of reading the Vedas and the Puraanas? It is like loading a donkey with sandalwood.
ਰਾਮ ਨਾਮ ਕੀ ਗਤਿ ਨਹੀ ਜਾਨੀ ਕੈਸੇ ਉਤਰਸਿ ਪਾਰਾ ॥੧॥
raam naam kee gat nahee jaanee kaisay utras paaraa. ||1||
You do not know the exalted state of the Lord's Name; how will you ever cross over? ||1||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
What good is reading all the holy books, if you carry them the way a donkey carries sweet-smelling sandalwood on its back?
You have not come to know the Naam of the One. How will you ever get across?
You can carry wisdom on your back and never let it into your heart.
The famous image: 'khar chandan jas bhaaraa' — a donkey loaded with fragrant sandalwood, bearing the treasure yet unable to enjoy it. Holy words can be carried without changing the one who carries them. 'Kaisay utras paaraa' (how will you cross over) stays an open question.
A Question to Sit With
When has knowing a lot about something not been the same as understanding it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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