Kabir truly is a miracle of time. And he beats in the heart of every Indian. Every single couplet of his outshines thousands of religious texts. If there is a marvel in the world of poetry and philosophy, then it is Kabir.
Today on his birth anniversary let me recount an anecdote from his childhood. Roaming around in the streets of Benares, Kabir had a keen sense of observation ever since his childhood. He looked at things with a unique perspective. He got the opportunity to learn from Acharya Ramanand Swami right since his childhood. But the difficulty was that he was not like the other kids. He not only doubted everything, but also kept on asking questions about everything.
One day it so happened that it was his Guru’s father’s Shraddh. Shraddh is a traditional custom wherein pundits are called and fed sumptuously so that the dead relative in whose memory it is being observed receives the food through them. So to make sure the offerings reached his father, Kabir’s Guru called quite a few pundits to eat. And here he had his disciples busy with the preparations right since morning. The task of arranging for the milk fell on Kabir.
On his Guru’s order, he started off with a bucket to fetch milk. No one knows what transpired but Kabir, who had left in the morning, did not return till early afternoon. So his Guru had to serve the meals to the pundits without milk. This was okay, but after the ceremony his Guru began getting worried. He took a couple of his disciples and left in search of Kabir in the narrow lanes of Benares. Soon he sighted young Kabir sitting next to a dead cow, with the bucket in his hand and holding his head with the other hand. His Guru was surprised beyond words. Out of curiosity he promptly asked, What are you doing here?
Innocently, Kabir replied – Waiting for the cow to give milk!
Affectionately stroking his cheeks, the Guru said – My simple lad, do dead cows ever give milk?
Hearing this, he retorted mischievously – If the food can reach your dead father, then dead cows can also give milk.
Poor Ramanand Swamy came to his senses. He embraced Kabir and promptly said – Today you have opened my eyes. You have already taken a big step towards supreme wisdom.
Well, Kabir took his first step, but when will you? If you really want to take a step towards wisdom, then first stop following others blindly and use your innate intelligence to evaluate things. Because to receive knowledge and become wise is your birthright!
- Deep Trivedi
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