Ang-1101 — Chapter 61
then God comes and resolves his affairs. ||1||
Contemplate such spiritual wisdom, O mortal man.
Why not meditate in remembrance on the Lord, the Destroyer of pain? ||1||Pause||
As long as the tiger lives in the forest,
the forest does not flower.
But when the jackal eats the tiger,
then the entire forest flowers. ||2||
The victorious are drowned, while the defeated swim across.
By Guru's Grace, one crosses over and is saved.
Slave Kabeer speaks and teaches:
remain lovingly absorbed, attuned to the Lord alone. ||3||6||14||
He has 7,000 commanders,
and hundreds of thousands of prophets;
He is said to have 88,000,000 shaykhs,
and 56,000,000 attendants. ||1||
I am meek and poor - what chance do I have of being heard there?
His Court is so far away; only a rare few attain the Mansion of His Presence. ||1||Pause||
He has 33,000,000 play-houses.
His beings wander insanely through 8.4 million incarnations.
He bestowed His Grace on Adam, the father of mankind,
who then lived in paradise for a long time. ||2||
Pale are the faces of those whose hearts are disturbed.
They have forsaken their Bible, and practice Satanic evil.
One who blames the world, and is angry with people,
shall receive the fruits of his own actions. ||3||
You are the Great Giver, O Lord; I am forever a beggar at Your Door.
If I were to deny You, then I would be a wretched sinner.
Slave Kabeer has entered Your Shelter.
Keep me near You, O Merciful Lord God - that is heaven for me. ||4||7||15||
Everyone speaks of going there,
but I do not even know where heaven is. ||1||Pause||
One who does not even know the mystery of his own self,
speaks of heaven, but it is only talk. ||1||
As long as the mortal hopes for heaven,
he will not dwell at the Lord's Feet. ||2||
Heaven is not a fort with moats and ramparts, and walls plastered with mud;
I do not know what heaven's gate is like. ||3||
Says Kabeer, now what more can I say?
The Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, is heaven itself. ||4||8||16||
How can the beautiful fortress be conquered, O Siblings of Destiny?
It has double walls and triple moats. ||1||Pause||
It is defended by the five elements, the twenty-five categories, attachment, pride, jealousy and the awesomely powerful Maya.
The poor mortal being does not have the strength to conquer it; what should I do now, O Lord? ||1||
Sexual desire is the window, pain and pleasure are the gate-keepers, virtue and sin are the gates.
Anger is the great supreme commander, full of argument and strife, and the mind is the rebel king there. ||2||
Their armor is the pleasure of tastes and flavors, their helmets are worldly attachments; they take aim with their bows of corrupt intellect.
The greed that fills their hearts is the arrow; with these things, their fortress is impregnable. ||3||
But I have made divine love the fuse, and deep meditation the bomb; I have launched the rocket of spiritual wisdom.
The fire of God is lit by intuition, and with one shot, the fortress is taken. ||4||
Taking truth and contentment with me, I begin the battle and storm both the gates.
In the Saadh Sangat, the Company of the Holy, and by Guru's Grace, I have captured the king of the fortress. ||5||
✦ Connected Across Traditions
The Golden Rule
Matthew 7:12
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Hadith (An-Nawawi 13)
“None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”
Leviticus 19:18
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Mahabharata 5.1517
“One should never do to another what one regards as injurious to oneself.”
The Path to Wisdom
Proverbs 4:7
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.”
Dhammapada 20:282
“Wisdom springs from meditation; without meditation wisdom wanes.”
Analects 2:11
“If you study the past and use it to understand the present, you are worthy of being a teacher.”
Tao Te Ching 33
“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom.”
Humility & Surrender
Bhagavad Gita 18:66
“Abandon all varieties of dharma and simply surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions; do not fear.”
Matthew 5:5
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
Tao Te Ching 22
“If you want to become whole, let yourself be partial. If you want to become full, let yourself be empty.”
Quran 2:45
“Seek help through patience and prayer. It is indeed exacting, but not for those who are humble.”
Good vs Evil / Light vs Darkness
Yasna 30:3
“Now the two primal Spirits, who reveal themselves as Twins, are the Better and the Bad, in thought and word and action.”
John 1:5
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
Dhammapada 1:1-2
“Mind is the forerunner of all actions. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind, happiness follows like a shadow.”
Genesis 1:3
“And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”