Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Leaning your whole weight on shiny, fading things turns out to be a painful bargain.
Even lots of reading and clever arguing doesn't bring peace without real understanding.
The heart just keeps circling, restless, when it's stuck on what doesn't last.
The verse names the "bad deal": "the love of Maya is totally painful." And it gently deflates mere learning: "the religious scholars argue and debate, but without understanding there is no peace." Book-knowledge and clever debate aren't the same as the wisdom that settles a heart. The qMonk voice softens the harsher lines ("eats poison") to the restlessness of a heart stuck on fleeting things. For a child: leaning your whole weight on things that fade is a painful bargain, and being clever or well-read isn't the same as being at peace.
Can someone know a lot of facts and still not feel peaceful? What brings real peace?
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI