Complete Works. Rabindranath Tagore

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.

       Kabîr says: "But who knows whence the Word cometh?

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      I. 63. pîle pyâlâ, ho matwâlâ

      Empty the Cup! O be drunken!

       Drink the divine nectar of His Name!

       Kabîr says: "Listen to me, dear Sadhu!

       From the sole of the foot to the crown of the head this mind is

       filled with poison."

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      I. 52. khasm na cînhai bâwari

      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 witness of the Scriptures:

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

       has found it.

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      I. 56. sukh sindh kî sair kâ

      The savour of wandering in the ocean of deathless life has rid me

       of all my asking:

       As the tree is in the seed, so all diseases are in this asking.

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      I. 48. sukh sâgar men âîke

      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.

       Kabîr says: "Listen to me, brother! The nest of fear is broken.

       Not for a moment have you come face to face with the world:

       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?"

       Kabîr says: "Keep within you truth, detachment, and love."

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      I. 35. satî ko kaun s'ikhâwtâ 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?

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      I. 39. are man, dhîraj kâhe na dharai

      Why so impatient, my heart?

       He who watches over birds, beasts, and insects,

       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.

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      I. 117. sâîn se lagan kathin hai, bhâî

      Now hard it is to meet my Lord!

       The rain-bird wails in thirst for the rain: almost she dies of

       her longing, 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.

       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.

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      I. 22. jab main bhûlâ, re bhâî

      O 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:

       I do not ring the temple bell:

       I do not set the idol on its throne:

       I do not worship the image with flowers.

       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.

       Kabîr says: "He attains the true Name whose words are pure, and

       who is free from pride and conceit."

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