"Baitha Pandit kare bakhaan,
Bin dekhe ka ka kare bayaan,
Tu kahta kaagaj ki lekhi,
Main kahta aankhan ki dekhi"
Translation :
The priest, sitting in his position, is telling in detail about something (God, heaven & hell) he himself has never seen. You (the Priest) are saying what is written on papers. I say what I see trough my "eyes".
====== by Kabir
---------------------------------
The above lines of Kabir give valuable food for thought. Your thoughts ?
I see a world, rich with wonder,
where heaven and hell are made,
divine breath, connects body and mind...
flows human and too, creates...
body and mind...magic of the real...
from breath, consciousness...become...
such gifts they are...to know and feel...
breath making the two into one...
divine breath...gift of life...
creates the magic of the real...
the stuff of stars is what humans are...
breath with a body and will...
embody it all...all that you are...
you are breathed human divine...
to live in this space is your birthright...
dance freely in this...your own time...
divine breath is breathing you human...
connecting awareness and form...
breath; the ultimate all of the all...
never dies...and never was born...
StarLight Dancing...
Thoughts?
Easy to say, easy to make that claim.
If you look at the life of the priest and Kabir, how are they different?
"the Priest are saying what is written on papers. I say what I see trough my "eyes"."
How are you going to pass on what you see through your "eyes". I bet you are going to write it down.
Dear Shin,
Kabir was an iconoclast & yet he was one of the greatest saints this world has produced. What he wants to say here is very important for religious harmony for what he always fought till his death. "written on papers" ... by this term he means the scriptures. The priests of every religion want us to believe that "his scripture" is the final word of God ... & that is the root cause of all genocide in the history in the name of religion.
What Kabir says is that "Do not rely too much on scriptures" because "the Truth can be "seen" -- "experienced" & what I say is from that experience". It reminds me of my childhood when we were taught that the earth is round. You were supposed to learn scientific / logical arguments to prove that the earth is round. However when Neil Armstrong went into space & saw the earth from there & sent those photos to earth ... all logic became useless ... as the simple answer was that "It is has been seen that the earth is round". There was no need of any logic & no scope of any argument.
I find Lord Buddha & other Non-dualists also following the similar ways. They left the scriptures behind & found the Truth on their own ... & obviated any necessity of any argument ... I know because I experienced it myself ... & you too can experience that. Where is the scope of relying on scriptures & theories & arguments. When you do an experiment & see what happens .... if you pour dilute sulphuric acid on zinc hydrogen comes out ... where is the scope of any arguments here ? So, why fight ? If you have any doubts, please do the experiment & see for yourself ! That is what Kabir wants to say.
Kabir is known for being fearlessly harsh on orthodox priests from Hinduism & Islam in his poetry (known as "saakhis"). However, he was revered equally by both the communities.
------
Good poem, dear star ! :)
OM
How wrong am I when I think that Kabir had his basic and early education from the books whose use he now criticises?
What I critique with the passages quoted, or the limiting selection by you of this passage, is that it says exactly nothing about how to see, about how one could get to see the way he does nor about what experiments one could perform to verify his claim that he sees differently or sees something others don't.
One could also ask the question why his seeing is so superior to the seeing of the people who wrote the scriptures. Maybe it is more how the scriptures are read, or what is read into them, which is the main issue?
"Kabir was an iconoclast"
and he just gets it in return from me. :)
How come it is acceptable to make heros and saints out of iconoclasts and thus turning them into icons?
[quote]What I critique with the passages quoted, or the limiting selection by you of this passage, is that it says exactly nothing about how to see, about how one could get to see the way he does nor about what experiments one could perform to verify his claim that he sees differently or sees something others don't.
One could also ask the question why his seeing is so superior to the seeing of the people who wrote the scriptures. Maybe it is more how the scriptures are read, or what is read into them, which is the main issue? [/quote]
Truly speaking, I don't remember the full poetry from which these lines are taken. I also don't know whether these lines stand alone i.e. complete on their own or part of some big poem. Kabir didn't write any book. His sayings are recorded in his songs & couplets composed by him & has been preserved by his followers. As far as I know, he didn't know how to read or write. His followers are called "Kabirpanthis", but I really don't know much about their ways, their belief systems & their spiritual practices. I can only say that they believe in One Brahman which is beyond all qualities (Nirgun Brahman) & that this world is just an illusion.
Infant Kabir (said to be abandoned by unmarried Hindu Brahmin mother) was found by a childless Muslim couple who were wool carder by profession. Kabir had followers from both Hindu & Muslim communities. When Kabir died, there was a fight between Hindus & Muslims for cremation of his body in different ways as per their different traditions. It is said that when the cloth covering dead body of Kabir was removed, his body was not found there but some flowers were found which were distributed equally between the two communities for cremation as per their customs.
Kabir's poems/songs are a treat to read & understand. The message is very deep & mystical in all his songs. Sometimes his words would seem ridiculous but actually they carry profound meaning.
"Kabira khada bazaar mein liye lukathi haath,
Jo ghar jaare aapnaa, chale hamaare saath !"
Kabir is standing in the market place with a burning torch in his hand. The one who is willing to burn down his house, is welcome to follow him !
I am...in ways a skeptic. If someone says something I say,
"Show me how you see this. Explain how I can see this using
your method. If I can see this, do this, then I can say with
validity, yes you are right. Many books and people quote
sayings but cannot prove them. If they don't give me a way
to prove something out, I think...maybe? Maybe not...
Many books state things which cannot be proven...and expect
people to believe sight and mind unseen what they say because
they are so-called "experts".
You bet Abs. Drinking tea on the porch swing and watching the cedars sway
to and fro while visiting now and then.
You must log in to post.
Collection of Thoughts is proudly sponsored by GiftShoppingZone.com and powered by bbPress.
