Kabir's dohas translated by Rabindranath Tagore.

[Anindita Dutt, Ph.D.]

Hope this restores peace ... Here's what one reviewer said -- DAILY NEWS. "The verses in this book are far finer and more genuine than even the best in Gitanjali."

Comment -- 

In spite of the different approaches of all religious and philosophical teachings, it is very clear that the all-pervading, omniscient, omnipresent factor is finally God, by whatever name. Due to our customs, traditions, languages we only address Him by various names. Yet, it is also true that in spite of this awareness, we spend a lot of time in arguing about God and try to impose attributes.  Kabir noticed this centuries old phenomenon in his times also, about 1350 AD. And this great Master, in the above verse highlights the underlying principle that God is everywhere.

I. 13. mo ko kahdn dhunro bande 

SERVANT, where dost thou seek Me ? 
Lo ! I am beside thee. 

1 am neither in temple nor in mosque : 

I am neither in Kaaba nor in 

Kailash : 
Neither am I in rites and ceremonies, 

nor in Yoga and renunciation. 
If thou art a true seeker, thou shalt at 

once see Me : thou shalt meet Me 

in a moment of time. 
Kabir says, " O Sadhu ! God is the 

breath of all breath." 

II 

1. 16. santan jot na pucho nirgur^iydn 

IT is needless to ask of a saint the caste 
to which he belongs ; 



2 KABIR'S POEMS 

For the priest, the warrior, the trades- 
man, and all the thirty-six castes, 
alike are seeking for God. 

It is but folly to ask what the caste 
of a saint may be ; 

The barber has sought God, the 
washerwoman, and the carpenter 

Even Raidas was a seeker after God. 

The Rishi Swapacha was a tanner by 
caste. 

Hindus and Moslems alike have 
achieved that End, where remains 
no mark of distinction. 



Ill 

I. 57. sddho bhdi, jwat hi karo add 

O FRIEND ! hope for Him whilst you 
live, know whilst you live, under- 
stand whilst you live : for in life 
deliverance abides. 



KABIR'S POEMS 3 

If your bonds be not broken whilst 
living, what hope of deliverance 
in death ? 

It is but an empty dream, that the soul 
shall have union with Him because 
it has passed from the body : 

If He is found now, He is found then, 

If not, we do but go to dwell in the 
City of Death. 

If you have union now, you shall have 
it hereafter. 

Bathe in the truth, know the true 
Guru, have faith in the true Name ! 

Kabir says : " It is the Spirit of the 
quest which helps ; I am the slave 
of this Spirit of the quest." 

IV 

I. 58. bdgo ndjd re ndjd 

Do not go to the garden of flowers I 

O Friend ! go not there ; 

In your body is the garden of flowers. 



4 KABIR'S POEMS 

Take your seat on the thousand petals 
of the lotus, and there gaze on the 
Infinite Beauty. 



I. 63. avadhu, mdyd taji na jay 

TELL me, Brother, how can I renounce 

Maya ? 
When I gave up the tying of ribbons, 

still I tied my garment about me : 
When I gave up tying my garment, 

still I covered my body in its folds. 
So, when I give up passion, I see that 

anger remains ; 
And when I renounce anger, greed is 

with me still ; 
And when greed is vanquished, pride 

and vainglory remain ; 
When the mind is detached and casts 

Maya away, still it clings to the 

letter. 
Kabir says, " Listen to me, dear 



KABIR'S POEMS 5 

Sadhu ! the true path is rarely 
found." 

VI 

I. 83. candd jhalkai yahi ghat mdhm 

THE moon shines in my body, but my 

blind eyes cannot see it : 
The moon is within me, and so is the 

sun. 
The unstruck drum of Eternity is 

sounded within me ; but my deaf 

ears cannot hear it. 

So long as man clamours for the / 

and the Mine, his works are as 

naught : 
When all love of the / and the Mine 

is dead, then the work of the Lord 

is done. 
For work has no other aim than the 

getting of knowledge : 
When that comes, then work is put 

away. 



6 KABIR'S POEMS 

The flower blooms for the fruit : when 
the fruit comes, the flower withers. 

The musk is in the deer, but it seeks 
it not within itself : it wanders 
in quest of grass. 

VII 

I. 85. sddho, Brahm alakh Idkhdyd 

WHEN He Himself reveals Himself, 
Brahma brings into manifestation 
That which can never be seen. 

As the seed is in the plant, as the shade 
is in the tree, as the void is in the 
sky, as infinite forms are in the 
void 

So from beyond the Infinite, the 
Infinite comes ; and from the In- 
finite the finite extends. 

The creature is in Brahma, and 
Brahma is in the creature : they 
are ever distinct, yet ever united. 



KABIR'S POEMS 7 

He Himself is the tree, the seed, and 

the germ. 
He Himself is the flower, the fruit, 

and the shade. 
He Himself is the sun, the light, and 

the lighted. 
He Himself is Brahma, creature, and 

Maya. 
He Himself is the manifold form, the 

infinite space ; 
He is the breath, the word, and the 

meaning. 

He Himself is the limit and the limit- 
less : and beyond both the limited 

and the limitless is He, the Pure 

Being. 
He is the Immanent Mind in Brahma 

and in the creature. 

The Supreme Soul is seen within the 

soul, 
The Point is seen within the Supreme 

Soul, 



8 KABIR'S POEMS 

And within the Point, the reflection 

is seen again. 
Kabir is blest because he has this 

supreme vision 1 



VIII 
I. 101. is ghat antar bag baglce 

WITHIN this earthern vessel are bowers 
and groves, and within it is the 
Creator : 

Within this vessel are the seven oceans 
and the unnumbered stars. 

The touchstone and the jewel- 
appraiser are within ; 

And within this vessel the Eternal 
soundeth, and the spring wells 
up. 

Kabir says : " Listen to me, my 
friend ! My beloved Lord is with- 
in." 



KABIR'S POEMS 9 

IX 

I. 104. aisd lo nahln taisd lo 

HOW may I ever express that secret 

word ? 
O how can I say He is not like this, 

and He is like that ? 
If I say that He is within me, the 

universe is ashamed : 
If I say that He is without me, it is 

falsehood. 
He makes the inner and the outer 

worlds to be indivisibly one ; 
The conscious and the unconscious, 

both are His footstools. 
He is neither manifest nor hidden, 

He is neither revealed nor un- 

revealed : 
There are no words to tell that which 

He is. 



10 KABIR'S POEMS 



I. 121. tohi mori lagan lagdye 
re phakir wd 

To Thee Thou hast drawn my love, O 

Fakir! 
I was sleeping in my own chamber, 

and Thou didst awaken me ; 

striking me with Thy voice, O 

Fakir! 
I was drowning in the deeps of the 

ocean of this world, and Thou 

didst save me : upholding me with 

Thine arm, O Fakir ! 
Only one word and no second and 

Thou hast made me tear off all 

my bonds, O Fakir ! 
Kabir says, " Thou hast united Thy 

heart to my heart, O Fakir ! " 



KABIR'S POEMS 11 

XI 

I. 131. ni4 din khelat rahl 
sakhiydn sang 

I PLAYED day and night with my 
comrades, and now I am greatly 
afraid. 

So high is my Lord's palace, my heart 
trembles to mount its stairs : yet 
I must not be shy, if I would enjoy 
His love. 

My heart must cleave to my Lover ; I 
must withdraw my veil, and meet 
Him with all my body : 

Mine eyes must perform the ceremony 
of the lamps of love. 

Kabir says : " Listen to me, friend : 
he understands who loves. If you 
feel not love's longing for your 
Beloved One, it is vain to adorn 
your body, vain to put unguent on 
your eyelids." 



12 KABIR'S POEMS 

XII 

II. 24. hamsd, kaho purdtan bat 

TELL me, O Swan, your ancient tale. 
From what land do you come, O 

Swan ? to what shore will you 

fly? 
Where would you take your rest, O 

Swan, and what do you seek ? 

Even this morning, O Swan, awake, 

arise, follow me ! 
There is a land where no doubt nor 

sorrow have rule : where the terror 

ol Death is no more. 
There the woods of spring are a-bloom, 

and the fragrant scent " He is I " 

is borne on the wind : 
There the bee of the heart is deeply 

immersed, and desires no other 

joy. 



KABIR'S POEMS 13 

XIII 

II. 37. afigadhiyd devd 

O LORD Increate, who will serve 

Thee? 
Every votary offers his worship to the 

God of his own creation : each day 

he receives service 
None seek Him, the Perfect : Brahma, 

the Indivisible Lord. 
They believe in ten Avatars ; but no 

Avatar can be the Infinite Spirit, 

for he suffers the results of his 

deeds : 
The Supreme One must be other than 

this. 
The Yogi, the Sanyasi, the Ascetics, 

are disputing one with another : 
Kabir says, " O brother ! he who has 

seen that radiance of love, he is 

saved." 



14 KABIR'S POEMS 



XIV 

II. 56. dariyd kl lahar dariyao hai jl 

THE river and its waves are one surf : 

where is the difference between the 

river and its waves ? 
When the wave rises, it is the water ; 

and when it falls, it is the same 

water again. Tell me, Sir, where 

is the distinction ? 
Because it has been named as wave, 

shall it no longer be considered as 

water ? 

Within the Supreme Brahma, the 
worlds are being told like beads : 

Look upon that rosary with the eyes 
of wisdom. 



KABIR'S POEMS 15 

XV 

II. 57. jdnh khelat vasant riturdj 

WHERE Spring, the lord of the seasons, 

reigneth, there the Unstruck Music 

sounds of itself, 
There the streams of light flow in all 

directions ; 
Few are the men who can cross to 

that shore ! 
There, where millions of Krishnas 

stand with hands folded, 
Where millions of Vishnus bow their 

heads, 
Where millions of Brahmas are reading 

the Vedas, 
Where millions of Shivas are lost in 

contemplation, 
Where millions of Indras dwell in the 

sky, 
Where the demi-gods and the munis 

are unnumbered, 



16 KABIR'S POEMS 

Where millions of Saraswatis, Goddess 
of Music, play on the vina 

There is my Lord self-revealed : and 
the scent of sandal and flowers 
dwells in those deeps. 

XVI 

II. 59. jdnh cet acet khambh dou 

BETWEEN the poles of the conscious 

and the unconscious, there has the 

mind made a swing : 
Thereon hang all beings and all worlds, 

and that swing never ceases its 

sway. 
Millions of beings are there : the sun 

and the moon in their courses are 

there : 
Millions of ages pass, and the swing 

goes on. 
All swing ! the sky and the earth 

and the air and the water ; and 

the Lord Himself taking form : 



KABIR'S POEMS 17 

And the sight of this has made Kabir 
a servant. 

XVII 

II. 61. grah candra tapanjot 
barat hai 

THE light of the sun, the moon, and 

the stars shines bright : 
The melody of love swells forth, and 

the rhythm of love's detachment 

beats the time. 
Day and night, the chorus of music 

fills the heavens ; and Kabir 

says, 
" My Beloved One gleams like the 

lightning flash in the sky." 

Do you know how the moments per- 
form their adoration ? 

Waving its row of lamps, the universe 
sings in worship day and night, 

There are the hidden banner and the 
secret canopy : 



18 KABIR'S POEMS 

There the sound of the unseen bells is 
heard. 

Kabir says : " There adoration never 
ceases ; there the Lord of the 
Universe sitteth on His throne." 

The whole world does its works and 
commits its errors : but few are the 
lovers who know the Beloved. 

The devout seeker is he who mingles 
in his heart the double currents 
of love and detachment, like the 
mingling of the streams of Ganges 
and Jumna ; 

In his heart the sacred water flows 
day and night ; and thus the 
round of births and deaths is 
brought to an end. 

Behold what wonderful rest is in the 
Supreme Spirit ! and he enjoys it, 
who makes himself meet for it. 

Held by the cords of love, the swing of 



KABIR'S POEMS 19 

the Ocean of Joy sways to and fro ; 

and a mighty sound breaks forth 

in song. 
See what a lotus blooms there without 

water ! and Kabir says, 
" My heart's bee drinks its nectar." 

What a wonderful lotus it is, that 
blooms at the heart of the spinning 
wheel of the universe ! Only a few 
pure souls know of its true delight. 

Music is all around it, and there the 
heart partakes of the joy of the 
Infinite Sea. 

Kabir says : " Dive thou into that 
Ocean of sweetness : thus let all 
errors of life and of death flee 
away." 

Behold how the thirst of the five 
senses is quenched there ! and the 
three forms of misery are no more ! 

Kabir says : "It is the sport of the 



20 KABIR'S POEMS 

Unattainable One : look within, 
and behold how the moonbeams 
of that Hidden One shine in you." 

There falls the rhythmic beat of life 

and death : 
Rapture wells forth, and all space is 

radiant with light. 
There the Unstruck Music is sounded ; 

it is the music of the love of the 

three worlds. 
There millions of lamps of sun and of 

moon are burning ; 
There the drum beats, and the lover 

swings in play. 
There love-songs resound, and light 

rains in showers ; and the wor- 
shipper is entranced in the taste 

of the heavenly nectar. 
Look upon life and death ; there is no 

separation between them, 
The right hand and the left hand are 

one and the same. 



KABIR'S POEMS 21 

Kabir says : " There the wise man is 
speechless ; for this truth may 
never be found in Vedas or in 
books." 

I have had my Seat on the Self-poised 
One, 

I have drunk of the Cup of the In- 
effable, 

I have found the Key of the Mystery, 

I have reached the Root of Union. 

Travelling by no track, I have come 
to the Sorrowless Land : very 
easily has the mercy of the great 
Lord come upon me. 

They have sung of Him as infinite and 
unattainable : but I in my medita- 
tions have seen Him without sight. 

That is indeed the sorrowless land, and 
none know the path that leads 
there : 

Only he who is on that path has surely 
transcended all sorrow. 



22 KABIR'S POEMS 

Wonderful is that land of rest, to which 
no merit can win ; 

It is the wise who has seen it, it is 
the wise who has sung of it. 

This is the Ultimate Word : but can 
any express its marvellous savour ? 
He who has savoured it once, he 
knows what joy it can give. 

Kabir says : " Knowing it, the ignor- 
ant man becomes wise, and the 
wise man becomes speechless and 
silent, 

The worshipper is utterly inebriated, 

His wisdom and his detachment are 
made perfect ; 

He drinks from the cup of the in- 
breathings and the outbreathings 
of love." 

There the whole sky is filled with 
sound, and there that music is 
made without fingers and without 
strings ; 



KABIR'S POEMS 23 

There the game of pleasure and pain 

does not cease. 
Kabir says : " If you merge your life 

in the Ocean of Life, you will 

find your life in the Supreme 

Land of Bliss." 

What a frenzy of ecstasy there is in 
every hour ! and the worshipper 
is pressing out and drinking the 
essence of the hours : he lives in 
the life of Brahma. 

I speak truth, for I have accepted 
truth in life ; I am now attached 
to truth, I have swept all tinsel 
away. 

Kabir says : " Thus is the worshipper 
set free from fear ; thus have all 
errors of life and of death left him." 

There the sky is filled with music : 
There it rains nectar : 
There the harp -strings jingle, and 
there the drums beat. 



24 KABIR'S POEMS 

What a secret splendour is there, in 

the mansion of the sky ! 
There no mention is made of the rising 

and the setting of the sun ; 
In the ocean of manifestation, which 

is the light of love, day and night 

are felt to be one. 

Joy for ever, no sorrow, no struggle ! 
There have I seen joy filled to the 

brim, perfection of joy ; 
No place for error is there. 
Kabir says : " There have I witnessed 

the sport of One Bliss ! " 

I have known in my body the sport 
of the universe : I have escaped 
from the error of this world. 

The inward and the outward are 
become as one sky, the Infinite 
and the finite are united : I am 
drunken with the sight of this 
All! 

This Light of Thine fulfils the uni- 



KABIR'S POEMS 25 

verse : the lamp of love that burns 
on the salver of knowledge. 
Kabir says : " There error cannot 
enter, and the conflict of life and 
death is felt no more." 



XVIII 

II. 77. maddh dkdd dp jahdn baithe 

THE middle region of the sky, wherein 

the spirit dwelleth, is radiant with 

the music of light ; 
There, where the pure and white 

music blossoms, my Lord takes 

His delight. 
In the wondrous effulgence of each 

hair of His body, the brightness 

of millions of suns and of moons 

is lost. 
On that shore there is a city, where 

the rain of nectar pours and pours, 

and never ceases. 



26 KABIR'S POEMS 

Kabir says : " Come, O Dharmadas ! 
and see my great Lord's Durbar." 



XIX 

II. 20. paramdtam guru nikat virdjain 

O MY heart ! the Supreme Spirit, the 

great Master, is near you : wake, 

oh wake ! 
Run to the feet of your Beloved : for 

your Lord stands near to your 

head. 
You have slept for unnumbered ages ; 

this morning will you not wake ? 



XX 

II. 22. man tu par utar kdnhjaiho 

To what shore would you cross, O 
my heart ? there is no traveller 
before you, there is no road : 



KABIR'S POEMS 27 

Where is the movement, where is the 
rest, on that shore ? 

There is no water ; no boat, no boat- 
man, is there ; 

There is not so much as a rope 
to tow the boat, nor a man to 
draw it. 

No earth, no sky, no time, no thing, 
is there : no shore, no ford ! 

There, there is neither body nor mind : 
and where is the place that shall 
still the thirst of the soul ? You 
shall find naught in that empti- 
ness. 

Be strong, and enter into your own 
body : for there your foothold is 
firm. Consider it well, O my heart ! 
go not elsewhere. 

Kabir says : " Put all imaginations 
away, and stand fast in that which 
you are." 



28 KABIR'S POEMS 

XXI 

II. 33. ghar ghar dlpdk barai 

LAMPS burn in every house, O blind 
one ! and you cannot see them. 

One day your eyes shall suddenly be 
opened, and you shall see : and 
the fetters of death will fall from 
you. 

There is nothing to say or to hear, 
there is nothing to do : it is he who 
is living, yet dead, who shall never 
die again. 

Because he lives in solitude, therefore 
the Yogi says that his home is far 
away. 

Your Lord is near : yet you are climb- 
ing the palm-tree to seek Him. 

The Brahman priest goes from house 
to house and initiates people into 
faith : 



KABIR'S POEMS 29 

Alas ! the true fountain of life is 
beside you, and you have set up a 
stone to worship. 

Kabir says : " I may never express 
how sweet my Lord is. Yoga and 
the telling of beads, virtue and 
vice these are naught to Him." 



XXII 

II. 38. sddho, so satgur mohi bhdwai 

O BROTHER, my heart yearns for that 
true Guru, who fills the cup of 
true love, and drinks of it himself, 
and offers it then to me. 

He removes the veil from the eyes, and 
gives the true Vision of Brahma : 

He reveals the worlds in Him, and 
makes me to hear the Unstruck 
Music : 

He shows joy and sorrow to be one : 

He fills all utterance with love. 



30 KABIR'S POEMS 

Kabir says : " Verily he has no fear, 
who has such a Guru to lead him 
to the shelter of safety ! " 



XXIII 

II. 40. tinwir sdnjh kd gahird dwai 

THE shadows of evening fall thick 

and deep, and the darkness of love 

envelops the body and the mind. 
Open the window to the west, and be 

lost in the sky of love ; 
Drink the sweet honey that steeps the 

petals of the lotus of the heart. 
Receive the waves in your body : what 

splendour is in the region of the 

sea ! 
Hark ! the sounds of conches and bells 

are rising. 
Kabir says : " O brother, behold ! the 

Lord is in this vessel of my 

body." 



KABIR'S POEMS 31 



XXIV 

II. 48. jis se rahani apdr jagat men 

MORE than all else do I cherish at 
heart that love which makes me 
to live a limitless life in this 
world. 

It is like the lotus, which lives in the 
water and blooms in the water : 
yet the water cannot touch its 
petals, they open beyond its 
reach. 

It is like a wife, who enters the fire 
at the bidding of love. She burns 
and lets others grieve, yet never 
dishonours love. 

This ocean of the world is hard to 
cross : its waters are very deep. 
Kabir says : *' Listen to me, O 
Sadhu ! few there are who have 
reached its end." 



32 KABIR'S POEMS 

XXV 

II. 45. Hari ne apnd dp chipdyd 

MY Lord hides Himself, and my Lord 

wonderfully reveals Himself : 
My Lord has encompassed me with 

hardness, and my Lord has cast 

down my limitations. 
My Lord brings to me words of sorrow 

and words of joy, and He Himself 

heals their strife. 
I will offer my body and mind to my 

Lord : I will give up my life, but 

never can I forget my Lord ! 

XXVI 

II. 75. onkdr siwde koi sirjai 

ALL things are created by the Om ; 
The love-form is His body. 



KABIR'S POEMS 33 

He is without form, without quality, 

without decay : 
Seek thou union with Him 1 

But that formless God takes a 

thousand forms in the eyes of His 

creatures : 

He is pure and indestructible, 
His form is infinite and fathomless, 
He dances in rapture, and waves of 

form arise from His dance. 
The body and the mind cannot contain 

themselves, when they are touched 

by His great joy. 
He is immersed in all consciousness, 

all joys, and all sorrows ; 
He has no beginning and no end ; 
He holds all within His bliss. 



34 KABIR'S POEMS 

XXVII 

II. 81. satgur sol day a kar dlnhd 

IT is the mercy of my true Guru that 
has made me to know the un- 
known ; 

I have learned from Him how to walk 
without feet, to see without eyes, 
to hear without ears, to drink with- 
out mouth, to fly without wings ; 

I have brought my love and my 
meditation into the land where 
there is no sun and moon, nor day 
and night. 

Without eating, I have tasted of the 
sweetness of nectar ; and without 
water, I have quenched my thirst. 

Where there is the response of delight, 
there is the fullness of joy. Before 
whom can that joy be uttered ? 

Kabir says : " The Guru is great 
beyond words, and great is the 
good fortune of the disciple." 



KABIR'S POEMS 35 

XXVIII 

II. 85. nirgur} age sargurj, ndcai 

BEFORE the Unconditioned, the Con- 
ditioned dances : 

4 Thou and I are one 1 " this trumpet 
proclaims. 

The Guru comes, and bows down 
before the disciple : 

This is the greatest of wonders. 

XXIX 

II. 87. Kabir kab se bhaye vairdgi 

GORAKHNATH asks Kabir : 
' Tell me, O Kabir, when did your 

vocation begin ? Where did your 

love have its rise ? " 
Kabir answers : 
" When He whose forms are manifold 

had not begun His play : when 



36 KABIR'S POEMS 

there was no Guru, and no disciple : 
when the world was not spread 
out : when the Supreme One was 
alone 

Then I became an ascetic ; then, O 
Gorakh, my love was drawn to 
Brahma. 

Brahma did not hold the crown on 
his head ; the god Vishnu was not 
anointed as king; the power of 
Shiva was still unborn ; when I 
was instructed in Yoga. 

" I became suddenly revealed in 

Benares, and Ramananda illumined 

me ; 
I brought with me the thirst for the 

Infinite, and I have come for the 

meeting with Him. 
In simplicity will I unite with the 

Simple One ; my love will surge up. 
O Gorakh, march thou with His 

music ! " 



KABIR'S POEMS 37 

XXX 

II. 95. yd tarvar men ek pakheru 

ON this tree is a bird : it dances in the 
joy of life. 

None knows where it is : and who 
knows what the burden of its 
music may be ? 

Where the branches throw a deep 
shade, there does it have its nest : 
and it comes in the evening and 
flies away in the morning, and says 
not a word of that which it means. 

None tell me of this bird that sings 
within me. 

It is neither coloured nor colourless : 
it has neither form nor outline : 

It sits in the shadow of love. 

It dwells within the Unattainable, the 
Infinite, and the Eternal ; and no 
one marks when it comes and goes. 

Kabir says : " O brother Sadhu ! 



38 KABIR'S POEMS 

deep is the mystery. Let wise men 
seek to know where rests that 
bird." 

XXXI 

II. 100. ntt din sdlai ghdiv 

A SORE pain troubles me day and 
night, and I cannot sleep ; 

I long for the meeting with my 
Beloved, and my father's house 
gives me pleasure no more. 

The gates of the sky are opened, the 

temple is revealed : 
I meet my husband, and leave at His 

feet the offering of my body and 

my mind. 

XXXII 

II. 103. ndco re mero man, matta hoy 
DANCE, my heart ! dance to-day with 

joy. 



KABIR'S POEMS 39 

The strains of love fill the days and 
the nights with music, and the 
world is listening to its melodies : 

Mad with joy, life and death dance 
to the rhythm of this music. The 
hills and the sea and the earth 
dance. The world of man dances 
in laughter and tears. 

Why put on the robe of the monk, and 
live aloof from the world in lonely 
pride ? 

Behold ! my heart dances in the de- 
light of a hundred arts ; and the 
Creator is well pleased. 



XXXIII 

II. 105. man mast hud tab kyon bole 

WHERE is the need of words, when 
love has made drunken the 
heart? 

I have wrapped the diamond in my 



40 KABIR'S POEMS 

cloak ; why open it again and 
again ? 

When its load was light, the pan of 
the balance went up : now it is 
full, where is the need for weigh- 
ing? 

The swan has taken its flight to the 
lake beyond the mountains ; why 
should it search for the pools and 
ditches any more ? 

Your Lord dwells within you : why 
need your outward eyes be opened ? 

Kabir says : " Listen, my brother ! 
my Lord, who ravishes my eyes, 
has united Himself with me." 



XXXIV 

II. 110. mohi tohi Idgl kaise chute 

How could the love between Thee and 

me sever ? 
As the leaf of the lotus abides on the 



KABIR'S POEMS 41 

water : so thou art my Lord, and 

I am Thy servant. 
As the night-bird Chakor gazes all 

night at the moon : so Thou art 

my Lord and I am Thy servant. 
From the beginning until the ending 

of time, there is love between 

Thee and me ; and how shall such 

love be extinguished ? 
Kabir says : "As the river enters 

into the ocean, so my heart touches 

Thee." 

XXXV 

II. 113. vdlam, dwo hamdre geh re 

MY body and my mind are grieved for 
the want of Thee ; 

O my Beloved ! come to my house. 

When people say I am Thy bride, I 
am ashamed ; for I have not 
touched Thy heart with my heart. 

Then what is this love of mine ? I 



42 KABIR'S POEMS 

have no taste for food, I have no 
sleep ; my heart is ever restless 
within doors and without. 

As water is to the thirsty, so is the 
lover to the bride. Who is there 
that will carry my news to my 
Beloved ? 

Kabir is restless : he is dying for sight 
of Him. 

XXXVI 

II. 126. jag piydri, ab kdn sowai 

O FRIEND, awake, and sleep no 
more ! 

The night is over and gone, would you 
lose your day also ? 

Others, who have wakened, have re- 
ceived jewels ; 

O foolish woman ! you have lost all 
whilst you slept. 

Your lover is wise, and you are foolish, 
O woman ! 



KABIR'S POEMS 43 

You never prepared the bed of your 

husband : 
O mad one ! you passed your time in 

silly play. 
Your youth was passed in vain, for 

you did not know your Lord ; 
Wake, wake ! See ! your bed is 

empty : He left you in the 

night. 
Kabir says : " Only she wakes, whose 

heart is pierced with the arrow 

of His music." 



XXXVII 

1. 36. sur parkdd, tdnh rain kahdn paiye 

WHERE is the night, when the sun is 
shining ? If it is night, then the 
sun withdraws its light. 

Where knowledge is, can ignorance 
endure ? If there be ignorance, 
then knowledge must die. 



44 KABIR'S POEMS 

If there be lust, how can love be there ? 
Where there is love, there is no 
lust. 

Lay hold on your sword, and join in 
the fight. Fight, O my brother, 
as long as life lasts. 

Strike off your enemy's head, and there 
make an end of him quickly : then 
come, and bow your head at your 
King's Durbar. 

He who is brave, never forsakes the 
battle : he who flies from it is no 
true fighter. 

In the field of this body a great 
war goes forward, against passion, 
anger, pride, and greed : 

It is in the kingdom of truth, content- 
ment and purity, that this battle 
is raging ; and the sword that 
rings forth most loudly is the 
sword of His Name. 

Kabir says : " When a brave knight 



KABIR'S POEMS 45 

takes the field, a host of cowards 

is put to flight. 
It is a hard fight and a weary one, this 

fight of the truth-seeker : for the 

vow of the truth -seeker is more 

hard than that of the warrior, or 

of the widowed wife who would 

follow her husband. 
For the warrior fights for a few hours, 

and the widow's struggle with 

death is soon ended : 
But the truth-seeker's battle goes on 

day and night, as long as life lasts 

it never ceases." 



XXXVIII 

I. 50. bhram kd tola lagd mahal re 

THE lock of error shuts the gate, open 

it with the key of love : 
Thus, by opening the door, thou shalt 

wake the Beloved. 



46 KABIR'S POEMS 

Kabir says : " O brother ! do not pass 
by such good fortune as this." 



XXXIX 

I. 59. sddho, yah tan fhdth tanvure kd 

O FRIEND ! this body is His lyre ; 
He tightens its strings, and draws 

from it the melody of Brahma. 
If the strings snap and the keys 

slacken, then to dust must this 

instrument of dust return : 
Kabir says : " None but Brahma can 

evoke its melodies." 



XL 

I. 65. avadhu bhitte ko ghar Idwe 

HE is dear to me indeed who can call 
back the wanderer to his home. 
In the home is the true union, in 



KABIR'S POEMS 47 

the home is enjoyment of life : 
why should I forsake my home and 
wander in the forest ? If Brahma 
helps me to realize truth, verily 
I will find both bondage and de- 
liverance in home. 

He is dear to me indeed who has 
power to dive deep into Brahma ; 
whose mind loses itself with ease 
in His contemplation. 

He is dear to me who knows Brahma, 
and can dwell on His supreme 
truth in meditation ; and who can 
play the melody of the Infinite 
by uniting love and renunciation 
in life. 

Kabir says : " The home is the abiding 
place ; in the home is reality ; the 
home helps to attain Him Who 
is real. So stay where you are, 
and all things shall come to you in 
time." 



48 KABIR'S POEMS 



XLI 

I. 76. santo, sahaj samddh bhali 

SADHU ! the simple union is the 
best. 

Since the day when I met with my 
Lord, there has been no end to the 
sport of our love. 

1 shut not my eyes, I close not my 

ears, I do not mortify my body ; 
I see with eyes open and smile, and 

behold His beauty everywhere : 
I utter His Name, and whatever I see, 

it reminds me of Him ; whatever 

I do, it becomes His worship. 
The rising and the setting are one to 

me ; all contradictions are solved. 
Wherever I go, I move round Him, 
All I achieve is His service : 
When I lie down, I lie prostrate at 

His feet. 



KABIR'S POEMS 49 

He is the only adorable one to me : I 
have none other. 

My tongue has left off impure words, 
it sings His glory day and night : 

Whether I rise or sit down, I can 
never forget Him ; for the rhythm 
of His music beats in my ears. 

Kabir says : " My heart is frenzied, 
and I disclose in my soul what is 
hidden. I am immersed in that 
one great bliss which transcends 
all pleasure and pain." 

XLII 

I. 79. tlrath men to sab pdni hai 

THERE is nothing but water at the 
holy bathing places ; and I know 
that they are useless, for I have 
bathed in them. 

The images are all lifeless, they cannot 
speak ; I know, for I have cried 
aloud to them. 

E 



50 KABIR'S POEMS 

The Purana and the Koran are mere 
words ; lifting up the curtain, I 
have seen. 

Kabir gives utterance to the words of 
experience ; and he knows very 
well that all other things are un- 
true. 

XLIII 

I. 82. pdni vie mm piydsl 

I LAUGH when I hear that the fish in 

the water is thirsty : 
You do not see that the Real is in 

your home, and you wander from 

forest to forest listlessly ! 
Here is the truth ! Go where you 

will, to Benares or to Mathura ; 

if you do not find your soul, the 

world is unreal to you. 






KABIR'S POEMS 51 

XLIV 

I. 93. gagan math gaib nisdn gade 

THE Hidden Banner is planted in the 
temple of the sky ; there the blue 
canopy decked with the moon and 
set with bright jewels is spread. 

There the light of the sun and the moon 
is shining : still your mind to 
silence before that splendour. 

Kabir says : " He who has drunk of 
this nectar, wanders like one who 
is mad." 

XLV 

I. 97. sadho, ko hai kdnh se dyo 

WHO are you, and whence do you 

come ? 
Where dwells that Supreme Spirit, and 

how does He have His sport with 

all created things ? 



52 KABIR'S POEMS 

The fire is in the wood ; but who 
awakens it suddenly ? Then it 
turns to ashes, and where goes the 
force of the fire ? 

The true guru teaches that He has 
neither limit nor infinitude. 

Kabir says : " Brahma suits His lan- 
guage to the understanding of His 
hearer.'* 

XLVI 

I. 98. sddho, sahajai kdyd dodho 

O SADHU ! purify your body in the 

simple way. 
As the seed is within the banyan tree, 

and within the seed are the flowers, 

the fruits, and the shade : 
So the germ is within the body, and 

within that germ is the body again. 
The fire, the air, the water, the earth, 

and the aether ; you cannot have 

these outside of Him. 



KABIR'S POEMS 53 

O Kazi, O Pundit, consider it well : 

what is there that is not in the 

soul? 
The water-filled pitcher is placed upon 

water, it has water within and 

without. 
It should not be given a name, lest it 

call forth the error of dualism. 
Kabir says : " Listen to the Word, 

the Truth, which is your essence. 

He speaks the Word to Himself; 

and He Himself is the Creator." 

XLVII 

I. 102. tarvar ek mill bin thddd 

THERE is a strange tree, which stands 

without roots and bears fruits 

without blossoming; 
It has no branches and no leaves, it 

is lotus all over. 
Two birds sing there ; one is the Guru, 

and the other the disciple : 



54 KABIR'S POEMS 

The disciple chooses the manifold 
fruits of life and tastes them, and 
the Guru beholds him in joy. 

What Kabir says is hard to under- 
stand : " The bird is beyond seek- 
ing, yet it is most clearly visible. 
The Formless is in the midst of all 
forms. I sing the glory of forms." 

XLVIII 

I. 107. calat mansd acal kinhi 

I HAVE stilled my restless mind, and 
my heart is radiant : for in That- 
ness I have seen beyond That- 
ness, in company I have seen the 
Comrade Himself. 

Living in bondage, I have set myself 
free : I have broken away from 
the clutch of all narrowness. 

Kabir says : " I have attained the 
unattainable, and my heart is 
coloured with the colour of love." 



KABIR'S POEMS 55 

XLIX 

I. 105. jo disai, so to hai nakin 

THAT which you see is not : and for 

that which is, you have no words. 
Unless you see, you believe not : what 

is told you you cannot accept. 
He who is discerning knows by the 

word ; and the ignorant stands 

gaping. 
Some contemplate the Formless, and 

others meditate on form : but the 

wise man knows that Brahma is 

beyond both. 
That beauty of His is not seen of 

the eye : that metre of His is not 

heard of the ear. 
Kabir says : " He who has found 

both love and renunciation never 

descends to death." 



56 KABIR'S POEMS 



I. 126. murall bajat akhay,d saddye 

THE flute of the Infinite is played 

without ceasing, and its sound is 

love : 
When love renounces all limits, it 

reaches truth. 
How widely the fragrance spreads ! 

It has no end, nothing stands in 

its way. 
The form of this melody is bright 

like a million suns : incomparably 

sounds the vina, the vina of the 

notes of truth. 



LI 

I. 129. sakhiyo, ham hurt bhdl 
valamadl 

DEAR friend, I am eager to meet my 
Beloved ! My youth has flowered, 



KABIR'S POEMS 57 

and the pain of separation from 
Him troubles my breast. 

I am wandering yet in the alleys of 
knowledge without purpose, but I 
have received His news in these 
alleys of knowledge. 

I have a letter from my Beloved : in 
this letter is an unutterable mes- 
sage, and now my fear of death is 
done away. 

Kabir says : " O my loving friend ! 
I have got for my gift the Death- 
less One." 



LII 

I. 130. sain bin dard kareje hoy 

WHEN I am parted from my Beloved, 
my heart is full of misery : I have 
no comfort in the day, I have no 
sleep in the night. To whom shall 
I tell my sorrow ? 



58 KABIR'S POEMS 

The night is dark ; the hours slip by. 
Because my Lord is absent, I 
start up and tremble with fear. 

Kabir says : " Listen, my friend ! 
there is no other satisfaction, save 
in the encounter with the Beloved." 



LIII 

I. 122. kaun murall fabd 
anand bhayo 

WHAT is that flute whose music thrills 

me with joy ? 

The flame burns without a lamp ; 
The lotus blossoms without a root ; 
Flowers bloom in clusters ; 
The moon-bird is devoted to the moon ; 
With all its heart the rain-bird longs 

for the shower of rain ; 
But upon whose love does the Lover 

concentrate His entire life ? 



KABIR'S POEMS 59 

LIV 
I. 112. $untd nahl dhun kl khabar 

HAVE you not heard the tune which 
the Unstruck Music is playing ? 
In the midst of the chamber the 
harp of joy is gently and sweetly 
played ; and where is the need of 
going without to hear it ? 

If you have not drunk of the nectar 
of that One Love, what boots it 
though you should purge yourself 
of all stains ? 

The Kazi is searching the words of the 
Koran, and instructing others : but 
if his heart be not steeped in that 
love, what does it avail, though 
he be a teacher of men ? 

The Yogi dyes his garments with 
red : but if he knows naught of 
that colour of love, what does it 
avail though his garments be 
tinted ? 



60 KABIR'S POEMS 

Kabir says : " Whether I be in the 
temple or the balcony, in the camp 
or in the flower garden, I tell you 
truly that every moment my Lord 
is taking His delight in me." 



LV 

I. 73. bhakti kd mdrag jhlna re 

SUBTLE is the path of love ! 

Therein there is no asking and no not- 
asking, 

There one loses one's self at His feet, 

There one is immersed in the joy of 
the seeking : plunged in the deeps 
of love as the fish in the water. 

The lover is never slow in offering 
his head for his Lord's service. 

Kabir declares the secret of this love. 



KABIR'S POEMS 61 



LVI 

I. 68. bhdl koi satguru sant kahdwai 

HE is the real Sadhu, who can reveal 
the form of the Formless to the 
vision of these eyes : 

Who teaches the simple way of attain- 
ing Him, that is other than rites 
or ceremonies : 

Who does not make you close the doors, 
and hold the breath, and renounce 
the world : 

Who makes you perceive the Supreme 
Spirit wherever the mind attaches 
itself : 

Who teaches you to be still in the 
midst of all your activities. 

Ever immersed in bliss, having no 
fear in his mind, he keeps the spirit 
of union in the midst of all enjoy- 
ments. 



62 KABIR'S POEMS 

The infinite dwelling of the Infinite 

Being is everywhere : in earth, 

water, sky, and air : 
Firm as the thunderbolt, the seat of 

the seeker is established above 

the void. 
He who is within is without : I see 

Him and none else. 

LVII 

I. 66. sddho, fabd sddhand kvjai 

RECEIVE that Word from which the 

Universe springeth ! 
That Word is the Guru ; I have heard 

it, and become the disciple. 
How many are there who know the 

meaning of that Word ? 

O Sadhu ! practise that Word ! 
The Vedas and the Puranas proclaim 

it, 
The world is established in it, 



KABIR'S POEMS 63 

The Rishis and devotees speak of it : 
But none knows the mystery of the 

Word. 
The householder leaves his house when 

he hears it, 
The ascetic comes back to love when 

he hears it, 

The Six Philosophies expound it, 
The Spirit of Renunciation points to 

that Word, 
From that Word the world-form has 

sprung, 

That Word reveals all. 
Kabir says : " But who knows whence 

the Word cometh ? " 

LVIII 

I. 63. pi le pydld, ho matwdld 

EMPTY the Cup I O be drunken ! 
Drink the divine nectar of His Name ! 
Kabir says : " Listen to me, dear 
Sadhu ! 



64 KABIR'S POEMS 

From the sole of the foot to the crown 
of the head this mind is filled with 
poison." 

LIX 

I. 52. khasm na cirihai bdwarl 

O MAN, if thou dost not know thine 
own Lord, whereof art thou so 
proud ? 

Put thy cleverness away : mere words 
shall never unite thee to Him. 

Do not deceive thyself with the wit- 
ness of the Scriptures : 

Love is something other than this, 
and he who has sought it truly has 
found it. 

LX 

I. 56. sukh sindh kl sair kd 

THE savour of wandering in the ocean 
of deathless life has rid me of all 
my asking : 



KABIR'S POEMS 65 

As the tree is in the seed, so all dis- 
eases are in this asking. 

LXI 

I. 48. sukh sdgar men dike 

WHEN at last you are come to the 

ocean of happiness, do not go back 

thirsty. 
Wake, foolish man ! for Death stalks 

you. Here is pure water before 

you ; drink it at every breath. 
Do not follow the mirage on foot, but 

thirst for the nectar ; 
Dhruva, Prahlad, and Shukadeva have 

drunk of it, and also Raidas has 

tasted it : 
The saints are drunk with love, their 

thirst is for love. 
Kabir says : " Listen to me, brother ! 

The nest of fear is broken. 
Not for a moment have you come 

face to face with the world : 

p 



66 KABIR'S POEMS 

You are weaving your bondage of 

falsehood, your words are full of 

deception : 
With the load of desires which you 

hold on your head, how can you 

be light ? " 
Kabir says : " Keep within you truth, 

detachment, and love." 

LXII 

I. 35. sati ko kaun dikhdwtd hai 

WHO has ever taught the widowed 
wife to burn herself on the pyre of 
her dead husband ? 

And who has ever taught love to find 
bliss in renunciation ? 

LXIII 

I. 39. are man, dhlraj kdhe na dharai 

WHY so impatient, my heart ? 
He who watches over birds, beasts, and 
insects, 



KABIR'S POEMS 67 

He who cared for you whilst you were 
yet in your mother's womb, 

Shall He not care for you now that 
you are come forth ? 

Oh my heart, how could you turn from 
the smile of your Lord and wander 
so far from Him ? 

You have left your Beloved and are 
thinking of others : and this is 
why all your work is in vain. 

LXIV 

I. 117. sain se lagan kathin hai, bhdl 

How hard it is to meet my Lord ! 

The rain-bird wails in thirst for the 
rain : almost she dies of her long- 
ing, yet she would have none 
other water than the rain. 

Drawn by the love of music, the deer 
moves forward : she dies as she 
listens to the music, yet she shrinks 
not in fear. 



68 KABIR'S POEMS 

The widowed wife sits by the body 
of her dead husband : she is not 
afraid of the fire. 

Put away all fear for this poor body. 

LXV 

I. 22. jab main bhuld, re bhdi 

BROTHER ! when I was forgetful, 
my true Guru showed me the 
Way. 

Then I left off all rites and ceremonies, 
I bathed no more in the holy water : 

Then I learned that it was I alone who 
was mad, and the whole world 
beside me was sane ; and I had 
disturbed these wise people. 

From that time forth I knew no more 
how to roll in the dust in obeisance : 

1 do not ring the temple bell : 

I do not set the idol on its throne : 
I do not worship the image with 
flowers. 



KABIR'S POEMS 69 

It is not the austerities that mortify 
the flesh which are pleasing to 
the Lord, 

When you leave off your clothes and 
kill your senses, you do not please 
the Lord : 

The man who is kind and who practises 
righteousness, who remains passive 
amidst the affairs of the world, 
who considers all creatures on 
earth as his own self, 

He attains the Immortal Being, the 
true God is ever with him. 

Kabir says : " He attains the true 
Name whose words are pure, and 
who is free from pride and conceit." 

LXVI 

I. 20. man na rarigdye 

THE Yogi dyes his garments, instead 
of dyeing his mind in the colours 
of love : 



70 KABIR'S POEMS 

He sits within the temple of the Lord, 

leaving Brahma to worship a 

stone. 
He pierces holes in his ears, he has a 

great beard and matted locks, he 

looks like a goat : 
He goes forth into the wilderness, 

killing all his desires, and turns 

himself into an eunuch : 
He shaves his head and dyes his 

garments ; he reads the Gita and 

becomes a mighty talker. 
Kabir says : "You are going to the doors 

of death, bound hand and foot ! " 

LXVII 

I. 9. nd jane sdhab kaisd hai 

I DO not know what manner of God is 
mine. 

The Mullah cries aloud to Him : and 
why ? Is your Lord deaf ? The 
subtle anklets that ring on the 



KABIR'S POEMS 71 

feet of an insect when it moves 
are heard of Him. 

Tell your beads, paint your forehead 
with the mark of your God, and 
wear matted locks long and showy : 
but a deadly weapon is in your heart, 
and how shall you have God ? 

LXVIII 
III. 102. ham se rahd na jay 

I HEAR the melody of His flute, and 

I cannot contain myself : 
The flower blooms, though it is not 

spring ; and already the bee has 

received its invitation. 
The sky roars and the lightning flashes, 

the waves arise in my heart, 
The rain falls ; and my heart longs for 

my Lord. 
Where the rhythm of the world rises 

and falls, thither my heart has 

reached : 



72 KABIR'S POEMS 

There the hidden banners are flutter- 
ing in the air. 

Kabir says : " My heart is dying, 
though it lives." 

LXIX 
III. 2. jo khodd masjid vasat hai 

IF God be within the mosque, then to 

whom does this world belong ? 
If Ram be within the image which you 

find upon your pilgrimage, then 

who is there to know what happens 

without ? 
Hari is in the East : Allah is in the 

West. Look within your heart, 

for there you will find both Karim 

and Ram ; 
All the men and women of the world 

are His living forms. 
Kabir is the child of Allah and of 

Ram : He is my Guru, He is my 

Pir. 



KABIR'S POEMS 73 

LXX 

III. 9. ll santosh soda samadfishti 

HE who is meek and contented, he 
who has an equal vision, whose 
mind is filled with the fullness of 
acceptance and of rest ; 

He who has seen Him and touched 
Him, he is freed from all fear and 
trouble. 

To him the perpetual thought of God 
is like sandal paste smeared on 
the body, to him nothing else is 
delight : 

His work and his rest are filled with 
music : he sheds abroad the radi- 
ance of love. 

Kabir says : " Touch His feet, who is 
one and indivisible, immutable and 
peaceful ; who fills all vessels to 
the brim with joy, and whose form 
is love." 



74 KABIR'S POEMS 

LXXI 
III. 13. sddh sangat pltam 

Go thou to the company of the good, 
where the Beloved One has His 
dwelling place : 

Take all thy thoughts and love and 
instruction from thence. 

Let that assembly be burnt to ashes 
where His Name is not spoken ! 

Tell me, how couldst thou hold a 
wedding - feast, if the bridegroom 
himself were not there ? 

Waver no more, think only of the 
Beloved ; 

Set not thy heart on the worship of 
other gods, there is no worth in 
the worship of other masters. 

Kabir deliberates and says : " Thus 
thou shalt never find the Be- 
loved ! " 



KABIR'S POEMS 75 

LXXII 

III. 26. tor hird hirdilwd 
kicad men 

THE jewel is lost in the mud, and all 
are seeking for it ; 

Some look for it in the east, and some 
in the west ; some in the water 
and some amongst stones. 

But the servant Kabir has appraised 
it at its true value, and has 
wrapped it with care in the end 
of the mantle of his heart. 

LXXIII 

III. 26. dyau din gaune kd ho 

THE palanquin came to take me away 
to my husband's home, and it sent 
through my heart a thrill of joy ; 

But the bearers have brought me into 
the lonely forest, where I have 
no one of my own. 



76 KABIR'S POEMS 

O bearers, I entreat you by your feet, 
wait but a moment longer : let 
me go back to my kinsmen and 
friends, and take my leave of them. 

The servant Kabir sings : " O Sadhu ! 
finish your buying and selling, 
have done with your good and 
your bad : for there are no markets 
and no shops in the land to which 
you go." 

LXXIV 

III. 30. are dil, prem nagar 
kd ant na pdyd 

O MY heart ! you have not known 
all the secrets of this city of love : 
in ignorance you came, and in 
ignorance you return. 

O my friend, what have you done with 
this life ? You have taken on your 
head the burden heavy with stones, 
and who is to lighten it for you ? 



KABIR'S POEMS 77 

Your Friend stands on the other 
shore, but you never think in your 
mind how you may meet with Him : 

The boat is broken, and yet you sit ever 
upon the bank ; and thus you are 
beaten to no purpose by the waves. 

The servant Kabir asks you to con- 
sider ; who is there that shall be- 
friend you at the last ? 

You are alone, you have no companion : 
you will suffer the consequences of 
your own deeds. 



LXXV 
III. 55. ved kahe sargwq, ke age 

THE Vedas say that the Unconditioned 
stands beyond the world of Con- 
ditions. 

O woman, what does it avail thee to 
dispute whether He is beyond all 
or in all ? 



78 KABIR'S POEMS 

See thou everything as thine own dwell- 
ing place : the mist of pleasure and 
pain can never spread there. 

There Brahma is revealed day and 
night : there light is His garment, 
light is His seat, light rests on thy 
head. 

Kabir says : " The Master, who is true, 
He is all light." 

LXXVI 
III. 48. tu surat nain nihdr 

OPEN your eyes of love, and see Him 
who pervades this world ! consider 
it well, and know that this is your 
own country. 

When you meet the true Guru, He 
will awaken your heart ; 

He will tell you the secret of love and 
detachment, and then you will 
know indeed that He transcends 
this universe. 



KABIR'S POEMS 79 

This world is the City of Truth, its 

maze of paths enchants the heart : 
We can reach the goal without crossing 

the road, such is the sport unending. 
Where the ring of manifold joys ever 

dances about Him, there is the 

sport of Eternal Bliss. 
When we know this, then all our 

receiving and renouncing is over ; 
Thenceforth the heat of having shall 

never scorch us more. 

He is the Ultimate Rest unbounded : 
He has spread His form of love 

throughout all the world. 
From that Ray which is Truth, streams 

of new forms are perpetually 

springing : and He pervades those 

forms. 
All the gardens and groves and bowers 

are abounding with blossom ; and 

the air breaks forth into ripples 

of joy. 



80 KABIR'S POEMS 

There the swan plays a wonderful 

game, 
There the Unstruck Music eddies 

around the Infinite One ; 
There in the midst the Throne of the 

Unheld is shining, whereon the 

great Being sits 
Millions of suns are shamed by the 

radiance of a single hair of His body. 
On the harp of the road what true 

melodies are being sounded ! and 

its notes pierce the heart : 
There the Eternal Fountain is playing 

its endless life -streams of birth 

and death. 
They call Him Emptiness who is the 

Truth of truths, in Whom all 

truths are stored ! 

There within Him creation goes for- 
ward, which is beyond all philo- 
sophy ; for philosophy cannot 
attain to Him : 



KABIR'S POEMS 81 

There is an endless world, O my 
Brother ! and there is the Name- 
less Being, of whom nought can 
be said. 

Only he knows it who has reached 
that region : it is other than all 
that is heard and said. 

No form, no body, no length, no 
breadth is seen there : how can I 
tell you that which it is ? 

He comes to the Path of the Infinite 
on whom the grace of the Lord 
descends : he is freed from births 
and deaths who attains to Him. 

Kabir says : "It cannot be told by 
the words of the mouth, it cannot 
be written on paper : 

It is like a dumb person who tastes a 
sweet thing how shall it be ex- 
plained ? " 



G 



82 KABIR'S POEMS 

LXXVII 
III. 60. cal hamsd wd de jahdn 

O MY heart ! let us go to that country 
where dwells the Beloved, the 
ravisher of my heart ! 

There Love is filling her pitcher from 
the well, yet she has no rope 
wherewith to draw water ; 

There the clouds do not cover the sky, 
yet the rain falls down in gentle 
showers : 

O bodiless one ! do not sit on your 
doorstep ; go forth and bathe 
yourself in that rain ! 

There it is ever moonlight and never 
dark ; and who speaks of one sun 
only ? that land is illuminate with 
the rays of a million suns. 



KABIR'S POEMS 83 

LXXVIII 
III. 63. kahain Kabir, uno ho sddho 

KABIR says : " O Sadhu ! hear my 
deathless words. If you want your 
own good, examine and consider 
them well. 

You have estranged yourself from 
the Creator, of whom you have 
sprung : you have lost your reason, 
you have bought death. 

All doctrines and all teachings are 
sprung from Him, from Him they 
grow : know this for certain, and 
have no fear. 

Hear from me the tidings of this great 
truth ! 

Whose name do you sing, and on 
whom do you meditate ? O, come 
forth from this entanglement ! 

He dwells at the heart of all things, 
so why take refuge in empty deso- 
lation ? 



84 KABIR'S POEMS 

If you place the Guru at a distance 
from you, then it is but the 
distance that you honour : 

If indeed the Master be far away, then 
who is it else that is creating this 
world ? 

When you think that He is not here, 
then you wander further and 
further away, and seek Him in 
vain with tears. 

Where He is far off, there He is un- 
attainable : where He is near, He 
is very bliss. 

Kabir says : " Lest His servant should 
suffer pain He pervades him 
through and through." 

Know yourself then, O Kabir ; for 
He is in you from head to foot. 

Sing with gladness, and keep your 
seat unmoved within your heart. 






KABIR'S POEMS 85 

LXXIX 

III. 66. nd main dharml nahln 
adharmi 

I AM neither pious nor ungodly, 
I live neither by law nor by sense, 
I am neither a speaker nor hearer, 
I am neither a servant nor master, 
I am neither bond nor free, 
I am neither detached nor attached. 
I am far from none : I am near to 

none. 
I shall go neither to hell nor to 

heaven. 
I do all works ; yet I am apart from 

all works. 
Few comprehend my meaning : he 

who can comprehend it, he sits 

unmoved. 
Kabir seeks neither to establish nor 

to destroy. 



86 KABIR'S POEMS 

LXXX 
III. 69. satta ndm hai sab ten nyard 

THE true Name is like none other 
name ! 

The distinction of the Conditioned 
from the Unconditioned is but a 
word : 

The Unconditioned is the seed, the 
Conditioned is the flower and the 
fruit. 

Knowledge is the branch, and the 
Name is the root. 

Look, and see where the root is : 
happiness shall be yours when you 
come to the root. 

The root will lead you to the branch, 
the leaf, the flower, and the fruit : 

It is the encounter with the Lord, it 
is the attainment of bliss, it is 
the reconciliation of the Condi- 
tioned and the Unconditioned. 



KABIR'S POEMS 87 

LXXXI 
III. 74. pratham ek jo dpai dp 

IN the beginning was He alone, suffi- 
cient unto Himself : the formless, 
colourless, and unconditioned Being. 

Then was there neither beginning, 
middle, nor end ; 

Then were no eyes, no darkness, no 
light ; 

Then were no ground, air, nor sky ; no 
fire, water, nor earth ; no rivers 
like the Ganges and the Jumna, 
no seas, oceans, and waves. 

Then was neither vice nor virtue ; 
scriptures there were not, as the 
Vedas and Puranas, nor as the 
Koran. 

Kabir ponders in his mind and says: 
" Then was there no activity : the 
Supreme Being remained merged 
in the unknown depths of His own 
self." 



88 KABIR'S POEMS 

The Guru neither eats nor drinks, 
neither lives nor dies : 

Neither has He form, line, colour, nor 
vesture. 

He who has neither caste nor clan 
nor anything else how may I 
describe His glory ? 

He has neither form nor formlessness, 

He has no name, 

He has neither colour nor colourless- 
ness, 

He has no dwelling-place. 

LXXXII 
III. 76. kahain Kabir vicar ke 

KABIR ponders and says : " He who 
has neither caste nor country, who 
is formless and without quality, 
fills all space." 

The Creator brought into being the 
Game of Joy : and from the word 
Om the Creation sprang. 



KABIR'S POEMS 89 

The earth is His joy ; His joy is the 

sky; 
His joy is the flashing of the sun and 

the moon ; 
His joy is the beginning, the middle, 

and the end ; 

His joy is eyes, darkness, and light. 
Oceans and waves are His joy : His 

joy the Sarasvati, the Jumna, and 

the Ganges. 
The Guru is One : and life and death, 

union and separation, are all His 

plays of joy ! 
His play the land and water, the whole 

universe I 

His play the earth and the sky ! 
In play is the Creation spread out, in 

play it is established. The whole 

world, says Kabir, rests in His 

play, yet still the Player remains 

unknown. 



90 KABIR'S POEMS 

LXXXIII 
III. 84. jhi jhi jantar bdjai 

THE harp gives forth murmurous 
music ; and the dance goes on 
without hands and feet. 

It is played without fingers, it is 
heard without ears : for He is 
the ear, and He is the listener. 

The gate is locked, but within there 
is fragrance : and there the meet- 
ing is seen of none. 

The wise shall understand it. 

LXXXIV 
III. 89. mor phaklrwd mdngi jay 

THE Beggar goes a-begging, but I 
could not even catch sight of Him : 

And what shall I beg of the Beggar ? 
He gives without my asking. 

Kabir says : "I am His own : now 
let that befall which may befall ! " 



KABIR'S POEMS 91 

LXXXV 

III. 90. naihar se jiyard phot re 

MY heart cries aloud for the house 
of my lover ; the open road and 
the shelter of a roof are all one to 
her who has lost the city of her 
husband. 

My heart finds no joy in anything : 
my mind and my body are dis- 
traught. 

His palace has a million gates, but 
there is a vast ocean between it 
and me : 

How shall I cross it, O friend ? for 
endless is the outstretching of the 
path. 

How wondrously this lyre is wrought ! 
When its strings are rightly strung, 
it maddens the heart : but when 
the keys are broken and the strings 
are loosened, none regard it more. 



92 KABIR'S POEMS 

I tell my parents with laughter that I 
must go to my Lord in the morning ; 

They are angry, for they do not want 
me to go, and they say : " She 
thinks she has gained such 
dominion over her husband that 
she can have whatsoever she 
wishes ; and therefore she is im- 
patient to go to him." 

Dear friend, lift my veil lightly now ; 
for this is the night of love. 

Kabir says : " Listen to me ! My 
heart is eager to meet my lover : 
I lie sleepless upon my bed. Re- 
member me early in the morning ! " 

LXXXVI 
III. 96. jw mahal men &iv pahunwd 

SERVE your God, who has come into 

this temple of life ! 
Do not act the part of a madman, 

for the night is thickening fast. 



KABIR'S POEMS 93 

He has awaited me for countless ages, 
for love of me He has lost His 
heart : 

Yet I did not know the bliss that 
was so near to me, for my love was 
not yet awake. 

But now, my Lover has made known 
to me the meaning of the note that 
struck my ear : 

Now, my good fortune is come. 

Kabir says : " Behold ! how great is 
my good fortune ! I have received 
the unending caress of my Be- 
loved ! " 



LXXXVII 

I. 71. gagan ghatd ghahardm, sddho 

CLOUDS thicken in the sky ! O, listen 
to the deep voice of their roaring ; 

The rain comes from the east with its 
monotonous murmur. 



94 KABIR'S POEMS 

Take care of the fences and boundaries 
of your fields, lest the rains over- 
flow them ; 

Prepare the soil of deliverance, and 
let the creepers of love and re- 
nunciation be soaked in this shower. 

It is the prudent farmer who will 
bring his harvest home ; he shall 
fill both his vessels, and feed both 
the wise men and the saints. 



LXXXVIII 
III. 118. dj din ke main j dun balihdrl 

THIS day is dear to me above all other 

days, for to-day the Beloved Lord 

is a guest in my house ; 
My chamber and my courtyard are 

beautiful with His presence. 
My longings sing His Name, and they 

are become lost in His great beauty : 



KABIR'S POEMS 95 

I wash His feet, and I look upon His 
Face ; and I lay before Him as an 
offering my body, my mind, and 
all that I have. 

What a day of gladness is that day 
in which my Beloved, who is my 
treasure, comes to my house ! 

All evils fly from my heart when I see 
my Lord. 

" My love has touched Him ; my 
heart is longing for the Name 
which is Truth." 

Thus sings Kabir, the servant of all 
servants. 



LXXXIX 

I. 100. koi 6untd hai jndnl rag 
gagan men 

Is there any wise man who will listen 
to that solemn music which arises 
in the sky ? 



96 KABIR'S POEMS 

For He, the Source of all music, 

makes all vessels full fraught, and 

rests in fullness Himself. 
He who is in the body is ever athirst, 

for he pursues that which is in 

part : 
But ever there wells forth deeper and 

deeper the sound " He is this 

this is He " ; fusing love and 

renunciation into one. 
Kabir says : " O brother ! that is the 

Primal Word." 



XC 

I. 108. main kd se bujhaun 

To whom shall I go to learn about 

my Beloved ? 
Kabir says : "As you never may 

find the forest if you ignore the 

tree, so He may never be found in 

abstractions." 



KABIR'S POEMS 97 

XCI 
III. 12. saijiskirit bhdshd padhi llnhd 

I HAVE learned the Sanskrit language, 

so let all men call me wise : 
But where is the use of this, when I 

am floating adrift, and parched 

with thirst, and burning with the 

heat of desire ? 
To no purpose do you bear on your 

head this load of pride and vanity. 
Kabir says : " Lay it down in the dust 

and go forth to meet the Beloved. 

Address Him as your Lord." 

XCII 
III. 110. carkhd calai surat virahin kd 

THE woman who is parted from her 
lover spins at the spinning wheel. 

The city of the body arises in its 
beauty ; and within it the palace 

of the mind has been built. 

H 



98 KABIR'S POEMS 

The wheel of love revolves in the sky, 
and the seat is made of the jewels 
of knowledge : 

What subtle threads the woman 
weaves, and makes them fine with 
love and reverence ! 

Kabir says: " I am weaving the garland 
of day and night. When my Lover 
comes and touches me with His 
feet, I shall offer Him my tears." 

XCIII 
III. 111. kotm bhdnu candra tar ago 

BENEATH the great umbrella of my 
King millions of suns and moons 
and stars are shining ! 

He is the Mind within my mind : He 
is the Eye within mine eye. 

Ah, could my mind and eyes be one I 
Could my love but reach to my 
Lover ! Could but the fiery heat 
of my heart be cooled I 



KABIR'S POEMS 99 

Kabir says : " When you unite love 
with the Lover, then you have 
love's perfection." 

XCIV 

I. 92. avadhu begam ded hamdrd 

SADHU 1 my land is a sorrowless 
land. 

1 cry aloud to all, to the king and the 

beggar, the emperor and the fakir 
Whosoever seeks for shelter in the 

Highest, let all come and settle 

in my land ! 
Let the weary come and lay his 

burdens here ! 

So live here, my brother, that you may 
cross with ease to that other shore. 

It is a land without earth or sky, 
without moon or stars ; 

For only the radiance of Truth shines 
in my Lord's Durbar. 



100 KABIR'S POEMS 

Kabir says : " O beloved brother ! 
naught is essential save Truth." 



xcv 

I. 109. sdln ke sangat sdsur dl 

I CAME with my Lord to my Lord's 
home : but I lived not with Him 
and I tasted Him not, and my 
youth passed away like a dream. 

On my wedding night my women- 
friends sang in chorus, and I was 
anointed with the unguents of 
pleasure and pain : 

But when the ceremony was over, I 
left my Lord and came away, and 
my kinsman tried to console me 
upon the road. 

Kabir says : " I shall go to my Lord's 
house with my love at my side; 
then shall I sound the trumpet 
of triumph ! " 



KABIR'S POEMS 101 

XCVI 

I. 75. samajh dekh man mil piyarwd 

O FRIEND, dear heart of mine, think 

well ! if you love indeed, then why 

do you sleep ? 
If you have found Him, then give 

yourself utterly, and take Him to 

you. 
Why do you loose Him again and 

again ? 
If the deep sleep of rest has come to 

your eyes, why waste your time 

making the bed and arranging the 

pillows ? 
Kabir says : " I tell you the ways of 

love ! Even though the head itself 

must be given, why should you 

weep over it ? " 



102 KABIR'S POEMS 



XCVII 

II. 90. sdhab ham men, sdhab 
turn men 

THE Lord is in me, the Lord is in you, 
as life is in every seed. O servant ! 
put false pride away, and seek for 
Him within you. 

A million suns are ablaze with light, 
The sea of blue spreads in the sky, 
The fever of life is stilled, and all 
stains are washed away ; when 
I sit in the midst of that world. 

Hark to the unstruck bells and drums ! 

Take your delight in love ! 
Rains pour down without water, and 

the rivers are streams of light. 
One Love it is that pervades the whole 

world, few there are who know it 

fully : 



KABIR'S POEMS 103 

They are blind who hope to see it by 
the light of reason, that reason 
which is the cause of separation 

The House of Reason is very far away ! 

How blessed is Kabir, that amidst 

this great joy he sings within his 

own vessel. 
It is the music of the meeting of soul 

with soul ; 
It is the music of the forgetting of 

sorrows ; 
It is the music that transcends all 

coming in and all going forth. 

XCVIII 

II. 98. fitu phdgun niyar dnl 

THE month of March draws near : ah, 
who will unite me to my Lover ? 

How shall I find words for the beauty 
of my Beloved ? For He is merged 
in all beauty. 



104 KABIR'S POEMS 

His colour is in all the pictures of the 

world, and it bewitches the body 

and the mind. 
Those who know this, know what is 

this unutterable play of the Spring. 
Kabir says : " Listen to me, brother ! 

there are not many who have 

found this out." 



XCDC 
II. 111. Narad, pydr so antar ndhi 

OH Narad ! I know that my Lover 

cannot be far : 
When my Lover wakes, I wake ; when 

He sleeps, I sleep. 
He is destroyed at the root who gives 

pain to my Beloved. 
Where they sing His praise, there I 

live ; 
When He moves, I walk before Him : 

my heart yearns for my Beloved. 



KABIR'S POEMS 105 

The infinite pilgrimage lies at His feet, 
a million devotees are seated there. 

Kabir says : " The Lover Himself re- 
veals the glory of true love." 



II. 122. koi prem ki pengjhuldo re 

HANG up the swing of love to-day ! 

Hang the body and the mind between 
the arms of the Beloved, in the 
ecstasy of love's joy : 

Bring the tearful streams of the rainy 
clouds to your eyes, and cover your 
heart with the shadow of dark- 
ness : 

Bring your face nearer to His ear, and 
speak of the deepest longings of 
your heart. 

Kabir says : " Listen to me, brother ! 
bring the vision of the Beloved in 
your heart." 



Printed by R. & R. CLAHIC, LIMITED. 



BY RABINDRANATH TAGORE 
GITANJALI (SONG OFFERINGS> A 

Collection of Prose Translations made by the 
Author from the original Bengali. With an 
Introduction by W. B. YEATS, and a Portrait by 
W. ROTHENSTEIN. Crown 8vo. 45. 6d. net. 

ATHENsEUAf. "Mr. Tagore's translations are of trance- 
like beauty." 

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AND LIFE. Translated by the Author from the 
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45. 6d. net. 

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One cannot tell what they have lost in the translation, but as 
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posed to faery." 

DAILY NEWS. "The verses in this book are far finer 
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THE CRESCENT MOON. CHILD- 

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GLOBE. "In The Crescent Moon Rabindranath Tagore 
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revelation of the child -mind is richer, more complete, more 
convincing, than any of which we have had previous know- 
ledge." 

T

[Radha Ravivarma]

Thank you for introducing this treasure. Radha

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