Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
You can scrub the outside of yourself shiny clean, but if there is deception hidden in the heart, it does not stay hidden for long. Whatever is inside a person finds its way out — it cannot be covered up forever.
That is good news, because it means honesty is the simplest way to live: when what is inside is true, what comes out is true as well. Nanak says you will eat what you plant. Whatever seeds you plant in your heart are the fruit you will one day taste — so plant the good ones.
What is inside always comes out, so a clean heart matters more than clean hands.
Jin kai hirdai mail kapat hai baahar dhovaa-i-aa — a heart full of trickery can wash the outside and stay unclean within. Andar ho-ay so niklai — what is inside comes out; hiding does not hide it. Greed for what is false keeps a person going round in circles. Jo beejai so khaavanaa — you eat what you plant. Each day is a chance to plant something good.
Have you noticed how what someone feels inside tends to show, no matter what?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI