Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
The moth, the deer, the bumblebee, the elephant, and the fish are each undone by one thing they can't resist.
We each have five strong pulls inside us too — and wisdom gently tames them.
This one says: five animals are each caught by one thing they can't resist, and we have five strong pulls too.
Pachai patang marig bharing kunchar meen — the moth, the deer, the bumblebee, the elephant and the fish. In the old teaching, each is caught through one sense. The moth can't resist the flame, which is sight. The deer follows a sound. The bumblebee stays for a flower's scent and gets trapped when it closes. The elephant is caught through touch. The fish bites the hook for taste.
Each is caught by just one pull it can't control. We carry all five inside us. But "the Guru turns them out." Wisdom gently tames them. Think of a phone buzzing during homework. Learning to leave it alone is a small way of mastering one pull.
Which of your own strong pulls would you most like to gently master?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI