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Leopard

Modern Punjabi
Could not find the word for "leopard" in the online dictionary. This is the Romanized transliteration cqrw, plMg (chtar, peemhag). However  the entry for "spotted" follows: daggi ; khaldar ; dabb karabba ; dabba ; chitla. Have some fun, because "chitia"  has possibilities. 

Anyway,  Guruji is saying "cheethhae." Do you think Guruji meant cheetah and the translator got it wrong? Unfortunately, "cheetah" was not in the online dictionary either. So let's just go with Guruji, who never fails us.

ਸੁਆਨ ਸਿਆਲ ਮਾਇਆ ਮਹਿ ਰਾਤਾ ॥
suaan siaal maaeiaa mehi raathaa ||
Dogs and jackals are imbued with Maya.


ਬੰਤਰ ਚੀਤੇ ਅਰੁ ਸਿੰਘਾਤਾ ॥
banthar cheethae ar singhaathaa ||
Monkeys, leopards and lions,

ਮਾਂਜਾਰ ਗਾਡਰ ਅਰੁ ਲੂਬਰਾ ॥
maanjaar gaaddar ar loobaraa ||
cats, sheep, foxes,

ਬਿਰਖ ਮੂਲ ਮਾਇਆ ਮਹਿ ਪਰਾ ॥੪॥
birakh mool maaeiaa mehi paraa ||4||
trees and roots are planted in Maya. ||4||

ਮਾਇਆ ਅੰਤਰਿ ਭੀਨੇ ਦੇਵ ॥
maaeiaa anthar bheenae dhaev ||
Even the gods are drenched with Maya,

See other animals in this Guru Vaak uploaded in related albums when available.
spnadmin

Leopard Modern Punjabi Could not find the word for "leopard" in the online dictionary. This is the Romanized transliteration cqrw, plMg (chtar, peemhag). However the entry for "spotted" follows: daggi ; khaldar ; dabb karabba ; dabba ; chitla. Have some fun, because "chitia" has possibilities. Anyway, Guruji is saying "cheethhae." Do you think Guruji meant cheetah and the translator got it wrong? Unfortunately, "cheetah" was not in the online dictionary either. So let's just go with Guruji, who never fails us. ਸੁਆਨ ਸਿਆਲ ਮਾਇਆ ਮਹਿ ਰਾਤਾ ॥ suaan siaal maaeiaa mehi raathaa || Dogs and jackals are imbued with Maya. ਬੰਤਰ ਚੀਤੇ ਅਰੁ ਸਿੰਘਾਤਾ ॥ banthar cheethae ar singhaathaa || Monkeys, leopards and lions, ਮਾਂਜਾਰ ਗਾਡਰ ਅਰੁ ਲੂਬਰਾ ॥ maanjaar gaaddar ar loobaraa || cats, sheep, foxes, ਬਿਰਖ ਮੂਲ ਮਾਇਆ ਮਹਿ ਪਰਾ ॥੪॥ birakh mool maaeiaa mehi paraa ||4|| trees and roots are planted in Maya. ||4|| ਮਾਇਆ ਅੰਤਰਿ ਭੀਨੇ ਦੇਵ ॥ maaeiaa anthar bheenae dhaev || Even the gods are drenched with Maya, See other animals in this Guru Vaak uploaded in related albums when available.

Hi. Wrote a long response then lost it all on sending! :(

Anyway, here we go again.

Firstly I wondered whether there were any cheetahs in India. I've seen many documentaries on African cheetahs but can't recall one about them in Asia.

Wikipedia says:

The cheetah thrives in areas with vast expanses of land where prey is abundant. The cheetah prefers to live in an open biotope, such as semi-desert, prairie, and thick brush, though it can be found in a variety of habitats. In Namibia, for example, it lives in grasslands, savannahs, areas of dense vegetation, and mountainous terrain.
The cheetah is found in the wild primarily in Africa, but in the past its range extended into much of Asia, and a small population survives in Iran, where conservationists are taking steps to protect it. In much of its former range, it was tamed by aristocrats and used to hunt antelopes in much the same way as is still done with members of the greyhound group of dogs. Aside from an estimated fifty cheetahs living in Iran (Khorasan
Of the five subspecies of cheetah in the genus
Province),the distribution of the cheetah is now limited to Africa.Acinonyx, four live in Africa and one in Iran. It is possible, though doubtful, that some cheetahs remain in India.

I've seen some Mughal artwork depicting the use of cheetahs on hunts but it is hard to say whether the animals were indigenous to India/Panjab or were imported (possibly from Iran). It would be really interesting to see what these creatures are called in Parsi.

Your question of whether the word ਚੀਤੇ (and its variants) refers to the English cheetah or a leopard is a good one. I noticed that the Dasam Granth commonly uses an additional word to the ਚੀਤੇ variants, which is ਪਿਲੰਗ (and its variants). These are both translated as leopard.

A possible explanation is that western people mistook the "African Cheetah" for the same species of animal that was encountered in Asia and hence referred to it mistakenly in that manner?

Leopard.jpg
 
Your last point ... That people mistook the spotted Asian leopard for a cheetah is what I think happened. Also it could be that the word for "cheetah" at some point may have been generic to small, limber, spotted cats. And it may be used in Sri Guru Granth Sahib in a generic way. This is the kind of question, and it is not the first time, where real expertise on the sources of classic Gurmukh and modern Punjabi would come very handy.

Love the big pic of the leopard that you posted. Really a purrfect feline pose.
 

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