Kabir the Poet

[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO TOP . ]
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Kabir the Poet

***** Location: India
***** Season: Topic
***** Category: Humanity

*****************************
Explanation

quote
Kabir, Kabīr (also Kabīra)
(Hindi: कबीर, Punjabi: ਕਬੀਰ, Urdu: کبير‎)
(1440–1518)
was a mystic poet and saint of India, whose writings have greatly influenced the Bhakti movement. The name Kabir comes from Arabic
al-Kabīr which means 'The Great' - the 37th name of God in Islam.

Apart from having an important influence on Sikhism, Kabir's legacy is today carried forward by the Kabir Panth ("Path of Kabir"), a religious community that recognizes him as its founder and is one of the Sant Mat sects. Its members, known as Kabir panthis, are estimated to be around 9,600,000. They are spread over north and central India, as well as dispersed with the Indian diaspora across the world, up from 843,171 in the 1901 census.
His writings include Bijak, Sakhi Granth, Kabir Granthawali and Anurag Sagar.



Kabir composed in a pithy and earthy style, replete with surprise and inventive imagery. His poems resonate with praise for the true guru who reveals the divine through direct experience, and denounce more usual ways of attempting god-union such as chanting, austerities, etc. Kabir, being illiterate, expressed his poems orally in vernacular Hindi, borrowing from various dialects including Avadhi, Braj, and Bhojpuri.

His verses often began with some strongly worded insult to get the attention of passers-by. Kabir has enjoyed a revival of popularity over the past half century as arguably the most accessible and understandable of the Indian saints, with a special influence over spiritual traditions such as those of Sant Mat, Garib Das and Radha Soami.
©　More in the WIKIPEDIA !

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::




quotes from Sant Kabir


Do not go to the garden of flowers
My friend, Go not there –
In your body is the garden of flowers-
Take your seat on the thousand petals of the lotus-
and there gaze on the infinite beauty

. WKD : Lotus (padma) .




Hermit, nature has unnatural ways.
She smiles on a pauper and makes him a king,
she turns a king into a beggar:
She keeps the clove tree from bearing fruit,
the sandalwood from blooming.

. WKD : Sandalwood (chandan) .


*****************************
Worldwide use


*****************************
Things found on the way


*****************************
HAIKU

over dark streets
through trees and bushes
a Kabir song

Shared by Johannes Manjrekar
Joys of Japan, March 2012


Chalo Hamara Des: Journeys with Kabir & Friends
Synopsis:
A journey in search of the “des” (country) invoked in the poetry of the 15th century mystic poet of north India - Kabir - this film interweaves the stories of two people from two very different countries, Indian folk singer Prahlad Tipanya and North American scholar Linda Hess.
Where is Kabir’s country?
The answer is elusive, as we journey through song and poem into these two lives, brought together in an unlikely friendship by the cross-cultural resonance of Kabir.
source : www.cultureunplugged.com


*****************************

Related words



[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::