Kabir doha · Do It Now · Level 1
काल करे सो आज कर, आज करे सो अब।
पल में प्रलय होएगी, बहुरि करेगा कब।
Kaal kare so aaj kar, aaj kare so ab
Pal mein pralay hoyegi, bahuri karega kab
Kaal kare so aaj kar means: what you plan to do tomorrow, do today, and what you plan to do today, do now. Kabir reminds us that time moves quickly and a single moment can change everything. For children, it is a gentle nudge not to leave a kind act, an apology or a small job for later.
Updated
An animated story from Kabir for Kids, made for ages 5–9. Watch it together first, then read the meaning below.
Meaning in English
If you want to do something tomorrow, why not today?
And if today, why not right now?
Who knows what might happen next!
Don't wait — just start.
अर्थ (हिंदी में)
जो काम कल करना है वो आज करो, जो आज करना है वो अभी करो। कौन जाने कब क्या हो जाए — फिर कब करोगे?
Riya's paints are still open on the table. "I'll wash the brushes after dinner," she says.
After dinner there is a story, then a bath, then bed. In the morning the brushes are stiff and the blue has dried into a hard little lump.
Her grandmother hums, "Kaal kare so aaj kar…" and Riya laughs, because she already knows the next line.
Keep it light. Let the child answer in their own words, draw it, or hum the line again.
Try this: Set a one-minute timer and start one "later" job together: packing the school bag, watering a plant, or saying sorry. The point is not to finish everything. It is to feel the difference between later and now.
For assembly or recitation, say the first line slowly and pause after "pal mein pralay hoyegi" before the question in the last line. A child can then add one sentence of their own, such as: "Kabir says, don't wait. Start now."
It means: what you plan to do tomorrow, do today; what you plan to do today, do now. Kabir says a moment can change everything, so there is no reason to keep putting things off.
Pralay means a great upheaval, like the end of the world. Kabir uses the word to say that everything can change in a single moment. For young children, the K4K simplified version uses "gadbad", a mess, instead.
It is traditionally credited to Kabir, the 15th-century poet-saint and weaver from Varanasi. His dohas were sung and passed on by word of mouth for centuries before they were written down, so you will find small differences in wording, such as "kal" for "kaal".