Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Human being — whatever you can see with your eyes will pass away.
The world lives carelessly, in neglect and greed, feeding on what is already dead. Like a wild creature, it grabs and eats what is forbidden. So rein in your cravings, or they will drag you down into their own misery.
This is the "pause" line, the center of the shabad. It warns that greedy living makes its own misery.
Banday — O human being — whatever your eyes can see will pass away. Yet the world lives gaafal, careless and full of greed. The verse uses strong pictures: eating what is dead, and eating what is haraam. Haraam is an Arabic word for whatever a person of faith must not take. The verse speaks of hell too.
The lesson is about careless, greedy grabbing. It means taking in whatever is lifeless and unclean in spirit. The advice is plain: dil kabaj — hold your heart in check. Control your urges.
The "hell" can be heard as the misery that runaway wanting makes by itself. Think of eating a whole bag of sweets. At first it feels great. Then your stomach hurts, and no one had to punish you. The answer isn't fear. It is learning to rein in your wants before they rule you.
Which of your urges, if left ungoverned, tends to 'drag you down'? What would gently reining it in look like?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI