THE PHILOSOPHY OF KABIR- VOL-3 Kabir says, you have already wasted enough time on the written words - the Vedas, the Koran and the bible and you have amassed enough information. What is left to read? You have been wandering in this jungle of words from birth to birth and still you have not awakened. Who can’t reduce to writing, that which is beyond writing? It is not that there is nothing at all in the scriptures, that there is no substance in them; they are the words of those who have seen, of those who have experienced. But their experience is their own; it cannot be conveyed through words. There is a wonderful story about the Zen monk, Lin Chi. He was sitting under the tree when he became enlightened. He immediately ran to his room and brought out all the scriptures of Buddha and set fire to them. People thought that he had gone mad. They could not think a greater sin than reducing the priceless words of the Buddha to ashes. All the time in Chi was laughing loudly. Some of the people try to extinguish the fire so something might be saved, but he laughed and said, “Fools; there is no need to save anything. There is nothing there worth saving. I realized today there is nothing substantial in the scriptures”. What he did say was,” I have reduced the scriptures to ashes so you may learn from my action, so you may remain aware.” When the real thing has been achieve all the scriptures become useless. Who cares about the river or the boat after one has reached the other shore? Kabir says God has no caste, no form, no color, so how can you describe Him? Whether you say He is without form or you say He is with form, both the statements are incomplete. All qualities are His and yet there is not a single quality in Him. It is absolutely correct to say that all forms are His, yet He has no form at all. When water is poured into a clay pot it assumes the shape of the pot, and if it is poured into a jug it assumes the shape of the jug. Water does not insist on having its own shape. If water insisted on having its own shape it would not assume the shape of the jug. But if you make water so cold that it turns into ice, then it assumes a shape. Water has three forms. One is formless; it spreads into the sky, leaving no trace behind it; it cannot be found no matter how you try. The second form is that of water. It does not insist on having any particular shape but yet has some shape, because it assumes the shape of the container into which it poured. The last form is that of ice. Can there be any form to God? He is all types of shapes and forms. He is in ice, in water and in vapor. All forms are His, and yet He has no form at all. Whenever you are with god you become calm. And whenever you are calm, understand that God is near to you. In America, a man named, Henry Thoreau, when he was close to death an old aunt of his, a religious old lady thought Henry was not religious because he never went to church and read the Bible and asked compassionately,” Henry, have you made your peace with god?” Lying on his deathbed, Thoreau opened his eyes and said,’ I didn’t know we’d ever quarreled. What is there to make peace about? He never went to church because it wasn’t necessary. If there is no quarrel, then what is the point of going to the court? He was always calm and unperturbed and never quarrels with god. So how could he pray? Whom would he worship? Whom would he adore? You fight with God twenty-four hours every day. God expects one thing from you and you want something else. Your prayer is,” Listen to my prayer, fulfill my desires.” What are you doing is wrong; your prayer is nothing but advice to God. Everyone in this world dies but that no one dies in a right and proper manner. And death is the test. Death is the essence, the flowering of life. How can your death be right and full of meaning if you have spent your life wrongly and has been a waste? How can a tree whose roots are rotten can bears sweet fruit? It is impossible. At the time of death, you will find that people are weeping, dejected and in anguish. But this anguish is not because of death. It is because people realize they have wasted their whole live. The opportunity was held out to them, but they have let it slip through their hands. No one is afraid of death. How can you be afraid of something about which, you know nothing whatsoever? You have never encounter death. How can you be afraid of death? Has it done anything to you to make you weep and tremble and cry aloud? No, the real cause is something else. You realize for the first time that you have wasted your entire life. Then you think what can I do now? Now there is no time. This whole feeling of helplessness is nothing but the outcome of unsuccessful life. What is the secret to the art of life? The secret is this: Live in full awareness. Whatsoever you do, do it thoughtfully, do it with awareness, stay alert. Buddha used to tell his disciples not to look more than four feet in front while they are walking. When you complete the first four feet you will see another four feet in front of you and in this way you can travel thousands of miles.
Posted on: Thu, 30 Jan 2014 11:21:34 +0000
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