ਜੈਸਾ ਮਗਹਰੁ ਤੈਸੀ ਕਾਸੀ ਹਮ ਏਕੈ ਕਰਿ ਜਾਨੀ ॥
jaisaa maghar taisee kaasee ham aikai kar jaanee.
As is Magahar, so is Benares; I see them as one and the same.
ਹਮ ਨਿਰਧਨ ਜਿਉ ਇਹੁ ਧਨੁ ਪਾਇਆ ਮਰਤੇ ਫੂਟਿ ਗੁਮਾਨੀ ॥੩॥
ham nirDhan ji-o ih Dhan paa-i-aa martay foot gumaanee. ||3||
I am poor, but I have obtained this wealth of the Lord; the proud are bursting with pride, and die. ||3||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
As Magahar is, so is Benares. I see them as one and the same.
I was poor, and I found this wealth. The proud swell up with pride until they burst, and they die that way.
The greatest wealth can be found by anyone, anywhere.
Seeing the two places 'as one and the same' (aikai kar jaanee) is a picture of an even, steady mind. And there is dignity here: Kabir, a poor weaver, finds the greatest wealth, while the proud, for all their status, swell up and come to nothing.
A Question to Sit With
What is a kind of wealth that money cannot buy and any person can have?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
Use ← → to navigate