Ramblings of another geek

“While we are free to choose our actions, we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions.”
– Stephen Covey

Kabir – The couplet
???? ?? ?? ????? ????, ?? ??? ????? ????? |
???? ???? ???? ??, ?? ???? ?? ??? ||

transliterated:
Karta tha so kyon kiya, ab kare kyon pachtaye |
Boya ped babool ka, aam kahan te paaye ||

Translation:
Why did you do that which is done, and why cry after the deed |
Having sown seed of a date palm, the fruits will not be grapes ||

My understanding:

Very simple, this couplet and the thought. As you sow, so shall you reap. However, very profound too.

For each pin that pricks us in the course of our daily life, we often tend to blame fate, circumstance, and the great beyond for our suffering while taking all ownership of all pleasure and happiness and the causes thereof. Another pointer to the fickle nature of human ego and its fragile existence.

I am centrally responsible for all that happens to me and around me. And when I fully embrace this thought, life gains a rich new glow, purpose and meaning for me.

“Fast, easy and cheap may work for a one-night-stand, if that’s what you’re into, but it’s not going to work for a healthy, sustainable relationship. Once we make a real committment, the other changes will follow.”
– Beth Bader (http://eatdrinkbetter.com/2008/12/05/food-for-thought-we-are-what-we-eat/ )

Kabir – The couplet
???? ???? ??????, ???? ?? ?? ??? |
???? ???? ??????, ???? ???? ??? ||

transliterated:
Jaise bhojan kijiye, vaise hi man hoye |
Jaise paani pijiye, vaise vaani hoye ||

Translation:
The food one eats will reflect in the heart of the person |
The water one drinks is what defines the voice of the person ||

My understanding:

Almost universally, each individual pays the least attention to the self – until something goes wrong – sometimes, waiting till it is horribly wrong.

The way we are made, our only source of nourishment is what we eat – for we cannot use the energy from the sun and air to replenish spent energy. However, we often enough race through food, with scant attention to detail – until the physical body is beyond redemption. We then blame everything else from the world economy to global warning for our inability to eat right or properly.

If I do not take care of myself, how can I blame it on anyone or anything else? Life is not tough – we make it hard by not pacing ourselves properly – filling our calendar till we have no time for ourselves, or the ones we love.

The food I eat, and how I eat it, will define my temperament and outlook for the day. If I spend time enjoying it, I can truly appreciate the love and effort that went into transforming it from the raw materials to the serving on the plate in front of me. This allows me to then expand my pleasure to beyond me to the entire world – and the glow will make the world a better place.

The water I drink is what smoothens the vocal passages, an sweetens or roughens the voice.
When temperament and voice are in sync and gentle, the world is a wonderful place. We disturb this even tenor in our rush.

Let us resolve now to slow down, enjoy ourselves and transform the world into a happier place!

“Humility gives you a teachable spirit that makes everything easier.”
– Seth Barnes (http://www.sethbarnes.com/?filename=the-importance-of-humility)

Kabir – The couplet
???? ????? ?? ???, ????? ?? ?? ??? |
???? ??????? ?? ????????, ??? ??? ?? ??? ||

transliterated:
Sabse laghuta hi bhala, laghuta se sab hoye |
Jaise dwitiya ka chandrama, shashi lahai sab koye ||

Translation:
The humble person is better than the rest, all can relate better to the humble one|
Just as the new moon on the day after no-moon day, is loved by all more than even the full moon!!

My understanding:

Humility is the core strength in every one of us that allows us to become all that we can be. Humility teaches us that all are equal, that any individual does not posses all.

To quote Hugh Prather (“Notes to myself on becoming a person”), ‘Once I realize that I know no more than the next man, does this wisdom make me any the wiser?’

I am but a grain of sand in the beach that is humanity. My knowledge is limited – for the more I know, the more I realize how much more there is to learn. My wealth in this world is also limited – if one person had all the wealth, and no one else had anything, then the wealth would be worthless since the others would find other things to trade with ?

My real worth comes from my acceptance of my being limited, and my willingness to always stay open to learning. From there springs the true wealth of realization. This realization is what makes life worth living.

“Have you ever noticed how refreshingly fun it is to be around positive thinking people who seem to naturally maintain a positive attitude? No matter how bad the circumstances, negativity never even enters their minds, let alone crosses their lips to form negative, faithless words!”
– Positive Attitude Tips – by Karen Wolf
about.com – http://christianity.about.com/od/practicaltools/a/positivethinkin.htm

Kabir – The couplet
????? ???? ???? ??, ???? ?? ?? ????? |
???? ??? ????? ???, ?? ??? ???? ????? ||

transliterated:
Chandan jaisa sadhu hai, sarp hi sab sansar |
Taake ang lipta rahe, man mein nahi vikar ||

Translation:
The realized person is like the sandal tree, the rest of the world a snake |
Though the snake wraps itself around the tree, the tree loses not its scent or become poisonous ||

My understanding:

Today, more than ever before in history, the temptation to take the easy path, the quick pickings, the short-cut, the quick cheat, is all around us. Google is full of tips on the quick win.

However, this is where the innate goodness of man and our desire to do things the right way wins, even now. While I will not say I have never taken shortcuts (I have, very often), I always stop short of doing that which is wrong – at least by my definition. That little voice, our conscience, is the sandal tree in the couplet above.

The snake is my desire, my ambition, my jealousy. The snake is always with me – but so is my conscience. And I am happy to say that the conscience is alive, well and healthy!

Every time we take that extra miniscule moment to listen to , pay attention to that voice in our head that we know is the conscience, the sandal tree keeps growing and flowering. Water it, feed it, and watch life prosper!

“I don’t want to come to the end of my life and find that I have just lived the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well.”
– Diane Ackerman

Kabir – The couplet
??? ????? ??? ????, ????? ???? ??? |
?? ???? ???? ???, ??? ?????? ??? ||

transliterated:
Jin dhunda tin payiya, gahire pani paith |
Mai bauri duban dari, rahi kinare baith ||

Translation:
The seeker found the sought, by diving into the deep |
Apprehensive of the depth, I stayed safe on the shore ||

My understanding:
On the face of it, this is an extremely simple thought – no risk, no gain- and no loss!

However, there is deeper significance to it.

Every moment of life presents us with the opportunity for enormous gain – if we dive into the unknown risk supported only by our collected wealth of experience. The only way to see beyond is by scaling the peaks in front of us.

More importantly, the exploration of the opportunity is a primary purpose, not a possible potential benefit of being born. We each have a responsibility to see further, learn more, dive deeper and gather more (riches of knowledge) than what is present in our world as it exists now.

That is the yardstick by which the great seer Kabir is asking us to measure ourselves by – that I made the effort to do more than I could every moment of the way.

The significance of man is that he is that part of the universe that asks the question, What is the significance of Man? He alone can stand apart imaginatively and, regarding himself and the universe in their eternal aspects, pronounce a judgment:
The significance of man is that he is insignificant and is aware of it.
-Carl Lotus Becker (Progress and Power, 1935)

Kabir – The couplet
???? ????? ?? ????, ???? ???? ???? |
???? ????? ????? ???, ??? ?? ???? ??? ||

transliterated:
Herat herat he sakhi, rahya kabir herai |
Boond samani samund mein, so kat heri jai ||

Translation:
Looking (searching) here and there, everywhere, I lost myself in the search |
Like the drop of water in the ocean: how can one find it once merged into the ocean?||

My understanding:
We – me, you, and all other humans – are just one of many billions of species, on one tiny planet, that is just one of many in a solar system that is itself just one of many billions in the universe.

Our significance comes from and finds strength in the realization of this truth – that we are but a single entity in a collection, which is itself an insignificant portion of a much larger whole.

We need to accept that each of us, as individuals, are important contributors and participants, but it is society as a whole that permits us to assume and retain an identity. Without society to participate in, we have nothing to contribute to and no one to receive from. That whole, then, is the ocean that Kabir refers to – and the entity that we can understand as God.

God is not an external entity, a wielder of magic, or a granter of boons. God is the single unified Identity that society, humanity, Life in the larger form, represents. That is the source of strength and inspiration – the collective larger existence.

The world is not for us – we are for the world. If we vanished today or went missing, the world would not pause for even a millisecond. On the other hand, if the world vanished, we would have nothing to do and be completely out of place. We all need to understand and absorb this truth.

Prayer is not about asking God to give us things – it is about reaching deep into ourselves to find peace and the strength to take on the challenges the world presents. If we do not find the time to pray, we cannot take on the world.

This world is ours – we make it whole. Let us make it better – not because of someone else, but for ourselves! When we do, everyone, and everything, will find a better reason for existence.

I believe that love cannot be bought except with love.
– John Steinbeck

Love cannot triumph unless it becomes the one passion of our life. Until we have a passionate love for Our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament, we shall accomplish nothing.
– St. Peter Eymard

Kabir – The couplet
????? ? ???? ????, ????? ? ??? ???? |
??? ????? ???? ????, ??? ??? ?? ??? ||

transliterated:
Prem na badi upjai, prem na haat bikaay |
Raja praja johi ruche, sheesh dehi le jaay ||

Translation:
Love is not a field crop to harvest, nor is it sold in the marketplace |
And yet king or citizen, when they desire it, willingly sacrifice life in exchange ||

My understanding:
Some amongst us claim not to believe in that which cannot be perceived, and hence their lack of faith in God.

Yet the same person happily professes undying love for the passion of their life.

We, as humans, tend to contradict ourselves depending on the situation. Since love makes us feel good, we ‘go for it’, as the saying goes. And yet we refuse, steadfastly, to put in the little effort towards introspection that will help us realize the eternal bliss and perfect peace that ‘God-realization’ will give us.

This is not a call to gain religion (or maybe it is, at least partly). God is not just a luminiscient being up there who can solve everything and has all the answers. ‘God’ is the reference we use for the construct that allows us to center our focus and concentrate our own innate energies to finding thise simple yet elusive answers to questions that consume our daily living.

So, back to the original topic – love. Love is the pathway to finding both satisfaction and peace – again, non-transient and yet all-powerful entities. When we love, we learn to look over and beyond the small imperfections that our other negative instincts (jealousy, desire) magnify into insurmountable obstacles. Love is the lubricant that makes the journey of life a comfortable ride, and the discovery of the self a simpler quest.

Love is something latent within all, not something that can be traded for or bought with currency. Love is as omniscient and intangible as life itself, for it is the other true face of the coin of life. So instead of looking for it, use it, and it will allow us to bloom!

But have you ever tried to get your mind to wander? It’s about as easy as getting a cat to stay where you tell it to, or telling a toddler not to cry, or willing the heavy clouds not to rain on your picnic.
– by Kristin on May 5, 2010 (http://www.halfwaytonormal.com/?p=1058)

Kabir – The couplet
?? ????? ?? ?? ??, ??? ???? ??? ?? |
???? ????? ??? ???, ???? ??? ????||

transliterated:
Tan bohit man kag hai, lakh yojan udi jai |
Kabahu dariya agam bahi, kabahi gagan samai||

Translation:
The body is bound (to earth) but the mind can fly, many leagues at once |
Sometimes to distant lands, other times into the sky, unlimited in reach||

My understanding:
Each human being is a wonderful mixture of opposites, of different faces of the same coin, an admixture or reality and fantasy all bound into a single composite existent presentation.

The body is our host, our physical manifestation, and our presentation of the self to the physical world. This is bound by physical laws, and is slave to physical forces like gravity and ambient temperature. The mind, on the other hand is the free bird, untouched by either the pains or the pleasures of the physical flesh.

However, we often confuse one for the other, and therein is our undoing.

Desire makes us blur the distinction between the mind and body, and jealousy and craving make us believe the body can achieve the effortless aimless wandering of the mind.

Peace and satisfaction help center the mind in the body, so that both can be at the same place at the same time – which is the first step on the path to salvation, mukti, moksha, heaven or whatever other name we call our real goal by.

A clear understanding of this dichotomy and the need to center the mind in the body before doing anything else needs to be the first procedure in the attainment of the step to peace and satisfaction.

“When an ordinary man attains knowledge he is a sage; when a sage attains understanding he is an ordinary man.”
–Zen Buddhism

Kabir – The couplet
????? ???? ??????, ?? ?? ??? ???? |
????? ??????? ?? ?? ???, ???? ???? ? ??? ||

transliterated:
Sahib teri saahibi, sab ghat rahi samai |
Jyon mehendi ke pat me, lali lakhi na jai||

Translation:
O Lord, your Greatness exists and manifests everywhere|
Just as the dye in the Mehendi leaves, though red – shows not in the leaves that are green evne when ground to paste ||

My understanding:
We often tend to ask questions, and then expect the answer to find its way back to us. More often than not, the answer is right there, and the question is only a step in the path to the answer (goal).

Our concept and structure of God uses a construct that says He is all powerful, and holds all powers and answers.

In reality, man is a representative of that same construct – The Supreme Being. We have all of the solutions, all of the methods, all of the inventions locked away deep inside the folds of the brain. Every invention known to us, realized by us, every benefit, every glory, every achievement, came from the work of man.

And yet we lament that God has not given us what we need? He has bestowed us with the ability, it is now our duty to visualize and realize the wealth that is inside of us.

Perhaps the undoing of this quandary is in our current definition of God. If we were look on Him as the Supreme Teacher, instead of the Supreme Being, perhaps we would look to learn from him, instead of just waiting for his Blessings to shower on us (in reality, the showers never ceased – we are still able to read this letter and comprehend – right? If I can do this, then all my faculties are intact, which means God is right here with me, now and for ever.).

All of this is is my own learning from the ocean of knowledge, at whose edge I sip – perhaps I do not comprehend this right? If so, all elders and teachers who are reading this, please correct my thinking.

“The soul of religion is one, but it is encased in a multitude of forms.”
–Mahatma Gandhi

Kabir – The couplet
??? ????? ????, ?? ?? ??? ???? |
?????? ?? ?? ??? ???, ??? ??? ???? ||

transliterated:
Pachha pachhi ke karane, sab jag raha bhulan |
Nirpachh ho ke hari bhaje, soi sant sujan ||

Translation:
Divied into groups with differing agendas, humanity has lost sense of direction|
He who prays to God, impervios to religion, is the true Believer, the Teacher ||

My understanding:
Religion, over the ages, has been transformed from the path to inner peace to a doctrine meant to control groups.

When a follower disagrees, he searches (as we do with all our arguments, debates and disagreements) for other like-minded individuals. IF there are enough, this is the new group, and sometimes becomes “new religion”.

What we need is less talk, and more introspection. All of humanity is essentially good and kind. Groups, doctrine and dogma take us away from this inner truism and make us behave in ways we (sometimes intensely) disagree with, just to ‘keep up with the Joneses’.

If we were to return to basics, the sun, while still just as warm and bright, would look truly brilliant, and the birdsong around us would be heard as the true song of real freedom that it really is.

Well-meaning individuals trying to solve specific problems created all borders, religion, politics and beaurocracy. We forgot the problems, but hung on to the resultant processes as the Absolute Truth.

We need to go back into the mists of time, re-discover the problem, and document it along with the solution – it is only then that we will realize the childishness of our excesses.

Religion is not the God we pray to, or the faith we profess to follow. Spend time in introspection, and we will all learn to love all around us. That is true religion.

Agree?

As an unperfect actor on the stage,
Who with his fear is put beside his part,
Or some fierce thing replete with too much rage,
Whose strength’s abundance weakens his own heart;
So I, for fear of trust, forget to say
The perfect ceremony of love’s rite,
And in mine own love’s strength seem to decay,
O’ercharg’d with burthen of mine own love’s might.
O! let my books be then the eloquence
And dumb presagers of my speaking breast,
Who plead for love, and look for recompense,
More than that tongue that more hath more express’d.
O! learn to read what silent love hath writ:
To hear with eyes belongs to love’s fine wit.
–William Shakespeare

Kabir – The couplet
??? ????? ????? ??, ??? ??? ? ???? |
????? ???? ?????, ???? ??????? ||

transliterated:
Akath Kahani Prem Ki, Kuch Kahi Na Jaaye |
Goonge Keri Sarkara, Baithea Muskaae ||

Translation:
Love is a story expressed, not told, speech does not describe it well|
Just at the dumb man eating sweets, his face describes the taste the best ||

My understanding:
We often lose sight of the goal in our attemt to describe a situation in language – forgetting that language is not the only mode of expression we have.

Our faces, our expression, our actions, even our inaction, all speak louder than words.

The beautific expression on the face of a child enjoying a cake cannot be expressed in words – and words do not convey the satiation or exquisite taste the face does.

Similarly, we often get too involved in our rituals, losing sight of the reason we observe them – prayers are meant to take us closer to God, not distance me from my fellow man. Religion is a bonding experience, not a separatist movement.

However, our attempt to put in words that which we experience allows ego to insert itself into the playbook, and then all bets are off.

So maybe we have to relearn the art of using all our faculties for expression – both the expression of what we feel and the reading of that which is expressed to and around us?

And maybe the written word will once again find its rightful place as a team member, rather than the lone voice?

For we are all created from love, for the purpose of love, to extend the reach of love, and are meant to spend this life bathed in the glorious light of love.

So let us ignore that which does not express or intend lvoe, and instead focus on love as the only reason for existense. Love God, love yourself, and love all that is all around us as well as that which we cannot perceive, but perhaps can imagine?

For love is the one salve that can put the world’s unrest to bed, and suffuse us with the true glory of existense.

“The glories of our birth and state
Are shadows, not substantial things;
There is no armour against fate:
Death lays his icy hands on kings;
Sceptre and crown
Must tumble down,
And in the dust be equal made
With the poor crooked scythe and spade.”
–       James Shirley (Death’s Final Conquest)

Kabir – The couplet
????? ???? ? ??????, ??? ??? ?? ??? |
? ???? ??? ???? ??, ???? ??? ???? ????? ||

transliterated:
Kabira Garv Na Keejiye, Kaal Gahe Kar Kes |
Na Jaane Kit Mare Hai, Kya Des Kya Pardesh ||

Translation:
Says Kabir be not proud or vain, for Time is dark and mysterious |
We know not when we run out of time, or even if it is in a place of our choice (home/abroad) ||

My understanding:
Continuing from the past couple of days….

Since time immemorial, we have been fascinated by the concept of death, and what lays beyond.

However, this, on deeper reflection, turns out to be but another distraction from the purpose of life, and a big boost to ego. For what can be more pleasant to the ego than to wonder on the grandness of my legacy, my “footprints in the sands of time”, what I bequeth to those who will come after me?

In the pursuit of this grandeur, I will waste much and misuse the time I have to plan for what comes after, giving up that which I could receive now – simple peace, an understanding of the need of this moment, the ability to provide light for my soul now.

This is the maya of creation – we have all we need, and yet, we are loaded with desire for that which always stays elusive: and the pursuit of the desire leaves us with neither – no satisfied desire, and no ability to receive and appreciate that which is already ours.

And it is this maya that Kabir, James Shirley, and every enlightened individual since the time of Creation have warned us to watch out for.

“In this place, with thoughts of transience uppermost on my mind, I inevitably reflect on the words of others who once pondered the same things. At such times, I think of the question posed by a long-ago psalmist – “What is man, that thou art mindful of him?” – or the Buddhist who meditated on the crematory smoke arising from Toribeyama. Walking through a cemetery, one is forcefully reminded, above all else, of the fragility of human life. We tend to take for granted that our lives will continue indefinitely; rarely do we think about how we all – you yourself, everyone you know, everyone you love or care about – will grow old and, one day, will die. Through familiarity, we begin to believe the people, places and situations that surround us to be permanent. It is a natural and human tendency, and a habit difficult to break – difficult, that is, unless one is confronted inescapably with the truth of our own mortality.”

–       Ebon Musings – The Atheism pages (www.ebonmusings.org)

Kabir – The couplet

????? ???? ?? ??????, ????  ???  ???? |
??? ???? ???? ?????, ??? ???? ??? ||

transliterated:

Kabira garv na keejiye, oonha dekh aavaas |
Kaal paron bhooin letna, oopar jamsi ghaas ||

Translation:

Says Kabir, do not be vain, looking at your high mansion(position) |
When the time comes, you will be flat on the ground, and grass will grow on and all around ||

My understanding:

Everything I do is all about me, for me, by me, in praise of me. I celebrate my existense, my brilliance, my strength, my ability, ME.

In all of this, I blissfully ignore the very real fact of my mortality, the fragility of my existense in this form and shape. What is this me, where is the “I” when the body is dust?

If the soul is timeless, why am I in a rush to finish everything before I begin? If this life is all the time I have, why am I chasing after trivialities and frivolities? How do I bridge this chasm?

The first step is to recognize the existense of the chasm – until I acknowledge its presence, I cannot begin to search for the path across. And I cannot give up under the excuse of the enormity of the expanse to cross, for the bridging of this gap is one of the true purposes of life. For only when I bridge it can I begin to develop the theme of the true purpose of life and existense.

God is a construct I use to help me explain the un-obvious, and understand the mysterious. However, I need to take the next step too – God shows me the path, but I am the one who needs to make the journey.

The question should never be “Am I ready?” – for I always am. The question should always be – I have taken this step – what is not most appropriate next one?

For as we saw yesterday, that which is done can be chalekd up to experience, and the futre is still only a plan – this moment and what I do now is what is important, the only thng that matters. What I do now will be what makes the experience richer (because I am using it) and the plan sensible (since I am working to it) without losing focus of the one thing I control – the here and now.

When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, “I used everything you gave me.”

– Erma Bombeck

The miracle is not to fly in the air, or to walk on the water, but to walk on the earth.  – Chinese Proverb

Kabir – The couplet

???? ???? ???? ????, ???? ?? ??? ??  |

???? ??? ?? ????? ? ????, ??? ?????? ?? ?? ||

transliterated:

Jeevat Samjhe Jeevat Bujhe, Jeevat He Karo Aas |

Jeevat Karam Ki Fansi Na Kaati, Mue Mukti Ki Aas ||

Translation:

The living can see, the living can realize, we can liberate ourselves only when alive |

If we do not free the self from bondage while living, the soul has no hope of freedom after death! ||

My understanding:

Tomorrow so consumes our daily moments, we forget about the now, and rarely research the why of where we are at the moment (this moment, now – the one that was a possiblity some time ago and is but a memory now).

When I sing, I forget to focus on the music’s interaction on my self and focus on the effect it has on the audience around – forgetting that if I cannot please myself, how will I ever please the world?

When I am at work, my thoughts are on the evening’s plans – when the evening is here, I worry about the next day’s jobs. If I force myself to focus, I dwell too long in the past and what I may have done different – all the time, giving up the precious now, which is the only space where I can make it be exactly what I want it to be, what I feel it needs to be – if only I could stay in the moment ..

If I cannot for a moment focus on the now and make this moment all it can be, of what use is a life filled with a lifetime of moments contemplating other moments without beginning or end?

“The Bible also tells us, “With humility comes wisdom.” Every day I realize I’m just a sinner like everyone else, and I have been forgiven only because of God’s grace. God gave us our gifts and abilities. He blessed our efforts. If we start thinking of ourselves more highly than we ought to, it takes away from our proper worship of God. Pride blinds us to our own faults.”
– Billy Graham

Kabir – The couplet
???? ??? ??? ?????, ????? ??? ???? ????? |
????? ??? ??? ?????, ????? ??? ?????? ||

transliterated:
timir gaya ravi dekhate, kumati gayi guru gyan |
sumati gayi ati lobhate, bhakti gayi abhiman ||

Translation:
Darkness disappears with the rising sun, ignorance by the Guru’s wisdom |
Good intellect is lost to greed, devotion is lost in the face of ego ||

My understanding:
One of the greatest gifts we receive is rationality, alongside the ability to understand, even when we disagree. However, this rationality and understanding are offset by ego, which we seem to treat as a compensating value?

If we apply the same rationality and understanding to our own ego, ego instantly loses, but flares up immediately in a different form – as that of conceit and belief in our own correctness. When we kill that, it again raises its head, in the guise of self-righteousness. This evolves to conceit, and keeps morphing, never going away. In the process, we tend to tire and succumb, sometimes early, sometimes late, but more often on the wrong side of the question.

The only way to beat this down is with learning, acquiring knowledge, finding and following the advice of a true Teacher, and being constantly on the vigil, for we die before ego does. And the only way to keep ego down is to be on the vigil at all times, same way as we always lock the door if we want to keep robbers out – not jst at night or during holidays….

Would you agree?

“A well-informed mind is the best security against the contagion of folly and of vice. The vacant mind is ever on the watch for relief, and ready to plunge into error, to escape from the languor of idleness.”
– Ann Radcliffe, The Mysteries of Udolpho, 1764

Kabir – The couplet

??? ???? ?? ?????, ?? ???? ????? |
???? ???? ?? ?????, ????? ??? ????? ||

transliterated:
Hari kripa tab janiye, de maanav avatar |
Guru kripa tab janiye, mukt kare sansar ||

Translation:
It is God’s Grace that gives us human birth (life) |
But is the Guru’s (teacher’s) grace that frees us from human bondage ||

My understanding:
Life, explained in all the complexity of science, still remains a miracle of creation. Without devolving this into a discussion on evolution versus creation, human life, we have to agree, is still magical in it’s nature. Our ability to reason and understand is still way beyond science’s ability to explain.

For allowing us to partake in and participate in this miracle of Life, we have to thank God. However, (and this is the crux) we have to first thank the Teacher(s) who gave us the ability to evolve our reason an understanding to be able to fully understand and grasp the miracle we have each been presented with. In “The Spirit Guide” (http://www.myhometownnews.net/index.php?id=20982 ), James Tucker explains that “Every living person has a dual nature.

We have the lower earthly nature ruled by the mind or ego, and physical needs and hungers ruled by the body.

At the same time, we have the higher spiritual nature ruled by the heart, soul and instincts.”

The higher spiritual nature that he refers to is latent in all born humans, but needs to be brought to the conscious forefront and used appropriately – and this is the job the Teacher has inherited through the mists of time.

We are born closer to the animal nature in us, but grow and evolve to the higher human experience, guided by the various Gurus life brings us into contact with. These Gurus include parents, teacher, siblings, acquaintances, elders, friends and even our enemies – for enemies teach us and sharpen us more than friends ever can (does that not make enemies our closest friends and dearest teachers? Why do we hate them so much then when we only benefit from them? Reflect on this, and shake their hand in gratitude the next time you meet – this is another way to rid the world of the deceptive maya of hate and prejudice!).

So, awake to the reality that we are what our teachers mold us into, and thank them for the wonderful job they continue to do!

“Truth is ever to be found in simplicity, and not in the multiplicity and confusion of things. As the world, which to the naked eye exhibits the greatest variety of objects, appears very simple in its internal constitution when surveyed by a philosophical understanding, and so much the simpler by how much the better it is understood.”
– Isaac Newton

Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.
– Confucius

Kabir – The couplet
???? ???? ??? ???, ???? ? ?? ?? ??? |
?? ?? ???? ??? ???, ?? ?? ???? ??? ||

transliterated:
Mala pherat jug bhaya,phira na man ka pher|
Kar ka man ka dar dein, man ka manka pher ||

Translation:
Chanting with beads lifelong, does not calm the mind |
Cleanse the heart, and find peace in simplicity ||

My understanding:
Simple things and simple thoughts, for some reason, do not seem to attract us ?

We humans, as a race, make simple things complex, and then complain about the confusion – yet the confusion does not make us happy OR satisfied.

We begin to look for the meaning of the word peace, but before we have turned the first page of the dictionary, we are already arguing the content of the analects of Aristotle, or the philosophy of some poor soul in some corner of the world.

We judge by actions, without any attention to the thought behind an act.

Instead of talking up storms, the world will be happier if we can just be – one with the world, and one with ourselves. True peace is inside us – and the outside world is but a reflection of the inside. Chaos inside cannot lead to world peace – find peace within, and the world becomes beautiful!

“Prayer reinforces humility. It is all too easy in the crush of human events to forget how little control we have. Indeed, it is to some degree a psychological necessity to think of ourselves as more effective, more powerful, and more in control than we really are. Just as necessary, though, Luther realized, is the recognition, daily or more often, that we are not the masters of our fate.”

– from Commentary on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism, Part Three: The Lord’s Prayer – http://everything2.com/title/The+Lord%2527s+Prayer

Kabir – The couplet

??????? ???? ????, ????-???? ?? ?? ??? ?
????? ?? ???? ????, ??? ? ???? ??? ?

transliterated:

Balihaari guru aapno, ghadi ghadi sau sau baar |

Maanush se devat kiya, karat na laagi baar ||

Translation:

Thank you, (Lord) Teacher, in every moment, many times in each moment  |

Turned the base in man to The Divine, with great ease, and minimal effort ||

Thinking today:

In our arrogance, we take ourselves to be masters of our own destiny and lord of all we see and survey. The Lord, the True Master, lays no such claim, but constantly endeavors to raise us to be just that, and make our ‘wishful thinking’ reality, while at the same time opening our inner eyes to the very tininess of our thinking.

For all that we see will be dust at some time in the future, but the real wealth we carry, our inner self, our thought, our reason, our knowledge, will live on and grow for ever, if only we agree to share.

All the material riches of the world fade to nothing in the face of our true inner potential, and this is a clarion call to balance the pursuit of the material wealth of the world with an equal time spent with the inner self. There is no need to give up one to realize the other, for the material riches of this world are the bounty the soul created for the body – the only requirement is for balance so that we leave a real legacy for the generations that will follow us.

.

“And the small grain of sand

That had bothered him so

Was a beautiful pearl

All richly aglow.”

– from poem “Lessons from An Oyster” – full poem and source at end

Kabir – The couplet

?????? ????? ?? ???????, ?? ???? ??? ??? |

????? ?? ????? ???, ??? ?????? ??? ||

transliterated:

Tinka kabahun na nindiye, jo paanv tale hoye |

Kabahun udh aankhon pade, peed ghaneri hoye ||

Translation:

Despise not that tiny grain, that is to be found under the foot |

Were it to float up and into the eye, extremely painful be to you it would ||

My understanding:

We cast away tiny things, despise them as beneath us, and look down on them as not worth our attention and time. However, history is replete with tales of victory of the little, the slow or the meek.

David beat Goliath with just a small catapult; Aesop told us the tale of the slow tortoise beating the speedy hare in a race; Jataka tales tell us the story of the ant who freed the elephant; the tiny wasp or bumble bee always reminds us of how huge it is when in flight; BP has learnt and is teaching the world the importance of the one failed test and the consequence of not paying attention.

Little pleasures fill our day with more happiness than the big one we chase but never find; little acts of kindness are what reap big rewards; little murmurs of politeness crescendo into a wealth of well-being and communal peace.

Focus on the little things, and the big things will naturally happen. Ignore them, and even the big things dissolve into a cloud of tiny fragments that quickly floats away and out of reach.

Every thing and every being on earth and all around us is here for a purpose – look and you will find a new understanding and appreciation of the complexity of the eco-system we live in and are members of!

Poem : Lessons from an Oyster

By Georgy – (http://www.turnbacktogod.com/poem-lessons-from-an-oyster/)

There once was an oyster

Whose story I tell,

Who found that some sand

Had got into his shell.

It was only a grain,

but it gave him great pain.

For oysters have feelings

Although they’re so plain.

Now, did he berate

the harsh workings of fate

That had brought him

To such a deplorable state?

Did he curse at the government,

Cry for election,

And claim that the sea should

Have given him protection?

‘No,’ he said to himself

As he lay on a shell,

Since I cannot remove it,

I shall try to improve it.

Now the years have rolled around,

As the years always do,

And he came to his ultimate

Destiny  stew.

And the small grain of sand

That had bothered him so

Was a beautiful pearl

All richly aglow.

Now the tale has a moral,

for isn’t it grand

What an oyster can do

With a morsel of sand?

What couldn’t we do

If we’d only begin

With some of the things

That get under our skin.

Read more at http://www.turnbacktogod.com/poem-lessons-from-an-oyster/#ixzz0r19L7h00

“You may have heard the expression ‘His pride stood in the way.’ This phrase is usually used to describe a person who is so determined to be ‘right’ that he lets an opportunity for happiness pass him by forever. Don’t let this happen to a friendship you care about. Remember: as time goes on, we usually forget about who was right and who was wrong in a disagreement, and only remember the sadness of losing a friend. “.

– PBS Kids – http://pbskids.org/itsmylife/friends/friendsfight/article4.html

Kabir – The Couplet:

transliterated:

Jab main tha tab hari nahin‚ jab hari hai main nahin |

Sab andhiyara mit gaya‚ jab deepak dekhya mahin ||

Translation:

As long as “I” featured in my head, The Lord did not,

Now The Lord is there, and there is no place for “I” |

All the darkness melted away,

When I saw the light (of the lamp)  ||

My understanding:

As a child, life is just a wonderful mystery, and the world is a grand treasure trove to explore.

As we grow older, we somehow manage to shrink the world to be centered around  the self, and put ourselves at the epicenter of existence.

Somehow, our learning and behavior go in opposite directions, even though our reasoning tells us otherwise.

To see the true beauty of all around us, we need to get rid of the dark lenses that “I” puts on us – and then the world is truly a beautiful place, growing better each moment!

“One certainly has a soul; but how it came to allow itself to be enclosed in a body is more than I can imagine. I only know if once mine gets out, I’ll have a bit of a tussle before I let it get in again to that of any other.”
-Lord Byron

Kabir – The couplet
?????? ????? ??? ?????,?????? ???? ? ????
???? ??? ???? ???? ,????? ??? ?????

transliterated:
Sukhiya dhoondhat main phiroon, sukhiya milai na koi |
Jaake aage dukh kahoon, pahile uthai roi ||

Translation:
I wandered searching a happy man, found not one did I |
Found one, but ‘ere I could start my tale, he broke into tears and started on his story ||

My understanding:
Too often, we are so wrapped up in our determination to find happiness, we forget all the happiness that surrounds and engulfs us. Happiness is not a thing, or a person – it is a state of being, a mood, a mentality, a whole new and different way of life and living. It is not something to be found – it is something to be felt, understood and enjoyed.

Then why look for it, when it is always there?

Warm regards,
Mani

Is there anyone on earth who actually enjoys doing the dishes? Anyone who looks forward to cleaning up the house? Can we find joy in putting out the garbage, vacuuming the living room, washing the windows, ironing clothes? If, like millions of others, we consider these tasks a necessary evil, a tedious but unavoidable circumstance of life, our answer will undoubtedly be a convinced ‘no’. But if we were willing to try the ancient, yet powerful technique of concentration our ‘no’ would soon be transformed into a surprising ‘yes’. For a clear, pure and focused mind does not know the words ‘tediousness’ and ‘boredom’.
– The Benefits Of A Clear Mind – By Abhinabha Tangerman
(Abhinahba Tangerman is a meditation student of  Sri Chinmoy currently living in The Hague, Holland. His other interests include acting and running.)

Kabir – The couplet
????? ???? ???? ???, ?? ??? ? ??? |
??? ??? ?? ??? ???, ??? ??? ? ??? ||

transliterated:
Nahaye dhoye kya hua, jo man mail na jaye |
Meen sada jal mein rahe,dhoye bas na jaaye ||

Translation:
Of what use is bathing and cleaning daily, if the mind is not cleansed |
Living immersed in water always, the fish still does not lose its smell ||

My understanding:
Simple thoughts, eloquently expressed – a hallmark of Saint’s Kabir’s style of expression.

A clean mind lives in a clean body – this every one knows – but we often forget that not every clean body houses a clean mind.

Yet all the physical cleanliness the physical world offers is of no use without a clean mind – for minus the cleanliness, peace and tranquility of thought abandon us. Without these essential elements, all functions succumb to the negative factors of greed, desire and ‘maya‘.

True peace and real happiness are found in simple pleasures and easy thought – which both depend on the clean mind to bubble to the fore.

Once the success of knowledge has been demonstrated by an action, everyone need not to experiment and rediscover the wheel. Since most of the people are engaged in their worldly pursuits like agriculture, manufacturing, software development etc, they need not to be learning the pure knowledge or the technical knowledge. Thus they are advised to develop faith and trust and follow the successful people (Guru) so that they can save energies for the worldly pursuits, which are equally necessary for the world. Therefore, the path of devotion has been described as the easiest path for most of the people as requires minimum commitment from the people, yet it can provide the benefits of the knowledge.

– An extract from http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-Three-Paths-of-Salvation-Are-Better-Than-One?&id=854777

– I strongly recommend the reading of the entire site slowly since there is more hidden in the writing than is evident from the initial reading – Mani

Kabir – The couplet
??? ????? ??? ????, ??? ??? ??????? |
??? ???? ??? ??? ??, ???? ??? ?? ??? ||

transliterated:
Charan bandagi charan seva, mool kamal bistaar |
Kahe Kabir Dharm Dass se , utare sir ke bhar ||

Translation:
Service and salutation at the feet of the guru are the root of the lotus (of devotion) |
Said Kabir to (devotee) Dharam Dass – this is the best way to remove all stress from the soul ||

My understanding:
Need I say more? Kabir, here, has further simplified the entire process of finding salvation – simple devotion. But he does not advocate blind devotion or surrender without reason.

The first part of the first statement addresses the confusion – it is up to us to find the RIGHT teacher, the proper guru. Once we find the Teacher, we are then directed to leave it to the teacher’s experience and wisdom to understand what we perceive as issues or problems, and then teach us the best way to navigate through the apparent morass.

I am an expert at my chosen profession, and yet need to often reach out to others to solve apparently intractable problems in my chosen profession, after having devoted a major portion of my life to date coaching myself to be the best at my chosen avocation.

Why, then should I even hesitate to ask for help at understanding the greater puzzle of life, and the mysteries of the sublime?

There are very few Masters, who, through a life of selfless service, have begun to understand the true meaning and purpose of this Great Gift we call human life. It is but a natural extension of the basic thought to reach out, search for, find and then question these Masters on the best way to understand and achieve the purpose of this Life.

Would you agree?

Different things delight different people. But it is my delight to keep the ruling faculty sound without turning away either from any man or from any of the things which happen to men, but looking at and receiving all with welcome eyes and using everything according to its value.
– Marcus Aurelius 121-180, Roman emperor and stoic philosopher in “Ta eis heauton” (The things you say to yourself), VIII.43

Kabir – The couplet
???? ???? ?? ?????, ???? ??????? ?? ??? |
????? ????? ??????, ????? ???? ??? ||

transliterated:
Hira tahan na kholiye, jahan kunjaron ki haat |
Sahaji gaanti baandhiye, laagiye apni baat||

Translation:
Open not your diamonds in a vegetable market, (where their value is not recognized)|
Ties a tight knot to the bundle, and keep to your own counsel ||

My understanding:
This is sane advice from the Teacher. It is sensible to not share anything where it will not be received. As the old saying goes, ‘When in Rome, be like a Roman!”

This is not to say that we need to lose values – it is only to keep them to ourselves in spaces where they do not have value. This is an important value to have – for if we cannot protect our values, and the reason we have them, there is no value we receive.

Visualize a ray of the infinite light flowing into you from behind, through your medulla oblongata (at the base of the brain). Let it flow into your body and activate everything you do and say.

God is in all things the real Doer. Meditating on this thought will help you to realize its truth. Feel the divine ray flowing into and through your body. Concentrate especially on the forward flow of that energy to the point of super-conscious awareness between the eyebrows. Then imagine it flowing out to the world through the spiritual eye, blessing others, your surroundings and the whole world.

Then affirm deeply: “Thou, Lord, art the Doer. Energize, and, through energy, magnetize everything that I say and do.”
– Material Success Through Yoga Principles – by Swami Kriyananda

Kabir – The couplet
????? ???? ???? ? ???? ??, ??????? ??? ???? ?
?? ???? ???? ???? ??, ????? ??? ??? ?

transliterated:

Kabira Kiya Kutch Na Hote Hai, Ankiya Sab Hoye |
Jo Kiya Kutch Hote Hai, Karta Aur Koye ||

Translation:

Says Kabir – Nothing happens by my doing, it happens oblivious of my effort |
What does happen, happens because it must – driven by the Will of The Supreme ||

My understanding:

This, in essence, is the underlying principle of the collective soul – each individual soul is a part of the larger whole. Whole in itself, it still exists because of the larger collective existence, and finds completeness only as part of the whole.

So do our actions – when we act focused only on our self, driven by desire, and focused on possession, the act does not in any sense satisfy.

Action driven by the common good, for the benefit of a group or set larger than the self, however difficult or seemingly against the sense of desire (or Maya), does leave the self with an all-permeating sense of deep satisfaction, and an after-glow that lasts for ever.

So, as taught by the many saints this world has produced, let me once again exhort all of us to work to the good of everyone, and we will for sure find that good comes back to us in much greater quantity and for longer than if we had acted only for ourself!

Put aside your pride:

“YOU WOULDN’T WORRY SO MUCH ABOUT WHAT PEOPLE THOUGHT OF YOU IF YOU KNEW HOW SELDOM THEY DO!”

People are usually so busy worrying about how THEY appear to others, or how they look, or about the many things they have to get done today, or about the pain they are in at the moment, that they do not notice things about you that you might be so self conscious of.

–  Grant Lawrence–Bodhi Thunder

Kabir – The couplet

???? ??? ? ?? ????, ?? ?? ??? ???? |

??? ?????? ? ???, ?? ??? ??? ???? ||

transliterated:

Maya mari na man mara, mar mar gao sharir |

aasha trishna na mari, keh gaio das kabir ||

Translation:

Illusion does not die, nor the mind – the body is the only one that dies |

Hope does not die – nor does thirst… so says Kabir ||

My understanding:

At a basic semantic level, the statement is very clear. Think about it for a while though, and multiple layers show through.

As history is witness to, ours desires get transferred to our succeeding generations, though the cause or driver for the desire is often lost (and hence the justification?). We subject ourselves to much internal distress to satisfy needs that we cannot explain or rationalize.

Our perceived need to deal with our problems seems to only successfully attract more problems to us. When we instead allow our inner light to expand and envelop us, the problems seem to diffuse in the brightness and soon vanish without the need to address them! The real solution to solving problems lies in seeing not the problem, but the solution, in the light of our inner wisdom, enveloped in an environment of calm and peace.

Our bodies are transitory guests in this ever-changing landscape – we are not. As poets keep reminding us at all stages, our thoughts, hopes, desires and ambitions live on, grow and take on an existence of their own long after our bodies have become dust scattered in the winds of time. So we need to be patient, careful and formulate the right ambitions, hopes and thoughts, for they live on long after we are no more to explain their genesis.

“Love every day. Each one is so short and they are so few”.
– Norman Vincent Peale

Kabir – The couplet

transliterated:

Durlabh manush janam hai, hoi na dooji baar |

Pakka fal jo gir pada, laage na dooji bar ||

Translation:

Human life is difficult to achieve, and it is only one we get – no 2^nd chance |

Like the ripened fruit (once it falls ), no way to reattach it to the source of life ||

My understanding:

Life is a miracle. Life is a blessing. Life is something that needs to be enjoyed. A full life still seems short at the end of it all. We each have a lot to do, a lot to love, a lot more to achieve, and so very little time to do it.

With so much opportunity all around us, is there really a need for any negativity? Not really – think it over ..

Let us enjoy life, and teach those around us to enjoy the bounty that life is.

“The emotional cost of failing to attain our goals is great, I won’t deny that. But what is the psychic cost of failing against the psychic cost of not setting goals beyond our abilities out of fear and lack of confidence in ourselves? That is, what is the value in not trying because we fear, before the first step is taken, that we’ll fail?”
– Dustin Wax (Get D.U.M.B.! The Value of Unattainable Goals)

Kabir – The couplet

transliterated:
Bada hua to kya hua, jaise paid khajoor |
>Panchhi ko chhaya nahin, phal laage ati door ||

Translation:
Of what use is the very tall, like the date palm?
No shady shelter for birds, and the fruits are so out of reach ||

My understanding:
Big, tall, great, high – all are nice adjectives, all marking a level that might be difficult to attain. Of what use is the pursuit of a goal that distances us from those around us, or so engrosses us that we neglect common courtesy?
It is good to set tough goals, but our goals need to be synchronous with, complementary to and allow us to work with and be part of everything around us.
Even the pioneers of our histories all worked to further that which they already had – no one snapped the link since continuity is our greatest win and one of our most humane characteristics.
So let us work to further ourselves, but with recognition of everything that brought us here, not in isolation within ourselves.

“All good thoughts” in spite of righteousness
is the kind of thoughts in spite of greatness.
Often now the State is advocation.
If we form a power of recognition.

Forget loss and perfect advocation.
If it drops or stays in convocation.
All we praise is all we want in commerce
All we praise is parties, foreign commerce.

Entertain ideas of great communion,
Shelter not materials in union
(All we praise is not the kind of commerce.
Thats the right solution!)

“All good thoughts” is not the act of doing
What we want but what we should be proving
(Properties?), ideas, a woman’s pleasure
is empowered by love, a perfect measure!

– Sufjan Stevens (Lyrics of a popular song)

Kabir - The couplet

transliterated:

Aisi vani boliye, man ka aapa khoye

Auron ko sheetal karai, aapa sheetal hoye ||

Translation:

Let the voice voice such words, that the soul is calmed

Calm other souls that hear, and the self is enveloped in calm ||

My understanding:

Whether it is Sufjan Stevens today, or Kabir from ages ago, the power of the spoken word has always been recognized.

As social interaction degenerates into power play, we often say things that lead into complex structures, knotting our thinking and that of others into essentially meaningless one-up-man-ship.

The easiest way to overcome this (and hence the most difficult) is to state our thought in simple words, taking care only to ensure that the said words do not hurt anyone, intentionally or unintentionally.

But just as Rome as not built in a day, but still stands and grows today, so also, if we all begin today, we can promise our next generations a world that will be ‘Heaven on Earth’ as peace takes over. For true peace emanates from within, not without. Each one of us, without exception needs to contribute.

I have started – will you all join me, please?

Even the most beautiful and most affluent people are not exempted from the heartaches brought by an earthly romance.”

– ‘The World’s Wealthiest Losers’ by Margaret Nicholas

A long gap since I last wrote to this list. A unique set of personal circumstances caused the hiatus as I struggled to find reason to write, to share, to expand. But suffice it is to say that I have found a light source at the end of another tunnel.

So today’s couplet and thought focuses on talking too much without saying anything (and no, that is not limited to the concept of politicians alone).

To all the mothers of the world, HAPPY MOTHER’s DAY ! The mother is the other end of the talk spectrum , sharing without saying, giving without expecting, an everlasting fountain of love, care, compassion and all the good the world can afford!

Talking to Myself

“Lord knows I can’t save the world. Yet I have this silly little thought in the back of my head telling me I can. I can’t even understand why I do the things I do sometimes, let alone tell someone else what is right and wrong for them. I guess I’ll just bless those that come in contact with me and keep it moving. I don’t have the energy and intelligence to save them all… and then I ask myself, “Who am I to criticize someone for how they are living?” It is easy to slander someone when I am on the outside looking in. I am sure even the Somalian pirates have rhyme and reason as to why they do what they do. Who knows what motivates or provokes people to do what they do? I believe there are bigger driving forces in life then just money alone. Maybe knowledge isn’t for everyone. Who am I to say that ignorance isn’t serving some significant purpose? Ignorance keeps many people employed on many levels in today’s society.”

– The Mind of Maurice Clarett (http://mauriceclarett.wordpress.com/2009/04/29/talking-to-myself/ )

Kabir Day 44:

The couplet transliterated:

Karni bina kathani kahai, agyani din raat |
Kukar jyun bhukat phirai, suni sunai baat ||

Translation:

The ignorant does prattle away without sense, day and night|
Akin to the wild dog, wandering, hungry but full of noise ||

My understanding:

Kabir has not left much to the imagination here. Every day, we see evidence of this around us, and often enough, I know I succumb to the temptation of talking even when I have nothing to say.

Compare this to the mother and her effort every moment – silently taking all that is thrust at her, and yet overflowing with love, care, compassion and true effort to create the best person as only she can. So maybe we can take lessons from this wonderful presence who graces our life every moment, and thank the Lord for this Gift that reminds us every moment of the Grace of Creation while staying true to the science of the physical world!

We talk without end, and nary a one listens. God says nothing, yet fills our every moment with Grace. I hear, and will say no more now. But I will be back tomorrow with more, for I am Human!

HAPPY MOTHER’s DAY to all mothers again!

Reading, knowledge and wisdom:

He had read much, if one considers his long life; but his contemplation was much more than his reading. He was wont to say that if he had read as much as other men he should have known no more than other men.

– John Aubrey

Kabir Day 43:

The couplet transliterated:

Padha suni seekha sabhi, miti na sanse sool |

Kahe Kabir kaase kahun, yeh sab dukh ka mool ||

Translation:

Reading and listening, we all learn – but it does not dispel doubt |

Says Kabir, doubts are the seeds for sorrow (so work to dispel them soon) ||

My understanding:

All the knowledge handed down to us is still just knowledge – to make it useful, we need to understand, contemplate, and put it in context. Reading and learning are not what make us wise – it is our ability to assimilate our learning and be able to apply it to our current situation that converts it to a valuable resource.

The apple, the wonderful cake or the delectable pie on the table are like the books being read – they look and feel good , but their value as nutrition is not realized till the digestive process is complete and they have been broken down to their essential components, value assimilated and the rest discarded.

Knowledge in a book is similar. If we do not start eating, the rest of digestion cannot happen – similarly, if we do not open the book to read, just looking at it is not enough to make us learn. Once the reading begins, we need to contemplate on the reading, as John Aubrey said, and ‘digest’ the knowledge therein. That is the true process of ‘learning’. We keep what is useful, and discard the parts that do not apply or do not have value in the current context.

Thus, and only thus, can we open ourselves to the vast vista of grandeur all around us!

Today’s thought :

“We are sinful not merely because we have eaten of the tree of knowledge, but also because we have not eaten of the tree of life.”

– Franz Kafka

..and now Kabir Day 42:

The couplet transliterated:

Hariya jaane kaavada, ras paani ka neh |

Sookha kaat na jaanayi, kabahu boond ka meh ||

Translation:

The living tree thrills to the feel of rain, feeds on the cool water, and truly enjoys the fact of being alive. Not so the dead tree – it has nothing left to feel.

The implication is simple – life is more than just the sum of activity and achievement. Just the fact of being alive offers more than the statement implies.

My understanding:

Being alive does not mean being rational, just, thinking, learning, or the plethora of other activities that we are tutored on all through life. Knowledge is not enough, nor is wisdom. To be truly alive, we have to learn to just ‘be’.

Too complex? Maybe, but life is never simple 🙂

Today’s thought (from this web link):

“Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.”

Bobby – age 7

An author and lecturer once talked about a contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child. The winner was a 4 year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman’s yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked him what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, “Nothing, I just helped him cry.”

..and now Kabir Day 41:

The couplet transliterated:

Guru dhobi seekh kapada, saabu sirjan haar |

Surati sila par dhoiye, nikasai jyoti apaar ||

Translation:

Teacher, washerman, student and the cloth, all are cleansed by the soap of the Lord’s name |

On the washing stone that is the Love of God and Neighbor, the cleansed glow with inner light ||

My understanding:

Another beautiful opportunity to step beyond this marketing-driven material world, and step into the wonderful garden of love. Here resides true peace, complete satisfaction and real happiness.

Kabir highlights what little Bobby says – it is not the presents, but the peace in the room and the satisfaction in the air that is the real spirit of Christmas. It is in the quiet of the little boy who, by just being, allows the other person to come to terms and even accept the loss as another step forward.

Prayer and the Lord’s name are a name we use to explain and quantify what we cannot see, touch or feel, and explain that which we cannot express. Instead of rationalizing, if we stop to just experience, true love – not just of our near and dear, but of everything and everyone near and far, known and unknown – will envelop us and allow us to transcend all differences.

Today’s thought –

“The man who acquires the ability to take full possession of his own mind may take possession of anything else to which he is justly entitled.”

Andrew Carnegie

Kabir Day 40

The couplet transliterated:

Baazaigar ka bandara, jeeva man ke saath |

Nana naach nachaya kari, raakhe apna haath ||

Translation:

Like the showman’s monkey, man is slave to his mind |

Making him dance to its tune, the mind controls him ||

My understanding:

Two different ways of looking at the same statement, coming from two completely different times and societies, but stating a most basic and essential truth – the relationship of mind and body.

Kabir has compared man to the average showman’s monkey – not a pet, but more of a puppet, dancing to a predefined and limited tune, trained to perform specific dances and steps, no more and no less. The monkey, at least in the public eye, is permitted only so much exhibition and no more. So is it free to express? Yes – but only as long as the expression fits the tune and is part of the repertoire – so the real answer is no.

Man is similarly bound by the mind, which in turn is driven by desire. The desire may be lofty or more basal, but it binds the mind, which in turn restricts the body.

Hence, be it Kabir, Carnegie, or the many teachers, preachers and wise men in between, the message is to understand – for understanding is the beginning of taking back the control and freeing the mind from those silken bonds.

Today’s thought – on giving..

“One of the great movements in my lifetime among educated people is the need to commit themselves to action. Most people are not satisfied with giving money; we also feel we need to work.”

Peter Drucker

“Is the rich world aware of how four billion of the six billion live? If we were aware, we would want to help out, we’d want to get involved.”

Bill Gates

..and, now, Kabir Day 39

The couplet transliterated:

Chidi chonch bhar lai gayi, nadi ghatya na neer |

Daan diye dhan naa ghatai, Kah gaye daas Kabir ||

Translation:

As the bird takes away water beak after beak, the river loses neither water nor level|

Giving wealth does not make a man any the lesser, so says Kabir, the everyman ||

My understanding:

Here, Kabir, allegorically, once again refers to the true wealth of man, not just the paper the commercial world calls money.

A teacher becomes wiser by teaching, and engineer better by building, and a doctor better by practicing.

The devotee unveils the Face of God inside himself ever so slowly by praying, and the lover learns the true meaning of love by loving – not by wanting love.

Money, by itself, has no intrinsic value. Its value is derived from the worth we gain from it. If no one cared for diamonds, the whole diamond industry might be found wanting for work – irrespective of the abundance or scarcity of diamonds.

Drucker and Gates above talk of this need of the educated man – the need to go and prove the worth of our education – by giving, not receiving. For therein lies true satisfaction – from the ability to be of use to others, to society.

Kabir, in simple words, reinforces the concept – the river exists to please, but loses not when the bird drinks from it – for it is in fulfilling the thirst or wanderers and hundry fields that the river finds its true purpose.

Talking of teachers, for without teachers, how would we ever learn?

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.”

– Henry B. Adams

“A master can tell you what he expects of you. A teacher, though, awakens your own expectations.”

Patricia Neal

..and now, fun but deep –

Never try to teach a pig to sing….it wastes your time and annoys the pig.

Anonymous

.. Kabir Day 38:

First, the couplet transliterated:

Guru kumhaar seekh kumbh hai, gadh gadh kaatai khot |

Antar haath sahaar dai, baahar baahai chhot ||

Translation:

The teacher is the potter and the student the pot, and the teacher removes defects one by one |

The hand inside protecting the pot from shattering, the hand outside beats to shape it right ||

My understanding:

A wonderful introduction to the difficult world of the teacher (the teacher here being anyone who teaches – parents, the village elder, the stranger on the street).

A student needs to be taught, which means the mold might need some recasting so the end result is perfect. The process of creation requires the one being created to be put through the fire of the furnace before he can be called ready. The teacher has the task of ensuring the fire is just right – not too hot or it will destroy, not too dim or the creation will not last. And the only way to truly create is to be in love with the creation – for which artist can churn out art mechanically in a truly wondrous fashion?

The teacher is the artist, and has to be harsh to the creation that is, in truth, a part of him. The harshness is the ONLY way to create a truly lasting work – and yet, non-lasting work is ever something that was not part of the artist, something the artist did not love from the core of his being.

So then, as a student, it behooves me to find that teacher who satisfies these criteria. For the ‘teacher’ who wants to please me will not be able to better me, and hence cannot be the one I need. The true teacher is like the egg – hard on the outside, soft on the inside, filled with the wonder of life, and yet delicate enough that the relationship needs very careful, special handling.

Today’s thoughts

(two but working as one 😉 )

“Just in case you believe that great social problems are beyond your scope, consider this story: God said to me: Your task is to build a better world. I answered: How can I do that? The world is such a large, vast place, so complicated now, and I am so small and useless. There’s nothing I can do. But God in his great wisdom said: Just build a better you.”

– Anonymous

“A Native American Elder once described his own inner struggles in this manner: Inside of me there are two dogs. One of the dogs is mean and evil. The other dog is good. The mean dog fights the good dog all the time. When asked which dog wins, he reflected for a moment and replied, “the one I feed the most.”

– George Bernard Shaw

..and now, Kabir Day 37

The couplet transliterated:

Bhagati duhelu Ram ki, jaise khante ki dhar |

Jo dole to kati pade, nahi to utare paar   ||

Translation:

Difficult is the path of devotion, like walking on a razor’s edge |

Waver, and you will get cut, while the steady will find salvation ||

My understanding:

Kabir here lays a basic truth down – the path of devotion is possibly the most difficult one to travel.

Devotion demands that we believe in something science cannot explain, an entity we cannot touch or feel, a voice we cannot hear, an experience that cannot be explained. Minus the devotion, the above aptly describes all the symptoms of a candidate for admission to a facility for the mentally impaired.

Devotion demands that we remain steadfast in the face of all adversity, keep our head down and work on when the chips are down, and do not lose sight of the goal when the going is good or the path seemingly easy. Steadfastness is a required ingredient here, as also calmness, in the face of both extreme happiness and great sorrow and the whole spectrum in between.

The true devotee finds strength not outside but from deep within himself.

What then, is devotion, really? Is it not the ability to put down a strong keel on the boat that is life’s journey, and be able to weather both dark storms and traverse gay sunny days with the same speed and without losing direction or purpose? Does it not mean the ability to find true peace in the heart of the boat, without being distracted by either the thunder or lightning of the storm or the gay birdsong of springtime? Is it not the ability to age without withering, gain wisdom without putting down others?

That then, is the greater world that God wants us to make (from the first quote above), the one inside us that we veer away from more often than not – for if we take care of that, the rest of the world outside will follow suit as a natural progression.

And this is where the Indian’s advice (from the GB Shaw quote above) pegs it perfectly – as we work to improve ourselves, we need to keep watching ourselves to ensure that we are indeed working towards our goal and not allowing the goal to manipulate us or dictate our behavior.

Any thoughts?

Today’s thought –

“There must be more to life than having everything.”

-Maurice Sendak

…and now, Kabir day 36:

The couplet transliterated:

Man diya kahin aur hi, tan saadhan ke sangh |

Kah Kabir kori gaji, kaise laage rang      ||

Translation:

While the mind roams its myriad paths, the body exercises on its own |

Says Kabir, an unbleached cloth, cannot take on the dye applied to it ||

My understanding – 

The mind strives to find its destiny in this life.

The body, driven by instinct, desire and activity around itself, has an agenda driven by basic instinct. This ‘drive-for-lucre’ causes conflict between the body’s desires and the mind’s quest, and they fall out of sync in their purpose. Living together, they are inextricably attached and yet completely disconnected from each other in both purpose and path.

Kabir, the weaver, has gone back to his profession to find an appropriate analogy – and what a perfect one he found. An unbleached cloth cannot take on color applied to it in any sense of regularity or appropriateness. Similarly, the mind cannot comprehend, accept or come to terms with the body’s physical desires especially when they are not in sync with the larger goals of life.

This is where I found harmony in Maurice Sendak’s quote above – the everything he speaks of is the everything this world has. That is still everything that goes back to dust and ashes when the body is no more. What remains after is what the mind strives for – and what our body must join in the search for, to attain the true purpose of life. For both can only work together, or not at all.

Today’s quote:

“In Jeremiah 23:24 God declares, “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” What does this mean? Is this limited to just one attribute of God, say for example, His knowledge, or just His power, or may be just His authority?

God is present in all places; however, our conception of Him must not be of Him filling space, as water fills a jug, for He has no physical or material dimensions.

It is as spirit that He is everywhere, in heaven, earth and hell. Although it surpasses the understanding of creatures such as we are, who are limited and bound to material bodies, God Himself is present everywhere in His majesty and power.

….

….

God’s omnipresence is not potential or with just his knowledge. If I know a lot of facts about Paris, it does not mean that I am in Paris. Again, God is not present everywhere with just his authority, for if a king exercises his dominion from his palace, it does not mean that he is anywhere else.”

– http://www.tecmalta.org/tft138.htm

..and now, Kabir Day 35:

The couplet transliterated:

Saaheb teri saahibi, sub ghat rahya samaay |

Jyon mehndi ke paat mein, laali lakha na jaaye ||

Translation:

Lord, your presence, invisible and untouchable, yet is everywhere and in everything |

Just as the red dye in the ‘mehndi’ leaf cannot be seen but is there every time a leaf is crushed ||

My understanding:

The quote above, from a page I found in random browsing on the web, evoked sharp memories of the above couplet. The thought is simple but very deep at the same time.

The red dye extracted from crushed mehndi (a shrub with very thick green leaves) leaves is used by Indian girls and ladies to decorate hands and feet in enticing patterns, and is the symbolic representation of celebration. However, looking at the leaf, there is no clue of the wonderful message of joy and celebration it hides within – that can only happen when the leaves are collected, crushed, and applied in the proper fashion to the correct parts of the skin.

Similarly, God, The Power, thought, happiness, our feeling of well-being are all there inside of each one of us and all around us – waiting for us to reach out and experience the bliss within. However, we have to each make that effort to reach and find that happiness – it is not enough to just understand or even acknowledge its existence within and around us. And even the most skeptical amongst us has to agree that science has a long way to go and a lot to learn before it can quantify this feeling – look at the smile on the face of the person next to you (wait if it is not yet there – do not force it into place) and try to put the joy you feel into words!

“When the student is ready, the teacher will appear” – An old saying.

Kabir Day 34:

The couplet transliterated:

Guru bichara kya kare, sabad na laage ang |

Kahe Kabir maili gaji, kaise jaage rang  ||

Translation:

What can the teacher do if the student is not ready to learn?

Says Kabir, on dirty cloth, the dye will not stick ||

My understanding:

Kabir here has laid out the responsibility of the student in the teacher-student relationship. The student has to open his mind to receive knowledge and learning, before the teacher can be effective.

The best of teachers fail when the student is not ready to accept the offering of the teacher. When cloth is not cleaned before applying the dye, the dye will fail to take hold in all those spots where dirt exists – ending up with a cloth looking very different from what was intended. Similarly, when the student and teacher are not on the same page, what is learnt will not match or map into what was the intent of the teaching.

And hence the quote above – the student needs to be ready before the teacher can teach what the student needs to be taught.

Today’s quote:

“Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet.

It is a way of entering into the quiet that is already there –

buried under the 50,000 thoughts

the average person thinks every day.”

– Deepak Chopra

And now, Kabir Day 33:

The couplet, transliterated:

Bin vaasilai chakiri, bin buddhi ki deh |

Bina gyan ka jogna, phirai lagaye kheh ||

Translation:

Like working without compensation, or a body without intellect |

The ‘ascetic’ without wisdom, roams with ash on his body ||

My understanding:

True wisdom comes from true realization – the understanding of the core of our existence. Talk does not make one wise, nor do external accoutrements.

Without realization, our existence is about as useful as a non-functional light bulb. The shell gains value from the inside- and Kabir asks us to light up and strengthen that core.

Deepak Chopra’s statement (quoted above), talks about this from a different perspective – it is only when we can still the myriad thoughts of the facile outside world that we can look inside to find our true self.

Today’s quote :

“There are four gate-keepers at the entrance to the Realm of Freedom [moksha].

– Self control

– Spirit of Inquiry

– Contentment

– Good Company

With a pure heart and a receptive mind, and without the veil of doubt and  restlessness of the mind, listen to the exposition of the nature and means of liberation.”

–Sage Vasishtha (from old Indian scriptures)

..and speaking of one of those gate-keepers, Kabir on day 32:

The couplet, transliterated:

Kanchan ko paaras parsee, bahuri na lohaa hoye |

Chandan baas palaasa bidhi, tuk kahai naahi koi ||

Translation:

Processed by the touchstone, iron is no longer just iron |

The ‘palasa’ tree from being near sandalwood, becomes like sandal ||

My understanding: 

Kabir here is extolling the virtues of good company. Processed by the touchstone, iron transforms from a base metal to useful and beautiful tools or implements. The palasa tree (a tree with no fragrance or value) when growing near the sandalwood tree, imbibes the sandalwood’s fragrance and is able to serve as the base for incense sticks, and other calming tools.

The true impact of the company we keep is that it makes us greater than our sum – we absorb, imbibe, evolve and grow to be more than all of us individually.

Today’s thought – 
“Our most basic human goal outside of survival, is happiness. Everything we do is an attempt to enjoy our lives. A big part of happiness I think, is contentment. I’m not talking about complacency or apathy; rather, I am talking about being able to get through the day and feel peaceful about life. I am always striving to find balance to achieve contentment without becoming complacent in my life.”
– http://lifegoddess.com/2007/09/26/how-to-find-contentment-in-your-daily-life/ 

And now for Kabir Day 31:
The couplet, transliterated:
Godhan gajadhan baajidhan, aur ratan dhan khan |
Jo aavai santosh dhan, sub dhan dhoori samaan || 

Translation:
Cattle, gold, silver, precious stones, man stores as wealth |
But once he finds contentment, it cannot be matched by any other wealth || 

My understanding:
As the quote above says, the chase for ‘more’ of everything material is the root cause for all our discontent. If we accumulate wealth, then we have to worry about taking care of it and ensuring it stays intact. The tax-man needs to be kept satisfied and up-to-date – more aggravation. The accountant needs to be paid – biting into the accumulation. Which all means more work to keep the sum collected intact and if possible, growing sufficiently to keep up to all the gnawing it is subject to.

Contentment, on the other hand (as different from complacence) is a well that gives more the more we draw from it – it is the proverbial Holy Grail – the cup that never goes empty.

Hence the old blessing – be content, and prosper!

Quotes that I crossed paths with:
It would little avail to ask how we know. That would be like asking how we know that Beethoven’s “Hymn to Joy” is joyous. If a man were to say, “It is not joyous to me,” he would not condemn the music; he would tell only his morbidness. There is no logic to establish an axiom, for an axiom is the basis of all logic; and the soul of Jesus has axiomatic truth. Jesus is light, and there is no proof for light except light itself. 
– George Buttrick

“The man who has met God is not looking for something – he has found it; he is not searching for light – upon him the Light has already shined.”
-A.W. Tozer 

..and now, Kabir, day 30: 

The couplet, transliterated: 
Tin sanehi bahu milai, chautha mila na koi |
Sabahu piyaare ram kai, baithe parbas hoi || 

Translation (from G.N. Das):
Many long for honor, wealth and lust
None for salvation |
Those who do, they remain lost
In His love and devotion || 

My understanding:
Salvation is not a goal for most of humanity. Bound by the knots of power, wealth and lust, they have no space in their mind to accommodate the demands of salvation. This trinity (wealth, power and lust) of this world, that was created by men, for men and can only serve limited purpose in life, however manages to grow in size to take up all of our time in this limited life. 

Listen to those around us talk, and pay careful attention to garner that which is not being said. Is the complaint about the food, the preparer or the overall experience itself? As I do this inspection more often, one thing that strikes me is the amount of ego around us – for every individual, the world, at some level, is all about and only about us – the big ME.

Takes me back to another popular couplet from school –
“For every finger I point at my neighbor,
There are three more pointing back at me.”

Means, that every time I listen to those around me, I need to pay three – nay, thirty – times more attention to my own petty (well, by now, anyways) complaints. 

Then I turn attention to the Lord – he has to listen to ALL of us – and he still loves us! So why can I not be more tolerant of my neighbor and the passing stranger? Pass on a little love and compassion, and the world will pay back in huge multiples – my personal experience is proof. And it is in this light, this love, that God exists!

True power and wealth come not when we have or control everything, but rather when we are able to relinquish everything that we have, and are able to allow each one of God’s creation the full freedom of their own will, to do what they will or must.

Today’s quote – 

“A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbol means nothing to him. A waterlogged stick will do just fine. A dog judges others not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside. A dog doesn’t care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his. It was really quite simple, and yet we humans, so much wiser and more sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not. As I wrote that farewell column to Marley, I realized it was all right there in front of us, if only we opened our eyes. Sometimes it took a dog with bad breath, worse manners, and pure intentions to help us see.”
– John Grogan (character in movie “Marley and me”) 

..and now Kabir day 29: 

The couplet translated:
Desh desaantar main phira, maanus bada sukaal |
Jaa dekh sukh oopjai, taaka bada dukaal      ||

Translation:
Wandering both at home and abroad, I met many a man |
Rarely did I find, one who brought a smile to the heart || 

My understanding: 
The inner goodness, the simple heart of a man, shows up in his eyes, face, the spring in his step and the tinkle of his voice. Caught up in the bonds of this world, knotted up by the silken strands of desire, most men are too distraught (navigating the web they find themselves in) to be able to share and be shared.

Finding a person free of the tangles of desire is akin to finding a rare treasure – such men are to be sought and their friendship and companionship truly hoarded, as Kabir asserts.

For me this finds echoes in the story of the movie and book “Marley and me” – the simple story of a newlywed couple and a dog they adopt. The dog, to all initial external appearances, is a nuisance, a terror, a pain in all the wrong places. However, it takes only a little introspection to understand that the dog is looking for and has found true friendship in the family, and give more love than its frame can possibly hold. The quote above, the last statement in the movie, sums up the movie perfectly.

If only more would take heed of the simple message, this world’s beauty would be so much more visible to all of us!

“It means bondage when the mind desires something or grieves at something, rejects or accepts anything, feels happy or angry with anything.”
– Ashtavakra Gita – Chapter 8 Verse 1

..and now, Kabir Day 28:

The couplet transliterated:
Bhoop dukhi avadhoot dukhi, dukhi runk bipreet|
Kahe Kabir Yeh sub dukhi, sukhi sant man jeet ||

Translation:
Unhappy are the king and the learned, even the beggar lives unhappy |
Says Kabir, amongst all, only the saint in control of his mind is happy ||

My understanding:

James Shirley says it wonderfully in his poem “Death The Leveller”:
“The glories of our blood and state
Are shadows, not substantial things;
There is no armour against Fate;
Death lays his icy hand on kings:
Sceptre and Crown
Must tumble down,
And in the dust be equal made
With the poor crookèd scythe and spade.”

Unhappiness is a familiar state of mind for most humans – some even get unhappy when they have nothing to get unhappy about – for they worry that the next moment will bring great unhappiness.

There is infinite wisdom in the fact that true happiness lies in the truly small things – the morning sun, the ice on the roof, the grass under the frost, the twinkling star in a dark sky, the smile on a child’s face, the twinkle in a spouse’s or friend’s eye.

Find that happiness, and prosper – for it takes little to truly smile, but that smile is enough to light up the whole world in its radiance!

Today’s quote:

It’s a fascinating phenomenon if you stop and think about it. People are willing to damage their current and future financial situation in order to keep up with the Joneses.
– Brian Kim (http://briankim.net/blog/2008/03/how-to-stop-keeping-up-with-the-joneses/ )

..and now, Kabir, day 27

The couplet – transliterated:

Aisi gati sansar ki, jyon gaarad ko that |
Ek pada jaihi gaad mein, sabai jaahi tehi baat ||

Translation:
The world’s people are like herds of sheep, following one other without reason |
If the leader falls into a pit, the rest follow into the same in unison ||

My understanding:
Kabir is requesting us to awaken to our reasoning ability, and behave in a fashion that helps us achieve our own goal, not that of others. Man has been blessed with the ability to rationalize and function sensibly – if only he chooses to.

A long time ago, wealth was defined as a goal to aspire for, and the chase of lucre has since taken over as the primary goal a large portion of the world’s population’s base function. Most people collect “stuff” without reasoning why or rationalizing the need for it.

Instead of hoarding wealth, if we were to emulate the rest of the animal world by “taking what we need, giving all we can” would most of the strife in the world have any reason to exist?

Today’s quote

..from the SciFi TV series “Babylon 5” – a conversation between the characters Dr. Stephen Franklin and Lt. Commander Susan Ivanova:

SF – “It’s all so brief, isn’t it? Typical human lifespan is almost a hundred years, but it’s barely a second compared to what’s out there. It wouldn’t be so bad if life didn’t take so long to figure out. Seems you just start to get it right and then .. it’s over.”
SI – “Doesn’t matter. If we lived two hundred years, we’d still be human. We’d still make the same mistakes.”
SF – “You’re a pessimist.”
SI – “I am Russian , Doctor. We understand these things.”
– Babylon 5 (Episode – Soul Hunter)

..and now, Kabir Day 26:

The couplet transliterated:
Sanjh padi din dhal gaya, baaghin gheri gaay |
Gaay bechari na mari, baaghin na bhooki jaay ||

Translation:
As the evening darkens, the tiger stalks the cow |
The poor cow cannot die, nor the tiger go hungry ||

My understanding:
Another allegorical couplet from Kabir, this is referring to the duality of the soul and the body and the cycle of life and death.

Here the cow represents the soul and the tiger represents death.

The tiger will not go hungry, and attack its prey at the first opportunity it gets. Death can kill the body, but not the soul. The soul, attached to the body, will suffer the pangs of separation as the body dies – this is the price it pays for its attachment to the body. The cycle of life and death is wrapped into every aspect of living as manifest amidst us. So that one may live, others must die (think of the plants and livestock that feed us and keep us going).

Kabir is enlightening us to these basic rules of life so that we may become aware of the sacrifice of those that feed us, physically and mentally, and then learn to contribute back into the spring of life and knowledge (life by planting and cultivating, knowledge by learning, understanding and improving on the base store of current knowledge).