Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
If someone turns their face away from the Guru and does not keep the Guru's words in mind,
they may do every kind of ritual and pile up great wealth, yet whatever they do, they fall into deep pain, like falling into hell.
Every ceremony and all the riches in the world mean little if the heart has turned away.
The verse speaks of someone who turns their face from the Guru. They do not keep the Guru's words in their mind. Kar aachaar baho sampa-o sanchai: they do many rituals and pile up wealth. The verse ends with a hard word, narak, which means hell.
The point underneath is simple. Ceremonies and money without the One at the center stay hollow. It is like a cake that looks perfect but is empty inside. Gurbani says the same to empty show in every tradition.
Have you ever done all the right steps of something but felt empty because your heart wasn't in it?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI