touched Thy heart with my heart.
Then what is this love of mine? I have no taste for food, I have
no sleep; my heart is ever restless within doors and without.
As water is to the thirsty, so is the lover to the bride. Who is
there that will carry my news to my Beloved?
Kabîr is restless: he is dying for sight of Him.
XXXVI
II. 126. jâg piyârî, ab kân sowai
O friend, awake, and sleep no more!
The night is over and gone, would you lose your day also?
Others, who have wakened, have received jewels;
O foolish woman! you have lost all whilst you slept.
Your lover is wise, and you are foolish, O woman!
You never prepared the bed of your husband:
O mad one! you passed your time in silly play.
Your youth was passed in vain, for you did not know your Lord;
Wake, wake! See! your bed is empty: He left you in the night.
Kabîr says: "Only she wakes, whose heart is pierced with the
arrow of His music."
XXXVII
I. 36. sûr parkâs', tanh rain kahân pâïye
Where is the night, when the sun is shining? If it is night,
then the sun withdraws its light. Where knowledge is, can
ignorance endure?
If there be ignorance, then knowledge must die.
If there be lust, how can love be there? Where there is love,
there is no lust.
Lay hold on your sword, and join in the fight. Fight, O my
brother, as long as life lasts.
Strike off your enemy's head, and there make an end of him
quickly: then come, and bow your head at your King's Durbar.
He who is brave, never forsakes the battle: he who flies from it
is no true fighter.
In the field of this body a great war goes forward, against
passion, anger, pride, and greed:
It is in the kingdom of truth, contentment and purity, that this
battle is raging; and the sword that rings forth most loudly is
the sword of His Name.
Kabîr says: "When a brave knight takes the field, a host of
cowards is put to flight.
It is a hard fight and a weary one, this fight of the
truth-seeker: for the vow of the truth-seeker is more hard than
that of the warrior, or of the widowed wife who would follow her
husband.
For the warrior fights for a few hours, and the widow's struggle
with death is soon ended:
But the truth-seeker's battle goes on day and night, as long as
life lasts it never ceases."
XXXVIII
I. 50. bhram kâ tâlâ lagâ mahal re
The lock of error shuts the gate, open it with the key of love:
Thus, by opening the door, thou shalt wake the Beloved.
Kabîr says: "O brother! do not pass by such good fortune as
this."
XXXIX
I. 59. sâdho, yah tan thâth tanvure ka
O friend! this body is His lyre; He tightens its strings, and
draws from it the melody of Brahma.
If the strings snap and the keys slacken, then to dust must this
instrument of dust return:
Kabîr says: "None but Brahma can evoke its melodies."
XL
I. 65. avadhû bhûle ko ghar lâwe
He is dear to me indeed who can call back the wanderer to his
home. In the home is the true union, in the home is enjoyment
of life: why should I forsake my home and wander in the forest?
If Brahma helps me to realize truth, verily I will find both
bondage and deliverance in home.
He is dear to me indeed who has power to dive deep into Brahma;
whose mind loses itself with ease in His contemplation.
He is dear to me who knows Brahma, and can dwell on His supreme
truth in meditation; and who can play the melody of the
Infinite by uniting love and renunciation in life.
Kabîr says: "The home is the abiding place; in the home is
reality; the home helps to attain Him Who is real. So stay
where you are, and all things shall come to you in time."
XLI
I. 76. santo, sahaj samâdh bhalî
O sadhu! the simple union is the best. Since the day when I met
with my Lord, there has been no end to the sport of our love.
I shut not my eyes, I close not my ears, I do not mortify my
body;
I see with eyes open and smile, and behold His beauty everywhere:
I utter His Name, and whatever I see, it reminds me of Him;
whatever I do., it becomes His worship.
The rising and the setting are one to me; all contradictions are
solved.
Wherever I go, I move round Him,
All I achieve is His service:
When I lie down, I lie prostrate at His feet.
He is the only adorable one to me: I have none other.
My tongue has left off impure words, it sings His glory day and
night:
Whether I rise or sit down, I can never forget