Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
He sees with his eyes, yet he is called blind.
He hears, yet he does not really hear.
The One lives close by, yet he thinks the One is far away.
And so he keeps making wrong choices.
This verse says it is possible to look without seeing, and to miss the One who is right beside you.
Paykhat chaakhat kahee-at andhaa: a person sees and tastes, yet is called blind. Sunee-at sunee-ai naahee: they hear, yet do not really hear. Think of someone scrolling a phone while a friend is talking to them. Their ears work fine, but nothing gets in.
Nikat vasat ka-o jaanai dooray: the One who lives nikat, near, is thought to be door, far away. The verse ends with a person who keeps making wrong turns. But its real subject is not badness. It is not paying attention. When the heart looks somewhere else, even what is closest can seem far.
Has something you searched everywhere for ever turned out to be right beside you?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI