Kabir Das

I would like to quote a few lines on the auspicious occasion of the Birth Anniversary of Saint Kabir Das. Unlike present society there was a time when the discrimination on the basis of the caste, creed and religion was high, a particular group of saints landed on the earth to create harmony among the people who were fighting against each other.

One such legendary figure was the mystic poet and philosopher, saint Kabir Das who was said to be born in Laharatara (kashi) present-day Varanasi in 1398. His birth and death are still a mystery. It is said that he was born in Brahamin widower and brought up by the Muslim couple Neeru and Neema.

His early Life:

The medieval saint got his spiritual education from Varanasi through his guru Ramanand. It has been proved in the history of human tradition that it is not necessary to go to the Himalaya for the deep meditation, but it can be done by living in the society. Kabir Das himself was the ideal indication of this. He was not highly educated but the knowledge about the human philosophy and mythology was par excellence.
He was born in 1440 in Varanasi Jaunpur in India. 

Kabir’s teaching:

He preached in the form of couplets that have subtle meanings. 

One such couplet says about the life -

"pani kera budbuda us manas ki jaat, dekhat hi chhup jayega jyo taara prabhat" 

Meaning of the lines is:- The life of human being is like bubbles in water.it disappears at the twinkling of an eye exactly the way stars disappear as the day breaks  

To know more about such couplets in Hindi please click HERE. 

During all his life he taught human value and importance of life. He taught the God is unlimited, pure, omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent. In of his Doha (couplets) reflects the idea of God.

“ Oh, how may I ever express these secret words?

Kabir Das (Photo-Google)

Oh, how can I say He is not like this...”

Kabir Das was born in the era that was known for utter discrimination of people on the basis of caste, creed and religions. Kabir devoted his entire life in the reconciliation of the Hindus and the Muslims. He deliberately abandoned the two faiths and taught a middle path. He spread the simplest message of love and fraternity among all.

He was all against the idol-worship and caste system. He used to call the Hindu and the Muslim “pot of the same clay” Reacting to the authority on the inner virtues of man. For him, the love for the human race, irrespective of caste, colour or creed, was the true religion. He appealed to the Hindus to give up rituals, sacrifices, lip-worship and caste differences and openly denounced the concept of incarnations. He appealed to the Muslims to give up their exclusiveness, their blind faith in one prophet, their performance of rites like a pilgrimage to Mecca,

His only mission was to preach the religion of love and fraternity that could unite all

He preached religion without devotion was no religion at all.

Thus Kabir did not establish any separate religious sect. His followers came to be known as Kabripanthis (believer of Kabir’s Ideology)  

One of his disciple Yugalanand quoted –“ The Hindu resorts to the temple and the Muslim to the mosque, but Kabir goes to the place where both are known. These two religions are like two branches in the middle of which there is a sprout surpassing them. Kabir has taken the higher path abandoning the customs of the two.”

“ Kabir is an incarnation of the Absolute who revealed himself to the world”.

  His Immediate disciple Dharamdas remarked

It is said Kabir left for heavenly abode in 1518 but some believed it was in 1448.....

For more such stories of legendary figure please read my blog on Gundadhur and Birsamunda