???? (kava?)
Meaning: pronoun: What or which?
Quote:
???? ?? ???? �???? ???? � ??? ???? �???? ?????
kava? so velaa� vakhat kava?�� kava? thit� kava? vaar.
What was that moment, what was the time, what was the date, and what was the day (when the universe came into existence)? – Guru Nanak Sahib, Guru Granth Sahib, Page 04
Message: This excerpt from pauri 21 of Jap Ji is Guru Nanak�s exposition on the origin of creation. The story of creation is central to all cultures and there are many creation myths. Guru Nanak gives us insight into this subject by starting off by posing a series of questions: what was the time, what the occasion, what the date and what the day; what the month and what the season when first creation took its birth?
The Guru tells us that neither the Hindu pundit, nor the Muslim qazi, or the yogi for that matter, has the answers; else they would have been recorded in the Puran or the Quran. The Creator alone knows when creation began. How, then, the Guru exclaims, can I tell of such wonders, how can I utter such praise? Everyone tries the art of describing, each claiming wisdom beyond all others.
By suggesting that answers to these questions are impossible, Guru Nanak is instructing us not to get bogged down in philosophical conundrums. The Gurus were less concerned with metaphysical speculations, and more focused on the experience of the glory of creation and the Creator.
Notes: During Guru Nanak�s time, the pundits (Hindu priests), qazis (Muslim clergy) and the yogis (wandering ascetics), were the generally accepted authorities on all matters. The Guru remarks even they did not know.
A resonating quote from the Bible: �But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.� � St. Mathews XXIV, 36
Etymology: From Sanskrit kah punar� (who) ? Pali ko pan ? Apabhra?sh kava? ? Old Awadhi kavan ? Old Gujarati kava? ? Punjabi kau?.
