Gurbani Word Of The Day: deg

ਦੇਗ (deg)

Meaning: noun: The wok, a large cooking pot, cauldron.

Quote:
ਧਰਤੀ ਦੇਗ ਮਿਲੈ ਇਕ ਵੇਰਾ   ਭਾਗੁ ਤੇਰਾ ਭੰਡਾਰੀ॥
(ਹੇ ਪ੍ਰਭੂ ! ਜੀਵਾਂ ਦੀ ਪਾਲਣਾ ਲਈ ਤੇਰੇ ਵਲੋਂ) ਧਰਤੀ ਰੂਪ ਦੇਗ ਮਿਲਦੀ ਹੈ (ਜਿਸ ਵਿਚ ਤੂੰ ਸਭ ਕੁਝ) ਇਕੋ ਵਾਰ (ਪਾ ਦਿਤਾ ਹੋਇਆ ਹੈ; ਤੇਰੇ ਵਲੋਂ ਜੀਵਾਂ ਦੇ ਮੱਥੇ ਉਤੇ ਲਿਖਿਆ) ਕਰਮ-ਲੇਖ ਤੇਰਾ ਭੰਡਾਰੀ (ਇਸ ਦੇਗ ਦਾ ਭੰਡਾਰਾ ਵਰਤਾਉਣ ਵਾਲਾ) ਹੈ।
 
dhartee deg milai ik veraa   bhaag teraa bhaňḍaaree.
(For nourishment of beings) the earth is bestowed as the great cooking pot (wherein everything is put in) once and forever; the destiny of beings is the distributor (of the contents of the pot). -Guru Nanak Sahib, Guru Granth Sahib, 1190

Message: The earth was created as a storehouse – a great cooking pot to sustain the earth’s population. Everything was put in only once. These resources are distributed through the hands of the Divine. He determines what and how much we receive according to the laws of nature. As we sow, so do we reap. The more of the earth we destroy, the less we can expect.

We all depend on mother earth. Although we can only use what we are destined to by our Creator, nonetheless, it is our responsibility to learn how the earth can regenerate its resources and ensure that it can do so. As there is no replacement, we need to consciously restore these to full health and productivity.

Greed and the pursuit of wealth have made us insensitive to what the Creator has given us. We consume more than we need. We waste what could be used by others. We sing praises to the Divine while consciously and unconsciously destroying what He has given us.

Etymology: From Persian deg (a pot, kettle; cauldron).

Image: The wok (deg), having a capacity 2400kg of food, at the shrine of Sufi Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti at Ajmer, Rajasthan, India, believed to be presented by Moghul emperor Jahangir.

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