Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
It is a sad trade to turn completely away from your deeper life and grab only at outside things.
You can end up feeling empty in both places — with plenty on the outside and nothing on the inside.
This one is a warning about lopsided living. If you drop your inner life and chase only the outside world, you can end up with nothing in either.
Deen chhadaa-ay dunee jo laa-ay means "whoever leaves the deen and holds on only to the dunee." The deen is your inner life, the part of you that cares about what is true and good. The dunee is the outside world: things, looks, winning.
Duhee saraa-ee khunaamee kahaa-ay means such a person gets a bad name in both places. The usual English translation says "a sinner in both worlds." The old word khunaamee means a bad name, left empty on both sides.
Think of a phone with a shiny case and no battery. It looks fine, but it cannot do anything. The warning is not aimed at any person. It is about living only on the outside.
How do you keep from spending all your energy on outside things?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI