Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Kabir says, gently, listen. It is so easy to get tangled in things that only look valuable, chasing after shiny wealth that cannot really hold us.
There is a story of a parrot that grips a perch it could simply let go of, and so it stays stuck when it was always free to fly. We do that too, holding tight to what we could set down.
Kabir says we get stuck by holding on to things we could simply let go of.
Kahat kabeer sunhu ray paraanee: Kabir says, listen, living one. The verse warns that kaal, death, catches everyone, like falling into a deep pit. Life is short, so it matters what we hold on to.
Jhoothee maa-i-aa aap bandhaa-i-aa: we tie ourselves up in maya, the shiny wealth that only looks valuable. Ji-o nalnee bhram soo-aa: like a parrot caught on a nalnee, a spinning perch. People catch parrots this way. The perch turns, the scared parrot hangs on tight, and it is caught. It could fly away any time just by letting go.
Think of a monkey with its hand in a jar, gripping a treat. The hand won't come out while the fist is closed. Open the hand, and you are free.
The good news: the grip is ours, so we can loosen it.
What is something you are gripping tightly that might feel lighter if you simply loosened your hold?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI