ਅਨਿਕ ਭਾਤਿ ਕਰਿ ਮਣੀਏ ਸਾਜੇ ਕਾਚੈ ਤਾਗਿ ਪਰੋਹੀ ॥
anik bhaat kar manee-ay saajay kaachai taag parohee.
In various ways, the Lord has fashioned the beads, and strung them on a slender thread.
ਤੂਟਿ ਜਾਇਗੋ ਸੂਤੁ ਬਾਪੁਰੇ ਫਿਰਿ ਪਾਛੈ ਪਛੁਤੋਹੀ ॥੩॥
toot jaa-igo soot baapuray fir paachhai pachhutohee. ||3||
The thread shall break, O wretched man, and then, you shall repent and regret. ||3||
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Think of a string of beads, each one carefully shaped and threaded on a fine thread.
One day the thread wears through — so it isn't wise to rest your whole hope on the string itself.
Enjoy the beautiful details of life, but don't hang your whole heart on a thread that can fray.
A quiet image: the manee-ay, beads, are the beautiful particulars of a life, strung on a kaachai taag, a fragile thread. The thread breaking is not staged as horror; it is the plain truth that arrangements come apart. Fir paachhai pachhutohee (later you'll regret) is read as gentle foresight — invest your deepest hope in what won't fray, so nothing is lost.
A Question to Sit With
What is one thing in your life that will still matter even if everything around it changes?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI
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