Songs of Kabir: LI-LX

LI-LX

I. 129. sakhiyo, ham h�n bh�� v�lam�s'�

Dear friend, I am eager to meet my Beloved! My youth has
flowered, 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
message, and now my fear of death is done away.
Kab�r says: "O my loving friend! I have got for my gift the
Deathless One."

LII

I. 130. s��n vin 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?
The night is dark; the hours slip by. Because my Lord is absent,
I start up and tremble with fear.
Kab�r says: "Listen, my friend! there is no other satisfaction,
save in the encounter with the Beloved."

LIII

I. 122. kaum mural� s'abd s'un �nand 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?

LIV

I. 112. s'unt� nah� dhun k� 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?
Kab�r 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."

I. 73. bhakti k� m�rag jh�n� 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.
Kab�r declares the secret of this love.

LVI

I. 68. bh�i k�� satguru sant kah�wa�

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 attaining 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 enjoyments.
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. s�dho, s'abd s�dhn� k�jai

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,
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.
Kab�r says: "But who knows whence the Word cometh?

LVIII

I. 63. p�le py�l�, ho matw�l�

Empty the Cup! O be drunken!
Drink the divine nectar of His Name!
Kab�r says: "Listen to me, dear Sadhu!
From the sole of the foot to the crown of the head this mind is
filled with poison."

LIX

I. 52. khasm na c�nhai b�wari

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.

I. 56. sukh sindh k� sair k�

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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