???? (maathaa)
Meaning: noun: Head or forehead?
Quote:
???? ????? ???? ???? ??? ???? � ???? ???? ???? ???? ?????
merai hee-a-rai ratan naam har basiaa�� gur haath dhario merai maathaa.
When the Guru placed his blessed hand on my head, the Name of the Divine, likened to a jewel, dwelt in my heart. – Guru Ram Das Sahib, Guru Granth Sahib, Page 696
Message: By the beneficence of the Divine, when we follow the teachings of Gurbani, it enters our head, our heart and mind. We are blessed with the gift of divine awareness. We achieve the true purpose of life, and establish reunion with the Divine from whom we have been separated.
Then our wrong doings and sorrows are washed off as we start anew as we turn over a new leaf. Life becomes fruitful and energizing as we are freed from the bonds of slavery to which our minds were chained to.
Etymology: From Sanskrit mast/mastak (head, skull) ? Pali matth/matthak (head, skull, top, summit)? Prakrit matth/matthaya (head) ? Sindhi mathu/matho (top, surface, head), Assamese/Maithili maath/maathaa (head), Eastern Bengali maathaa (head), Marathi maathaa (head), Bhojpuri maath (head) and Oriya maath/mathaa (head).
Comparable to later developments: Hindi maath/maathaa (head, forehead, summit), Marwari maatho (head, forehead), Awadhi, Lakhimpuri dialect, maath (forehead), Lahndi mathaa (forehead) and Punjabi matthaa (forehead).
The meaning of this word steadily evolved from head to forehead. Hence, it is used to mean both head and forehead in Gurbani, and occasionally, to mean face or upper part of the body. At some places, it is a little hard to comprehend whether it means head, forehead or face? In some regions of India, especially in the eastern parts (Bihar, Bengal, etc.), it is still used to mean head.
See More Examples:
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The Divine stands over my head (i.e. He stands by me); hence nothing else can come near me. – Bhagat Kabeer, Guru Granth Sahib, Page 476
???? ?????? ????? ???? � ???? ????? ????
My Master is patron of the poor who puts the canopy over the head of the poor. – Bhagat Ravi Das, Guru Granth Sahib, Page 1106
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Without the Name of the Divine, ashes fall on the head (i.e. one is disgraced). – Guru Amar Das, Guru Granth Sahib, Page 1129
