Ang 479

AASAA: My pilgrimage to Mecca is on the banks of the Gomati River; the spiritual teacher in his yellow robes dwells there. ||1|| Waaho! Waaho! Hail! Hail! How wondrously he sings. The Name of the Lord is pleasing to my mind. ||1|| Pause|| Naarada the sage, and Shaarada the goddess of knowledge, serve the Lord. The goddess Lakhshmi sits by Him as His slave. ||2|| The mala is around my neck, and the Lord’s Name is upon my tongue. I repeat the Naam, the Name of the Lord, a thousand times, and bow in reverence to Him. ||3|| Says Kabeer, I sing the Glorious Praises of the Lord; I teach both Hindus and Muslims. ||4||4||13||

AASAA, KABEER JEE, 9 PANCH-PADAS, 5 DU-TUKAS: ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU: You tear off the leaves, O gardener, but in each and every leaf, there is life. That stone idol, for which you tear off those leaves — that stone idol is lifeless. ||1|| In this, you are mistaken, O gardener. The True Guru is the Living Lord. ||1|| Pause|| Brahma is in the leaves, Vishnu is in the branches, and Shiva is in the flowers. When you break these three gods, whose service are you performing? ||2|| The sculptor carves the stone and fashions it into an idol, placing his feet upon its chest. If this stone god was true, it would devour the sculptor for this! ||3|| Rice and beans, candies, cakes and cookies — the priest enjoys these, while he puts ashes into the mouth of the idol. ||4|| The gardener is mistaken, and the world is mistaken, but I am not mistaken. Says Kabeer, the Lord preserves me; the Lord, my King, has showered His Blessings upon me. ||5||1||14||

AASAA: Twelve years pass in childhood, and for another twenty years, he does not practice self-discipline and austerity. For another thirty years, he does not worship God in any way, and then, when he is old, he repents and regrets. ||1|| His life wastes away as he cries out, “Mine, mine!” The pool of his power has dried up. ||1|| Pause|| He makes a dam around the dried-up pool, and with his hands, he makes a fence around the harvested field. When the thief of Death comes, he quickly carries away what the fool had tried to preserve as his own. ||2|| His feet and head and hands begin to tremble, and the tears flow copiously from his eyes. His tongue has not spoken the correct words, but now, he hopes to practice religion! ||3|| If the Dear Lord shows His Mercy, one enshrines love for Him, and obtains the Profit of the Lord’s Name. By Guru’s Grace, he receives the wealth of the Lord’s Name, which alone shall go with him, when he departs in the end. ||4|| Says Kabeer, listen, O Saints — he shall not take any other wealth with him. When the summons comes from the King, the Lord of the Universe, the mortal departs, leaving behind his wealth and mansions. ||5||2||15||

AASAA: To some, the Lord has given silks and satins, and to some, beds decorated with cotton ribbons. Some do not even have a poor patched coat, and some live in thatched huts. ||1|| Do not indulge in envy and bickering, O my mind. By continually doing good deeds, these are obtained, O my mind. ||1|| Pause|| The potter works the same clay, and colors the pots in different ways. Into some, he sets pearls, while to others, he attaches filth. ||2|| God gave wealth to the miser for him to preserve, but the fool calls it his own. When the Messenger of Death strikes him with his club, in an instant, everything is settled. ||3|| The Lord’s humble servant is called the most exalted Saint; he obeys the Command of the Lord’s Order, and obtains peace. Whatever is pleasing to the Lord, he accepts as True; he enshrines the Lord’s Will within his mind. ||4|| Says Kabeer, listen, O Saints — it is false to call out, “Mine, mine.” Breaking the bird cage, death takes the bird away, and only the torn threads remain. ||5||3||16||