ਕਾਗਦ ਕੋਟੁ ਇਹੁ ਜਗੁ ਹੈ ਬਪੁਰੋ ਰੰਗਨਿ ਚਿਹਨ ਚਤੁਰਾਈ ॥
kaagad kot ih jag hai bapuro rangan chihan chaturaa-ee.
This wretched world is a fortress of paper, of color and form and clever tricks.
ਨਾਨ੍ਹ੍ਹੀ ਸੀ ਬੂੰਦ ਪਵਨੁ ਪਤਿ ਖੋਵੈ ਜਨਮਿ ਮਰੈ ਖਿਨੁ ਤਾਈ ॥੪॥
naanHee see boond pavan pat khovai janam marai khin taa-eeN. ||4||
A tiny drop of water or a little puff of wind destroys its glory; in an instant, its life is ended. ||4||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
This poor world is a fortress made of paper, with its colors and shapes and clever tricks.
One tiny drop of water or a puff of wind takes away its glory; in a moment, its life is over.
Seeing what's fragile helps you find what is solid.
The world is a paper fortress: bright, clever, and gone in a moment.
Kaagad kot, the paper fortress, is one of Gurbani's sharpest pictures of how things pass. Rangan chihan chaturaa-ee, color, form and cleverness, are maya's lovely but fragile buildings. The gentlest forces, water and wind, undo them. Seeing this clears the eye for what is solid.
A Question to Sit With
What have you seen that looked strong but turned out to be flimsy?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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