The Essential Works of Tagore. Rabindranath Tagore

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?

       Kabîr says: "The Guru is great beyond words, and great is the

       good fortune of the disciple."

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      II. 85. nirgun âge sargun nâcai

      Before the Unconditioned, the Conditioned dances: "Thou and I are

       one!" this trumpet proclaims.

       The Guru comes, and bows down before the disciple:

       This is the greatest of wonders.

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      II. 87. Kabîr kab se bhaye vairâgî

      Gorakhnath asks Kabîr:

       "Tell me, O Kabîr, when did your vocation begin? Where did your

       love have its rise?"

       Kabîr answers:

       "When He whose forms are manifold had not begun His play: when

       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 Râmânanda 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!"

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      II. 95. yâ tarvar men ek pakherû

      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.

       Kabîr says: "O brother Sadhu! deep is the mystery. Let wise men

       seek to know where rests that bird."

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      II. 100. nis` din sâlai ghâw

      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.

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      II. 103. nâco re mero man, matta hoy

      Dance, my heart! dance to-day with joy.

       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 delight of a hundred arts; and

       the Creator is well pleased.

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      II. 105. man mast huâ tab kyon bole

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

       I have wrapped the diamond in my 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 weighing?

       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?

       Kabîr says: "Listen, my brother! my Lord, who ravishes my eyes,

       has united Himself with me."

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      II. 110. mohi tohi lâgî kaise chute

      How could the love between Thee and me sever?

       As the leaf of the lotus abides on the 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?

       Kabîr says: "As the river enters into the ocean, so my heart

       touches Thee."

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