Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Anger and a huge, puffed-up ego live inside the mind.
Worship is done with great show and ceremony.
People take holy baths and paint sacred marks on their bodies.
Still, the dirt inside never goes away.
Washing the outside does not clean the inside.
This long hymn is an ashtapadee, a song of eight verses. It takes a steady look at religion done only for show. The verse lists grand worship, ritual baths and holy marks on the body. It says poojaa karahi bahut bisthaaraa: worship is done with great pomp. Yet man meh kroDh mahaa: great anger stays in the mind, along with a huge ego.
So antar kee mal kab hee na jaa-ay: the dirt inside never leaves. Mal means dirt. Think of washing a car that has engine trouble. It shines, but it still will not run. This is not about any one faith. It is about outside actions with an empty inside.
What is something you can clean on the outside that stays messy on the inside?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI