Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Deer, falcons and officials are called trained and clever.
When a trap is set, they catch their own kind. Later on, they find no place to rest.
The one who lives the Naam is the one who is learned, wise and a scholar.
First the tree puts its roots down deep, and then it spreads its shade above.
Kings act like tigers, and their officers like hunting dogs.
They go and wake people who are resting, just to trouble them.
Their helpers scratch and wound people with their claws.
Like dogs, they lick up what spills from the people they hurt.
But there, in the One's Court, every being will be weighed.
Those who broke the people's trust will be put to shame, their noses cut off, as the old saying goes.
Learning counts when you live it. A tree puts down roots first, and then it gives shade.
Harnaa baajaa tai sikdaaraa: deer, falcons and officials are called trained and clever. A trained deer or falcon is used to catch its own kind, and some officials do the same to their own people. So parhi-aa so pandit beenaa jinhee kamaanaa naa-o: the learned, wise scholar is the one who practices the Naam. Pahilo day jarh andar jammai taa upar hovai chhaa-o: first the roots grow in, then the shade spreads above.
The salok then paints rulers who hurt their people: kings like tigers, officers like dogs, waking people to harass them and wounding them. In the One's Court every being is weighed, and those who broke the people's trust are shamed. Power used against the weak is seen in the end.
Do you know someone who is not the loudest or cleverest, but wise in how they act?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI