Ang 336

GAUREE: Like the straw figure of a female elephant, fashioned to trap the bull elephant, O crazy mind, the Lord of the Universe has staged the drama of this world. Attracted by the lure of sexual desire, the elephant is captured, O crazy mind, and now the halter is placed around its neck. ||1|| So escape from corruption and immerse yourself in the Lord; take this advice, O crazy mind. You have not meditated fearlessly on the Lord, O crazy mind; you have not embarked upon the Lord’s Boat. ||1|| Pause|| The monkey stretches out its hand, O crazy mind, and takes a handful of corn; now unable to escape, O crazy mind, it is made to dance door to door. ||2|| Like the parrot caught in the trap, O crazy mind, you trapped by the affairs of Maya. Like the weak dye of the safflower, O crazy mind, so is the expanse of this world of form and substance. ||3|| There are so many holy shrines in which to bathe, O crazy mind, and so many gods to worship. Says Kabeer, you shall not be saved like this, O crazy mind; only by serving the Lord will you find release. ||4||1||6||57||

GAUREE: Fire does not burn it, and the wind does not blow it away; thieves cannot get near it. Accumulate the wealth of the Lord’s Name; that wealth does not go anywhere. ||1|| My wealth is God, the Lord of Wealth, the Lord of the Universe, the Support of the earth: this is called the most excellent wealth. The peace which is obtained by serving God, the Lord of the Universe — that peace cannot be found in kingdoms or power. ||1|| Pause|| Shiva and Sanak, in their search for this wealth, became Udaasees, and renounced the world. One whose mind is filled with the Lord of liberation, and whose tongue chants the Name of the Lord, shall not be caught by the noose of Death. ||2|| My own wealth is the spiritual wisdom and devotion given by the Guru; my mind is held steady in perfect neutral balance. It is like water for the burning soul, like an anchoring support for the wandering mind; the bondage of doubt and fear is dispelled. ||3|| Says Kabeer: O you who are intoxicated with sexual desire, reflect upon this in your heart, and see. Within your home there are hundreds of thousands, millions of horses and elephants; but within my home is the One Lord. ||4||1||7||58||

GAUREE: Like the monkey with a handful of grain, who will not let go because of greed — just so, all the deeds committed in greed ultimately become a noose around one’s neck. ||1|| Without devotional worship, human life passes away in vain. Without the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, without vibrating and meditating on the Lord God, one does not abide in Truth. ||1|| Pause|| Like the flower which blossoms in the wilderness with no one to enjoy its fragrance, so do people wander in reincarnation; over and over again, they are destroyed by Death. ||2|| This wealth, youth, children and spouse which the Lord has given you — this is all just a passing show. Those who are caught and entangled in these are carried away by sensual desire. ||3|| Age is the fire, and the body is the house of straw; on all four sides, this play is being played out. Says Kabeer, to cross over the terriffying world-ocean, I have taken to the Shelter of the True Guru. ||4||1||8||59||

GAUREE: The water of the sperm is cloudy, and the egg of the ovary is crimson. From this clay, the puppet is fashioned. ||1|| I am nothing, and nothing is mine. This body, wealth, and all delicacies are Yours, O Lord of the Universe. ||1|| Pause|| Into this clay, the breath is infused. By Your Power, You have set this false contrivance in motion. ||2|| Some collect hundreds of thousands of dollars, but in the end, the pitcher of the body bursts. ||3|| Says Kabeer, that single foundation which you have laid will be destroyed in an instant — you are so egotistical. ||4||1||9||60||