Creating Kabīr
Understanding the use of Kabīr through the lens of Sanskritization
By Felix Rosén
Uppsala University Department of theology History of Religions
30 Credits, Master Thesis, Spring 2021 Supervisor: Billing, Nils
Grading Teacher: Borgland, Jens Email: Felix.rosen.95@gmail.com
Abstract
The so called Bhakti movement spread, during the Late Medieval period, like wildfire across the South Asian subcontinent and acted like a catalyst for the development of nirguṇī-traditions. These newly emerging nirguṇī-traditions rallyd men and women alike, preaching for the abolation of the varṇa-system, for Muslim-Hindu unity, devotion to the one omipresent godhead, nirguṇa. Among these traditions, a man named Kabīr came and claimed the leading position, a position that history still, to this day, gives credit as being one of the most, if not the most, important figure amongst the of the North Indian bhakti preachers.
Kabīr’s teachings came to be, after his passing, the foundation for the establishment of the Kabīr Panth (Path of Kabīr) a by now well known tradition. However, at an early stage of formation, the Kabīr Panth began to separate into many branches, which all started to produce their own literature regarding several contrasting retellings of Kabīr’s life, his poems, and the installation of rituals and praxis. As a consequence of the various legends along with myths created, following the schism between the main branches, Kabīr’s life and legacy came to be displayed and understood rather differently. This study does not only demonstrate how Kabīr is perceived within the various branches, most prominent that of the Kabīr Chaurā and Dharmadasī branch, and what attributes, human and divine, are given him.
Throughout the study it is also shown how these perceptions of Kabīr, may be understood as forms of, to various degrees, fostering of Sanskritization in order to gain upward momentum within the Indian socio-religious ladder of hierarchy, more commonly known as the varṇa-system.
Keywords: Kabīr, Nirguṇa, Saguṇa, Sanskritization, Bhakti, Sants, Dharmadas, Varṇa.
Introduction 1
Purpose and research questions 2
Material and methodology 4
Theoretical approach 7
Previous research and demarcation 9
1
Kabīr and his times: Bhakti and the emergence of Santism 11
The Sants and the concept of Saguṇa and Nirguṇa bhakti 13
Kabīr in myth and legends 15
Discussion: Life of Kabīr 21
2
Kabīr Panth: Praxis and rituals 23
The Founders and the śākhās 23
“Then they slay souls and worship stones” 27
Reflections and critique 33
3 36
The cosmology within the Anurāg Sāgar and the Bījak of Kabīr
3.1 Kabīr in the Anurāg Sāgar 40
Sat Yuga - Incarnation of Sat Sukrit 41
Treta Yuga - Incarnation of Maninder 42
Dwapar Yuga - Incarnation of Karunamai 43
Kali Yuga - Incarnation of Kabīr 45
Summary: Anurāg Sāgar 47
3.2 Kabīr in the Bījak of Kabīr 48
Ramainī 49
Śabda 51
Sākhī 53
Summary: Bījak of Kabīr 55
4
Creating Kabīr: Final remarks and conclusion 57
References 61
Attachments 63
Introduction
“Nearly all new religious movements necessarily arise within a context of serious changes in economic and social conditions, that is to say a situation of socio-economic dislocation and conflict. In part they protest against these changes and against the social and economical injustices that accompany them. They also however, embody attempts to come to terms with these changes, to create a new value system in which they can be accommodated and their negative, exploitative impact made bearable.”1
During the beginning of the 15th century, a movement, based on the 8th century teachings of South Indian Bhakti (personal veneration towards the Godhead) started to spread in North India. Together with the revolutionary ideas found both within the social and the spiritual sphere of Indian society, a great struggle against the injustice of the varṇa-system, i.e caste-system, and elitism was made ablaze. The many men and women who together went against the Orthodox teachings of not only the Hindu tradition, but also that of the Muslim faith. They preached for the abolation of the varṇa-system, for Muslim-Hindu unity, devotion to the one omipresent godhead, nirguṇa. They contested the idea of almost all popular practises of the current Hindu traditions found, which many times, boiled down to the abolishment of image worship, saguṇa, anti-pilgrimage, and against the varṇa-based sentiment of religious purity versus impurity. These men and women who lit the fire of defiance in the heart of the poor, sparked the flames for greater change within the religious landscape of the South Asian subcontinent and burned down the ladder of social stratification
−they were the Sants. Among these Sants, one man, whose teaching is regarded as the very essence of Medieval nirguṇa bhakti movement was called Kabīr:
“I've burned my own house down, the torch is in my hand. Now I'll burn down the house of anyone who wants to follow me.”2
Kabīr, accroding to many traditions, was born into the low-caste family of Julāha, Muslim weavers, whom under influence of the Vaiṣṇava guru Rāmananda,3 started preaching for the
3Both the dates of Kabīr’s birth, family belonging and influence of Rāmananda are contested and will be further explained at a later stage of this study.
2Hess, L. & Singh, S. (2002). The Bijak of Kabir. New York: Oxford University Press, p 152.
1 Lorenzen, David in Schomer, Karine & McLeod, William Hewat (red.) (1987). The Sants: studies in a devotional tradition of India. Berkeley: Berkeley Religious Studies, p 293.
equality of man, unity amongst religion and the destruction of the worldly illusions of caste, religious rituals and scriptures. The teachings of Kabīr, as well as those of his contemporaries, such as Guru Nānak, Ravidas, Dudu etc, gave the low-born masses and families a voice and the freedom to find their own way towards both spiritual and social liberation, which would come to break the shackles held by upper-caste rulers and their religious supremacy.
Though Kabīr may have been both loved by many after his passing, the more hated him during his lifetime. This was due to his harsh and rough rhetoric against the institutionalized religious traditions of his era. It was also this critical approach towards social injustice and religious monopoly that made followers, both Hindu and Muslims alike, to start a full on dispute as to whom he belonged to after his passing:
“A famous legend about Kabir shows his Hindu and Muslim followers massed for combat after his death, each side demanding to take charge of the body. But before the first blow is struck, someone removes the shroud to discover that a heap of flowers has replaced the cadaver.
The two religious groups divide the flowers, and each goes off to bury or burn its half according to prescribed rituals.”4
From the teachings of Kabīr came the establishment of the Kabīr Panth (i.e the path of Kabīr), however, just as the story of Hindus and Muslims fighting over Kabīr’s bodie, so to does the members and branches of the Kabīr tradition fight amongst each other as to who Kabīr was and to whom he gave the sole right to spread his teaching. The two main rivaling branches of the Kabīr Panth are those of Kabīr Chaurā Maṭh and the Dharmadasī branch.
Both contest each other as to whom Kabīr belonged and, as will further explored in this study, not only who Kabīr was, but also what he was since different forms of attributes are given him in order to either humanify or deify him.
Purpose and research questions
The Purpose of this paper is to examine how followers of Kabīr, Kabīr Panthī, construct the image of Kabīr and themselves, in accordance with their literature, myth, rituals and religious practices. This will be done by doing a comparative study between the two main scriptures of the Kabīr Chaurā Maṭh in Banaras and that of the Dharmadasī branch of Chhattisg ̣arh, as well
4Hess, L. & Singh, S. (2002). The Bijak of Kabir. s 4. The two religious groups referred to are those of Muslim and Hindu followers.
as their rituals, praxis and their socio-religious milieu. This will in turn, hopefully, shed new light on how followers of these branches may reimagine or recreate their own identity in the image of Kabīr’s, which often mirrors that of high-caste customs, ideology, legends, myth and rituals.
In order to investigate how and why low-born masses may mirror the customs of the high-born caste, within the Indian system of social hierarchy, the theory of Sanskritization established by the sociologist Mysore Narasimhachar Srinivas will be used.5 The socio-religious movements brought into play by Kabīr and his contemporaries has never been a coherent movement throughout the Late Medieval period up until today. However, even if the tradition of Kabīr and the Sants may differentiate, some aspects are shared between them.
These aspects are those of believing in an omnipresent nirguṇ-creator, which upon personal relations and devotion are possible and a shared tradition of dissent and protest against the religious elitism, the social hierarchy of caste found within the varṇa-system and ideological hegemony.
Since there is great diversity among both past and present followers of Kabīr and the Sants, and there is no monolithic unity in how one is to understand Kabīr. The question at hand, that may spark interest, is not rather who Kabīr truly was historically, but to whom he belonged and which attributes are found within his poems, writings and socio-religious legacy. Linda Hess in her “Bodies of song” (2015) brought forward the question, “Is Kabir a blazing social revolutionary or a promoter of detached spiritual quietism? Is he both? Or neither?”6 The question can rather be boiled down to ‘whose Kabīr?’, since depending on perspective, social, economical or religious power in the society as a whole, Kabīr may attain different attributes and/or become an instrumental tool by his followers for different struggles both social as well as spiritual. With that in mind, the questions this paper aim to answer are as followed;
● How are the images of Kabīr constructed within the Kabīr Chaurā Maṭh branch and the Dharmadasī branch of Chhattisg ̣arh?
● How may these constructions be understood as forms of Sanskritization following the theory of sociologist Mysore Narasimhachar Srinivas
6Hess, Linda (2015). Bodies of song: Kabir oral traditions and performative worlds in Northern India. New York: Oxford University Press, p 1.
5For more, see chapter: “Theoretical approach,” p 7.
Material and methodology
In order to conduct this research, in the light of the ongoing covid-19 pandemic, the studied material at hand will be limited to mainly two sources of translated texts as well as secondary studies already conducted.7 The two main sources of texts that will be analyzed in this paper are those of Dharmadasī branch of Chhattisg ̣arh’s use of Anurāg Sāgar (The Ocean of Love) and that of Kabīr Chaurā Maṭh’s use of Bījak of Kabīr (Seed of Kabīr).
Here a short introduction to these texts shall suffice, since further down, a more thorough historical background will be given. The Anurāg Sāgar is one of many works attributed to Kabīr and is also one out of eleven books within the Kabīr Sagār (Ocean of Kabīr). According to legend Dharmadas, one of Kabīrs most known disciples, wrote the Anurāg Sāgar after establishing the Chhattisg ̣arh branch of the Kabīr Panth in the late sixteenth century.8 The date on which the Anurāg Sāgar was written is however disputed and might, according to David Lorenzen, be dated somewhere between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.9
The story of Anurāg Sāgar is based on the dialog, which by tradition is set between Kabīr and Dharmadas, wherein Kabīr explains the story of the cosmic universe, its creation and what upholds order in the world, both the metaphysical and the physical. One of the main parts of the book, which will be the major focus of this study, is called The Coming of Kabir where Kabīr tells the legends of his own reincarnations as divine Avatars during the four cycles found within the Hindu tradition. Firstly that of Satya Yuga, secondly the Treta Yuga, thirdly the Dwapara yuga and lastly the Kali yuga. The use of the Anurāg Sāgar is not bound only to the spiritual thought and praxis of the Kabīr Panth, It also makes it possible to claim Dharmadas to be the rightful successor of Kabīr legacy and in turn also legitimize the Chhattisg ̣arh branch. For this paper the translated version of Anurāg Sagār (1995), by Raj Kumar Bagga will be analyzed.
The Bījak of Kabīr is an anthology of songs, poems and couplets ascribed to Kabīr which is considered by the Kabīr-Panthī to be the most authentic saying of their guru. There is however not just one, but many versions followed by different comenteries that may fit better within different branches of the Kabīr Panth. The Bījak, according to the tradition described in Charlotte Vaudeville’s Kabīr (1974), was compiled either at the Kabīr Chaurā
9Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). Kabir Legends and Ananta-Das’s Kabir Parachai. Albany: State university of New York Press, p 21.
8Juergensmeyer, Mark in Schomer, Karine & McLeod, William Hewat (red.) (1987). The Sants: studies in a devotional tradition of India. Berkeley: Berkeley Religious Studies, p 352.
7For more, see chapter:”Previous research and demarcation”.
Maṭh in Banaras or in the Chhattisg ̣arh branch by either Dharmadas or Bhagodas. When the Bījak was compiled into its written form is heavily contested where scholars claim it to be somewhere between the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century.10Two of the best know editions of the Bījak still being used today are revised by Puran das (1805-37) which is understood to be more recognized by the Chaurā Maṭh, and the commentary by Maharaja Bishwa of Rewa (1905) which in turn, according to Westcott's understanding, is somewhat based on the Anurāg Sāgar of the Dharmadasī branch.11
Even though there are plenty of revised versions of the Bījak, which also may differ in length, they all share three main angas or chapters (lit, component or body), that of Ramainī (sayings), Śabda (words) and Sākhī (witnesses) which all will be further explained at a later stage. For this paper the translated version of the Bījak by Ahmad Shah (1917) will be used.
The method for approaching the above mentioned material shall be done through a comparative content analysis together with the sociologist Mysore Narasimhachar Srinivas’
theory of Sanskritization which will be introduced further down. The choice of applying the method of content analysis is based on how this method provides the tools of managing and systemizing a large quantity of texts and data. It also enables the drawing of conclusions between the material at hand and the historical context it was produced in while at the same time enables further expansions to the questions of why and how it was produced.12 This contextualization is a crucial part for this study since the method may grant vision or a means of understanding how the socio-religious implications of Sanskritization within the two branches of the Kabīr Panth may have occurred. The use of content analysis may grant further understanding on the subject of how these two branches portray Kabīr in the Anurāg Sāgar and the Bījak of Kabīr.
After a contextualization of the material has been done, a further understanding of how the process of Sanskritization may have occurred can be acquired through a comparative analysis. The use of comparative analysis in this study will aim to help in the structuralization and thematization of the material at hand. Using comparative analysis is however not a problem free method and one has to trampel with the issues of generalization and reductionism. History has shown that when doing a comparative study one has to ask the question of why is it being done and in what interest?13 This is because of the early stage of
13Stausberg, Michael, (2011). The Routledge handbook of research methods in the study of religion. p 21-2.
12 Nelson & Woods Jr., in Stausberg, Michael & Engler, Steven (ed.) (2011). The Routledge handbook of research methods in the study of religion. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, p 111.
11Westcott, G.H. (1953). Kabir and the Kabir Panth, 2. ed., Susil Gupta, Calcutta, p 48.
10Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974). Kabīr. Oxford: Clarendon Press, p 49, 56-8.
comparative scholarship, which in a major part of the western studies, was conducted with the idea of a deeper truth or mythos which was shared across the linguistic families sprung from the Indo-Ariyan language.
The discourse of myth during the seventeenth and eighteenth century was embossed on the assertion that each folk, or Volk, was sprung from a shared linguistic, racial and cultural unity within the concept of myth and creation. Thus the discourse of myth became a discussion regarding differentiation of volk and how they started to separate from each other, which Lincoln summarizes with the mythical narrative of the Tower of Babel, where a split regarding cultural, story, language and geography occured.14 Lincoln then shows how the discourse, during this time, divided the scholarly discipline into two groups, those who wanted to read myth as a way to intensify diversity by focusing on character values and share experience of a specific Volk, or on the other hand, those who discussed the issues of unity by using myth of creation and language to trace back a specific volk to a common origin.15
Michael Stausberg stresses in The Routledge handbook of research methods in the study of religion (2011), the notion of the comparative method as a means of testing a hypothesis together with empirical data to form a heuristic tool is one of the main aims of the method.16 The formation of systems/themes in the study of religion always rely on comparison and several subtypes within the method emerges as he explains within the background of Hartmut Kaelble’s distinction of generalizing versus individualizing comparisons,17 where the latter understanding will be used in the study that follows.
Individualizing comparisons or variational findings as it is also referred to highlights the importance of similar or differentiating variables of seemingly closely related systems,18or as in the case of his study, religious traditions.
With the method of comparative content analysis, this study will divide, after the material has been contextualised in its historical and socio-religious context, into three units of themes which will be analysed through the theory of sanskritization. The units are as followed; firstly, myth and legends of the life of Kabīr, secondly, the praxis and ritual within the two branches and, thirdly, attributes given to Kabīr in the chosen source material.
18Stausberg, Michael, (2011). p 32-3.
17Kaelble, H. (1999). Der historische Vergleich. Eine einführung zum 19. und 20. Jahrhundert. Campus Verlag , Frankfurt a.M, p 26-36.
16Stausberg, Michael, (2011). p 33-4.
15Lincoln, Bruce, Theorizing myth: narrative, ideology, and scholarship. p 54.
14Lincoln, Bruce, Theorizing myth: narrative, ideology, and scholarship, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Ill., 1999. p 47, 52-3.
Theoretical approach
“Sanskritization has been a major process of cultural change in Indian history and it has occurred in every part of the Indian subcontinent. It may have been more active at some periods than others, and some parts of India are more Sanskritizied than others; but there is no doubt that the process has been universal.”19
Social change in India is a complex subject which encompasses all spheres of social life, economics, political, religious, demographical, law, history, lingvistic and more. For this study the aim, which has been introduced in a previous segment, is very limited when not being able to take all these factors into consideration. However, some aspects within the socio-religious sphere, together with the theory of Sanskritization developed by the sociologist Mysore Narasimhachar Srinivas, will still be able to shed light on the rich complexity that is social change in India and that of the Kabīr Panth.
The varṇa-system is based on four varṇas, five wth the consideration of dalit, which is to be understood as a stable system of hierarchy within the Indian context.20The groups that have been traditionally included within this system of varṇa are, in hierarchical order top-bottom, that of the brāhmana, kṣatriya, vaiśya and śudra. There exist, within these varṇas, hundreds, if not thousand different sub-castes or jātis which all find their place as low or high caste within the system. The varṇa-system evolved steadily during the Vedic period somewhere between the years 1500-500 b.c.e. The brahmins started to enjoy, during this period, an overall dominance which was linked to the increasingly religious institution of sacrifice and rites. During these times, social mobility was still possible since groups associated with the vaiśya and kṣatriya were able to gain upward momentum when converting to the newly emerging traditions of buddhism and jainism.21
Srinivas’s theory of Sanskritization divides power within the varṇa-system into three different axes, that of ritual rank, economical resources and political power. The basic premise of this system is that a dalits or a lowborn śudra can have power in the sense of economic resources and political power, however, as the whole varṇa-system is permeated
21Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). p 29-31.
20Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). p 3.
19Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). Caste in modern India and other essays. Bombay: J. K. Publishers. p 22.
with the idea of purity versus impurity, they are lacking in ritual rank/power in the eyes of the brahmins or in the socio-religious hierarchy as a whole. Following this, Sanskritization is the process of which a ‘low’ caste or any other minority group may change or create its own customs, ritual, pilgrimage, diet, ideology, history, legend, myth and way of life in a direction which is usually regarded with a high socio-religious status or that of a dwija (twice-born) caste.22 However Srinivas stresses that this process can never actually change the structure of the system, instead it can only change the position, generally with the aim of upward mobility, of the individual group within the already established varṇa-system.23
There are several functions of Sanskritization that Srinivas discusses. One of the main functions, he stresses, is bridging the gap between ritual and secular power. Here Srinivas uses the understanding of “secular” as the two out of three axes introduced above, that of economical and political power. He writes: “When a caste or section of a caste achieved secular power it usually also tried to acquire the traditional symbols of high status, namely the customs, ritual, ideas, beliefs and lifestyle of the locally highest castes.”24Here the kicker follows as such; who may be in the power to legitimize their attempt towards upward mobility? Since the structural system of the varṇas is closed, the group who sought mobility still had to be aware of, and to seek legitimization from local high-caste groups within the varṇa-system. This as explained by Srinivas was, however, not a one way street and the brahmins could also gain economical and political power when legitimizing the claims of the upward moving kings and merchants of the kṣatriya, vaiśya and sometimes śudra groups.25
The high-caste brāhmana way of life and its ideals is something that also has been through changes, a change which Srinivas labels as the ‘emergence of structural puritanism’, where purity versus impurity gained strong footing within the socio-religious landscape.
Eating beef and consuming liquor was beginning to be frowned upon which in turn changed the way of life for both kṣatriya and vaiśya groups when lower varṇas were trying to follow a more brahminical model for ritual and dietary. This is something which still encompasses the lives of many Hindus up until today.26
However, some critique, even if shortly, should be mentioned when discussing Srinivas’ understanding of Sanskritization. Some are stressed by Lorenzen in his article, Traditions of Non-Caste Hinduism (1987), wherein he argues for Sanskritization as a term
26Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). p 23-4.
25Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). p 13, 23, 27, 29.
24Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). p 26-7.
23Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). p 6-9.
22Srinivas, Mysore Narasimhachar (1962). p 10, 14, 21-2.
which downplays important elements within low-caste culture and the influence Little traditions may have on Greater traditions.27This top-down view gives great emphasis on the importance of high-caste traditions and culture without taking into grander consideration the important cultural value which encompasses the majority of the people's everyday life on the South Asian subcontinent.
Furthermore, one might also expand upon Lorenzen’s critique by asking, if it is truly possible to, through interpretation, distinguish between simply that of adapting certain orthodox Hindu rituals, praxis or customs for, on the one hand, convenience, and/or on the other hand, to gain upwards momentum in the Indian social-hierarchy as Srinivas’ theory of Sanskritization suggests? In the case of this study, both views will be taken into consideration, as both Sanskritization as a way of gaining social momentum and Hinduization28 or Brahmanization29 of Kabīr also may occur. Further, the material may also show, when examining the material through the lens of Sanskritization, that the adaptation of Hindu rituals and influences of orthodox traditions may serve as a means of simple accessibility.
Previous research and demarcation
Kabīr has come to be a well traversed road and countless studies have, during the last century, been conducted in regards to the historical, mythical, traditional understandings of Kabīr and the impact he has left on the socio-religious landscape and his followers. One of the major problems, which has been of some complication for this paper, is the fact that new empirical data of Kabīr Panthīs and the socio-religious implications derived from the teaching of the Kabīr movement are hard to come by. Even more so, now in the wake of the current covid-19 outbreak, since in order to gather new empirical data, it would mean that traveling and staying in India would have been a must. However, this problem has been solved by relying on secondary material in the form of observations gathered by, mostly, David N. Lorenzen and G. H. Westcott in their respective works, which, together with the primary material of the
29 Brahmanization works almost as a synonym with that of Hinduization but also Sanskritization. The first aspect may be, as it is shared with Hinduization, to embrace non-hindu traditions, and to assimilate them into that of Hindu elements. Further, it may also indicate that the aim of Sanskritization is to exclusively embrace customs and practises found in that of the Brahmana-varṇa. In contrast Sanskritization indicated the aim to embrace customs of any castes higher than that of a lower. Nevertheless, the top is strived for, and at that top - the Brahmins are found.
28This term refers to the process of assimilating, rewriting texts or reimagen images and cultural phenomena of non-Hindu elements into that of Hindu elements.
27Lorenzen, D. N. (1987) ‘Traditions of Non-Caste Hinduism: The Kabir Panth’, Contributions to Indian Sociology, 21(2), pp. 263–283. doi: 10.1177/006996687021002001. [2021-06-01].
Anurāg Sāgar and the Bījak of Kabīr should be sufficient in answering this paper's research questions and the analysis of the units introduced; first, myth and legends in the life of Kabīr, secondly, the praxis and rituals within the two branches and, thirdly, attributes given to Kabīr in the chosen source material.
(1) The material for contextualizing the unit of myth and legends, together with the source material of the Anurāg Sāgar and the Bījak of Kabīr, will follow the work of Lorenzen in his Kabir Legends and Ananta-Das’s Kabir Parachai (1991), wherein he explores the legendary life of Kabīr as described by the Late Medieval poet Ananta-Das. An ongoing theme in Lorenzen’s work is the importance of legends and myth as a reflection of the writers, readers and listeners socio-religious struggles, ideology and their understanding of historical identity and unity of communities. To further deepen the discussion on the reflection of the contemporary socio-religious landscape found in the legends and myths, the use of Charlotte Vaudeville’s Kabīr (1974), and Karin Schomer & W. H. McLeod’s The Sants: Studies in a devotional tradition of India (1987), will both be important components in understanding Kabīr and the religious interactions during his times.
(2) The second unit, that of the praxis and rituals within the two branches will be analysed with the help of, yet again, Lorenzen in his Praises to a Formless God (1996), and Westcott’s Kabir and the Kabir Panth (1953), wherein they both conduct an observational study on rituals within the Kabīr Panth, mainly that of the chaukā ritual, which follows with a very short mention of Sanskritization from both the authors. However these discussions are only aimed towards praxis and rituals with no deeper analysis on the socio-religious factors of Sanskritization as presented by Srinivas.
(3) Lastly the third unit of this study, namely that of attributes given to Kabīr within the Anurāg Sāgar and the Bījak of Kabīr will be conducted by using the two mentioned works. While the Anurāg Sāgar has been given little to none scholarly attention in the west the Bījak, on other hand, has been quoted, analysed, commented on and translated into a multitude of languages. Nevertheless, he Bījak has rarely, as far as I understand, been analysed through the lens of Sanskritization. However, it has been used to foster Sanskritization to some extent, which will be analysed in unit two of praxis and ritual. Two short examples would be the Sanskrit translation of the Bījak, which is clearly aimed towards high-caste readers, and second, the use of the Bījak in conducting rituals and worship within the Kabīr Panth.
1
Kabīr and his times: Bhakti and the emergence of Santism
“In Indian religious history, Kabīr is unique: to the Hindus, he is a Vaiṣṇava bhakta, to the Muslims a pīr, to the Sīkhs a bhagat to the sectarian Kabīr-panthīs an avatār of the supreme Being; to modern patriots, Kabīr is the champion of Hindu-Muslim unity, to neo-vedāntis a promoter of the Universal Religion or the Religion of Man, who steadfastly opposed the superstitious belifes and empty ritualism of orthodox Hinduism as well as the dogmatic pride and bigotry or orthodox Islam.”30
When trying to piece together an understanding regarding who the historical Kabīr was, it soon becomes obvious that fragments are the only source available. Most images of Kabīr are directly connected to legends and myth or based on the writings allegedly ascribed to him;
However, it is known for a fact that Kabīr has existed. Too many sources acknowledge him to say otherwise. History and legends may frequently be, in the field of Indian religious history, heavily intertwined, and it can be quite the task, if not an impossible one, separating them.
Separating history from legend, or logos from mythos is however, not this paper's intention, for the simple reason that it serves no purpose. The images of Kabīr are plentiful and can often be understood in relation to the writers of legends' own socio-religious background. In order to understand these various images of Kabīr and how or why they were created, an introduction to Kabīr’s times, his contemporaries and their religious traditions shall be outlined.
During the Late Medieval period, the Northern part of India found itself in a relation of Hindu-Muslim symbiosis following the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate (1206-1526) by the invading Slave Kings of the Mamluk dynasti (1206-1290). The Muslim conquest of the
30Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974), p 3.
Indo-Pakistani subcontinent was not, according to Jamal Malik in his Islam in South Asia (2008), fuled by religious sentiment. Instead, the Muslim conquerors sought economical power and the establishment of trade. The Muslim rulers had, for the major part, focused on integration and flexibility, instead of the strategy of divide and conquer, which in turn led to greater development of both the Hindu as well as Muslim culture in various aspects of the inhabitants socio-religious lives.31Indianization of the Muslim invaders was well on its way at an early stage of the Delhi Sultanat which, according to chronicals mentioned in Vaudeville’s Kabīr, led to the historical referal of local Muslims as ‘Hindustanis’ by the the time of the Khalijī dynasty (1290-1320).32
During the period of Muslim integration, the establishment of Islam and its esoteric tradition of Sufism had become somewhat firmly rooted throughout the subcontinent via the teaching of the Chishtī order.33Sufi missionaries played an important part in spreading Islam and converting the locals, most prominent were the Sufis in converting Hindu and Buddhist groups belonging to the low-born śudras, generally in the northern parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Through the long process of conversion and integration, three main groups of Indian Muslims have in history been most prominent; Sayyeds, Paṭhāns and Julāhās, the latter being the ascribed caste of Kabīr.34 It is, however, hard to pinpoint from what specific traditions these low-born groups converted from, since local Hindu-cults and the Buddhist tradition often intermingled with one another, at least, according to Vaudeville, on a social level.35
The local Hindu-cults of the North Eastern areas of India are frequently associated with that of the Nāth Yogis, a tradition popularized during the early Medieval Ages, sprung from a mixture of Vajrayāna (i.e Tantric Buddhism) and local esoteric forms of Śaivism. The Nāth Yogis’ (masters of yogic power) primary religious praxis was that of Haṭha-yoga with the purpose of; “realization of liberation during life, in which the self awakens to its innate identity with the absolute [...] a realization made possible through cultivating a body made perfect or divine in the ‘fire’ of yoga.”36 According to tradition, the first guru of the Nāth Yogis was Macchenda, (10th-century c.e), who with great practice in the art of yoga got hold of the secret techniques of the Haṭha-yoga from the God Śiva, the ādi-yog himself.37 His spiritual successor Gorakhnāth, (11th-century c.e), continued the preaching and practicing of
37Lit. ādi - first, yog-yogi
36Flood, Gavin. (1996). An introduction to Hinduism, Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, p 98.
35Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974), p 85.
34Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974), p 82-85.
33Schimmel, Annemarie. (1975). Mystical dimensions of Islam, Univ. of North Carolina P., Chapel Hill, p 358, 360.
32Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974), p 81.
31Malik, Jamal. (2008). Islam in South Asia: a short history, Brill, Leiden, p 37-38, 55.
his Guru Macchenda, which was based on the tradition of Advaita (non-duality) philosophy.38 The very monotheistic way of philosophy preached by the Nāths, within the concept of an all-pervading Godhead (Paraméshwara) found in the Advaita tradition, soon became a tool of opposition against the puraṇic saguṇa preaching of high-caste Hindus of the Medieval Smārta traditions, i.e text/smṛti based traditions wherein the very source of the varṇa-law is found.39 Gorakhnāth’s teaching based on a omnipresent Godhead, instead of image worship, did not only come to be easily digested by the newly arrived Muslim conquors, it were also able to influence both the common masses found in Northen India, and the newly emerging tradition of nirguṇa bhakti.
The Sants and the concept of Saguṇa and Nirguṇa bhakti
South Indian Tamil culture, before being affected by the Sanskritized brahmanical orthodoxy of the north, was deeply embedded in poetry which, according to Gavin Flood (1996), comprised of two central themes, that of war or external affairs (puram) and of love or internal affairs, (akam).40 Love poetry was, however, most significant in religious development since it laid the foundation for the wholehearted surrender and devotion towards a personal God.41The bhakti tradition of South India was spread with the help of devotional poetry ascribed to two main groups, that of the Vaiṣṇva oriented Ālvārs, and the Śaiva Nāyanārs. The southern school of Vaiṣṇva bhakti devoted their love towards a physical Lord (saguṇa = with qualities) often in forms of image worship and rituals conducted in temples.
However, as the various traditions of bhakti started to spread across the continent it altered its form when merging with the already established traditions, and in the North the devotional movements began to aim their own love towards an abstract godhead, the God beyond qualities (nirguṇa).42
Both forms of nirguṇa and saguṇa express deep devotion towards a personal God.
What differentiates them, however, can often be pinpointed to praxis, scripture and object of worship. Lorenzen writes in the introduction to Bhakti Religion in North India (1995), that both bhakti traditions, whether nirguṇa or saguṇa, share a common heritage of influence, that of the most important Vaiṣṇva texts, Bhagavad-gītā and Bhāgavata Purāṇa. Since the latter part of the fifteenth century, the nirguṇa based Sant-tradition, developed and ascribed
42Flood, Gavin. (1996), p 131-132, 141-142.
41Flood, Gavin. (1996), p 129-30.
40Flood, Gavin. (1996), p 129-30.
39Flood, Gavin. (1996), p 17, 58-61. See also Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974), p 88.
38Flood, Gavin. (1996), p 229-230. See also Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974), p 86.
primarily to and by Kabīr and Guru Nānak, rejected the ideas of avatar doctrines preached in the above mentioned texts and the form of saguṇa which is advocated within. These forms of saguṇa has frequently, throughout history, been linked with that of orthodox brahmanism.
With the emergence of the Sant-traditions, these saguṇa based traditions began to be questioned as they were, many times, associated with the ruling and oppressive hegemonic ideology of the varṇa-system and varṇāśramadharma.43
With the spread of nirguṇa bhakti throughout northern India the socio-religious lives of the inhabitants, in the wake of the merging with already established religious traditions, came to change the structures and quality of the religious practitisation being done by low-born varṇas. In contrast to the institutionalized ortodox Hinduism, preaching religious monopoly, saguṇa and the closed social hierarchy of power belonging to the high-caste varṇas, these newly emerging traditions, drawing on Vaiṣṇva bhakti, Buddhism, Jainism, Sufism and Nāth yoga, began to be heavily emphasised by low-born castes, belonging to that of the śudras and dalits.44
“Kabir said, Within the Creator is all, and the Creator permeates all.
Without the secret all are sunk in error: only the Sant, the wise, can comprehend.”45
These wandering religious poets of Medieval India, preaching social equality, abolition of caste and the absolute personal devotion towards an omnipresent Godhead without form or quality, came to be known as Sants. Often, these Sants belonged to the lower strata of society with the majority being śudras, or in some cases, dalits. Since they all came from a background of low-born varṇas they predominantly were illiterate, uneducated and had no social or even lawful rights accessing brahminical knowledge and language. Instead, they preached their understanding of bhakti to the people, orally, by using the many common languages of northern India, which may be referred to as, sadhukhaḍī (lit. Dialect of sadhus).
The tradition of the northern Sants (Sant paramparā) is not unified with any form of shared corpus doctrinae or language. However, they do share many distinguishing traits. They disproved almost all forms of orthodox teaching, rites, praxis, image worship, and the idea of
45Shah, Ahmad. (1917). The Bijak of Kabir. Indian Press, Allahabad. Hamirpur, U.P. p 229.
44 Schomer, Karine & McLeod, William Hewat. (1987). The Sants: studies in a devotional tradition of India, (ed). Berkeley Religious Studies, Berkeley, p 8
43 Lorenzen, David N. (red.) (1995). Bhakti religion in North India: community identity and political action.
Albany: State Univ. of New York Press, p 1-2, 13-14, 19. varṇāśramadharma or the law of social classes and stages of life are concepts deeply embedded in the Indian social hierarchy and is also heavily embedded in the moral story of the Bhagavad-gītā.
purity versus impurity. Similarly, they were highly against any form of pilgrimage (tīrthyātrā) since the notion of pollution was considered irrelevant when seeking spiritual liberation (mukti).46
In search of liberation, three main units of spiritual practice or sādhanā can be seen connected to the Sants: Firstly, repeating and invoking the divine name (nāma.) Secondly, to seek refuge to the Perfect Guru (satguru) who “speaks within the heart of man to awaken the soul and lead it on the way to mukti,”47The third unit of practice is associated with being in the company of Sants (satsaṅg) which according to Vaudeville “is held by all the Sant poets as a powerful means of purification and a way to salvation”48 The second unit, i.e that of the satguru, is an important aspect not only according to Little or Greater Hindu traditions, but also to the Sufi; “The dervish, [fakīr], who offers the secrets of the universe gives away a kingdom in every moment. He doesn't beg for bread; a dervish bestows life.”49
The meaning, or the concept of satguru, can be divided into two brackets, that of the human Guru or that of a nirguṇa Guru (i.e God). Both can be found within the Sant tradition.
However, they are somewhat vaguely defined and may in certain aspects be contradicting as seen in Vaudeville’s translation of Kabīr referring to the human guru;
“I could not find the man who was truly the friend of Rām’s Bhakti, To whom I might entrust my body and my soul, as a deer bewitched by the hunter’s song! Such a one cannot be found who can guide us all the way of salvation, Remaining forever absorbed in the One who dwells in the Cavern of the Void.”50
In this passage Kabīr clearly states that there is no true guru who can guide man towards salvation. However, according to tradition, the Vaiṣṇva guru Rāmānanda is almost exclusively seen as the human guru of Kabīr and the initiator of Kabīr to the worship of Rāma.
50Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1974), p 188.
49Helminski, Kabir. (2017). The pocket Rumi. Colorado: Shambhala publication. Rumi, Jalal Ud Din. Rubaiyat:
686, p 9.
48Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1987), p 35. Underlining done by me: It is not expressed by Vaudeville what form of purification she is referring to, however, I assume that it’s not to be associated with that of caste-purity, but instead the purification of the heart.
47Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1987), p 32-33.
46 Vaudeville, Charlotte. (1987). Sant Mat: Santism as the universal path to sanctity. In Schomer, Karine &
McLeod, William Hewat’s The Sants: studies in a devotional tradition of India, p 21-24, 35.
Kabīr in myth and legends
“History is not a scenic backdrop to the stage on which the legends are performed. History is the play itself, and the legends are important actors in it.”51
The current understanding regarding the life of Kabīr is heavily relied upon legend and myth whereas historical evidence is scarcely found. Therefore, in the following unit, an introduction to some of the legends will follow. The most contested and differentiating aspects within the many legends and myths of Kabīr is usually not that of miracles and deeds, instead it often boils down to that of Kabīr’s birth, family and religious belonging. These discussions, regarding Kabīr’s belonging to certain religious traditions, family and his birth may, at times, reflect the socio-religious struggle of creating communal belonging and identity, or even distinguish themselves from other domestic traditions or groups, within their shared context.
There is a somewhat general agreement within the Kabīr Panth that Kabīr lived in Kashi (Banaras), sometime between the years 1398-1518 c.e and that Kabīr, at birth, was abandomed at the Lahar tank where he was found and adopted by a muslim couple named Nima and Niru.52That Kabīr was raised in a muslim household is not, at least not very often, contested, and his occupation as a weaver is heavliy refered to in several sources, both in the Bījak, Anurāg Sagār, Kabīr Parachai, and in the Ādi Granth where it is stated: “By caste a weaver and patient of mind: utters Kabir with natural ease the excellencies of Ram.”53 However, legends surrounding the birth of Kabīr may express the will of creating him in a fashion best suited to the image of the writer as some may serve to deify, sanskritize, brahmanize, sekularize, and/or modernize him, or in the case of the Dharmadasī branch, legitimize their own creation of a separate branch.54
Many legends acknowledged by the branches of the Kabīr Panth, regarding Kabīr’s birth, are found within the Kabīr-Kasauṭī (Touchstone of Kabīr) (1885), and the Kabīr-Manśur manuscript by Paramānandadas (1887) which both, according to Lorenzen and
54Kumar, B. Raj. (1995), p 138-139
53Westcott, G.H., Kabir and the Kabir Panth. 2. ed., Susil Gupta, Calcutta, 1953. p 3. The Ādi Granth is the holy scripture of the Sikhs compiled by the fifth guru, Guru Arjan Dev in 1604.
52Shah, Ahmad. (1917). The Bijak of Kabir, p 5. See also: Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). p 14. Also in Anurāg Sagār, p 145.
51Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). Kabir Legends and Ananta-Das’s Kabir Parachai, p 8.
Vaudeville, follows the deification of Kabīr supported in the texts, most commonly used within the Dharmadasī branch, (i.e Anurāg Sāgar in the Kabīr Sāgar).55
“The appearance of the Chief of Sages, the compassionate, Kabir, the Lord Kabir, in Kashi, and his coming from the Lahar tank to the house of Alo, called Niru, the weaver. From the vault of heaven he descended, the Sat Guru, Purusha, Kabir : Lying in the midst of the waters, the Pir of Pirs. When countless lotus buds bloomed, there the compassionate Creator was found.
Midst all the buds the bees wearied themself with humming: peacock, duck, chackor, gathered about the tank. [..] Mid peals of thunder, flashing lightning, torrents of rain : in Lahar tank the lotus blossomed : there Kabir was manifested.”56
Legends that deify Kabīr’s birth are several, all which stresses a Vaiṣṇava based avatar doctrine of the divine being manifested on earth, as found within the Anurāg Sāgar: “Kabir said: Now listen, my beloved Dharam Das: I will tell you what happened afterwards. The Third Age went, and the Kali Yuga came, so again I came to teach the souls.”57 Kabīr continues telling Dharmadas about his four births within the Kali Yuga, the first two times into a Brahmins family, the fourth is not specified, however, the third time he was found and brought into a family of Muslims:
“In the pond I was sitting in a child's form on the leaf of the lotus. I was lying there as a child, and playing childish games. Nima looked at that place, and seeing me, she loved me. As the lotus blooms looking at the sun, and as the pauper dashes to get the wealth, she ran and lifted the child up and brought him to Niru. [...] and I spoke these words to her: "O Nima, listen to the words of mine I am explaining to you: Because of the love of the past, I came here to give you darshan.
Take me to your home, and if you recognize me and accept me as your Guru, I will give Naam to you and make you firm in it, and then you will not fall in the noose of Yama."58
58Kumar, B. Raj. (1995), p 144-145. For the full story of the three births in the Kali Yuga, see p 141-146.
57Kumar, B. Raj. (1995). The Ocean of love: The Anurāg Sāgar of Kabir, (4:e uppl). Sant Ajaib Singh Ji, (ed).
Sant Bani Ashram Sanbornton, New Hampshire, p 133.
56 Shah, Ahmad. (1917). The Bijak of Kabir. p 2. Quoting from the Kabīr-Kasauṭī. See also example of translation in Westcott (1953), p 4.
55Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). p 22, 44, 47. See also: Vaudeville, Charlotte. Kabīr. p 27-28.
Another legend called Bhaktavijay tells the story of Vishnu commanding two ṛṣis (sages) to become avatars on earth, Shukdev son of Vyasa was transformd into a child (Kabīr) and was put into a shell which then was thrown by Viṣṇu into the river Ganga from heaven where he later was found by a muslim weaver who brought him home. The second ṛṣi was Uddhav who according to legend was the counsellor to the God Kriṣṇa, who in this story became Nāmdev when placed upon earth.59
Contrasting this vivid storytelling of Kabīr’s birth, a more modest version is found within the Kabir Parachai. In its opening segment it is stated that Kabīr was born in the caste of Julāha, muslim weaver, and lived in Kashi, who followed the customes of the devotees of Hari, i.e Viṣṇu, when God spoke to him saying: “Unless you become a Vaishnav I will not give you my darśan (sight of diety). Only if you put on the Vaishnav prayer beads and forehead mark will you obtain my darshan.” Kabīr answered: “I belong to a Muslim caste.
How can I obtain these prayer beads?” God said: “Take an initiation from Ramananda.”60 Here, in the writings of Anantadas, Kabīr’s birth is not to the same extent highlighted, instead, only Kabir’s caste and his religious belonging serves as the introducing part of the legend.
However, it stresses some vital points found almost cohesively within all legends, which is that of initiation:
“Kabir said: Ramananda will not even consent to look at me. How can I get initiated? The voice said: Go at night and stay on the path where he comes out with his followers. At night Kabir came and stayed in Ramananda’s path. Ramananda stepped on him and said “Ram.” The devotee’s heart filled with enthusiasm. Then Kabir got up and went home. Kabir put on prayer beads and a forehead mark and acted in a way pleasing to the sants. Many people came to see. Kabir Das sang the virtues of Ram.”61
Aside from all the legends about the birth of Kabīr, several versions, that contest the idea of Kabīr’s Muslim heretige, even if they are few, exists. These legendary retellings all stress the idea of a Brahmanized image of Kabīr, often composed by Kabīr Panthīs themself; “legend
61 Lorenzen, N. David. (1991), p 93-94. “Go at night and stay on the path where he comes out with his followers.” is almost unanimously associated with the morning bath conducted at the river Ganges. The path down is big steps (Gaṭh) almost like a staircase down from the outskirt of the city down into the river. Kabir is said to have laid down on the steps and in the dark Ramanandan stepped on him who, taken by surprise, yelled out his mantra “Ram Ram”.
60Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). p 93.
59Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). p 44
makes him [Kabīr] the son of a Brahman widow born miraculously from the palm of her hand, as the result of the prayer of the ascetic Ramanand,”62
David Lorenzen (1991) outlines, when discussing Brahmalinasmuni’s legendary accounts of Kabīr’s life in Sadgurushrikaviracharitam (1960), the heavily pro-Brahman characteristics permeated in the legend.63 According to Brahmalinasmuni, the adoptive parents of Kabīr were not in fact Muslims. Instead they belonged to the Brahmana-varṇa, who under oppression were forced to drink water from the hands of Muslims which caused impurity and loss of their high-born caste. However, Niru and Nima still practised devotion to Śiva and can in terms of this, be understood as forms of crypto-hindus, practising another religion publicly while secretly adhere to Hinduism, something that still is debated by the more pro-Hindu branches of the Kabīr panth.64
Continuing the story, Kabīr’s father decided to name the child in the spirit of Vedic ceremony, the astrologer came and consulted his almanac with the realization that “Thus child must be an avatar of God.”65The child then replied, giving himself the name of Kavīr (kavī - seer) which indicate a name derived from sanskrit instead of Persian-Arabic, and afterwards Kabīr, as a child, explain the hierarchy of society; “He and he alone will obtain salvation who acts above all to preserve the proper conduct of the varṇas and āshramas as taught in the Vedas and who obtains devotion and knowledge through purity of mind.”66
The image of Kabīr as a hindu or a yogi is not something new and has been deeply embedded within the Kabīr Panth and legends ascribed to Kabīr. The former mahant, chef of the monastery, Gangasharan Shasti of Kabīr Chaurā Maṭh in Banaras in his Kabīr Jivanacharitra (1978), also plays on the image of Kabīr as a reincarnation of something divine:
“This child is a yogic being of infinite birth, not born from the womb…. By his yogic illusion he abandons many bodies and takes new ones…. Many times he has come to aid the world…. He is a portion of me. I have myself sent him by my own desire for the sake of welfare of men.”67
67Gangasharan Shasti. (1976). Kabir Jivancharitra. Varanasi. Kabiravani Prakashan Kendra. p 8.
66Lorenzen, N. David. (1991), p 46
65Lorenzen, N. David. (1991), p 46
64Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). p 45. Jātibhraṣṭa - fallen from caste
63Lorenzen, N. David. (1991). p 45. Brahmalinasmuni’s Sadgurushrikaviracharitam is written in Sanskrit with commentary by the author in hindi.
62Shah, Ahmad. (1917), p 3.
This view, however, is not shared with the current Ārchāya mahant of Kabīr Chaurā Maṭh, Vivek Das, who in a interview, conducted by Shabnam Virmani & Linda Hess in 2004, explained that; “I am one of the few who consider him [Kabīr] a man, a saint, the greatest in the world. […] Kabir wants to show that the path he took is open for all humans.”68Vivek Das is outspokenly against these forms of legendary stories regarding Kabīr and the forms of avatar doctrines he is given in many legends. For this greater form of influence, drawn from the tradition of Vaiṣṇava, he blames the Dharmadasī:
“In the middle of the seventeenth century, paurāniktā swept into the Panth like a storm. Dharamdas was the leader of this. Dharamdasji was a Vaishnav devotee who accepted the Kabir Panth after coming under the influence of a Kabir Panthi sant. As soon as he arrived, there was an influx of paurāniktā so overpowering that a question mark was placed over all the actual facts about Kabir. In the form of false dialogues between Kabir and Dharamdas, dozens of books were composed (Anurāg Sagar, Bodh Sāgar, etc.). Because of these Puranic writings, ordinary people were led far from Kabir’s true wisdom.”69
Vivek Das has, at least during his time as mahant of the Kabīr Chaurā, been speaking against these ways and forms of deifying Kabīr, much is referred to legends and attributes given Kabīr while others, as will be explored further in the next unit of analysis, rituals and praxis within the Kabīr Panth which has all undergone great changes to fill the need of the members.
As previously mentioned, a majority of these legendary retellings of Kabīr show signs of great ambiguity in how to refer to Kabīr as either human or divine. This ambiguity goes along the same lines as the theology established within the introduction of saguṇa and nirguṇa, however, it might have to freshen up. The theology of saguṇa and nirguṇa may, in these legends, be hard to separate. An example of this is found within the Kabīr Parachai wherein it is stated: “Kabir is a part of the Creator. He descended to earth to practice bhakti.
Kabir meditated on nirguṇ brahman. That is how he crossed to the other shore of the ocean of worldly existence.”70Other aspects of saguṇa found in the writings of Ananta das are, many times, quite obvious as Kabīr is given darśan: “Then Keshav accepted Kabir as His own. He
70 Lorenzen, N. David. (1991), p 128. “He descended to earth” reflect saguṇa ideas of Kabīr an avatar. While
“meditated on nirguṇ brahman.” shows that the only solution in order to get “crossed to the other shore”.
69 Hess, Linda (2015). Bodies of song: Kabir oral traditions and performative worlds in Northern India. New York: Oxford University Press, p 339.
68Shabnam Virmani & Linda Hess (2004). 'To deify Kabir is to defuse his power' says Vivek Das. [Video], https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMLIbkoDBn4. [2021-03-04].
came and gave His darshan to Kabir. Hari showed himself to Kabir with His conch, discus, club and lotus. He was adorned with the kaustubh jewel and yellow robes. He displayed the mark of Bhrigu’s foot on His chest and was sitting on His eagle Garuda. The tiara on His head dazzled anyone who saw it.”71
Discussion: Life of Kabīr
The image of Kabīr, found in this unit of legends and myth, shows great ambiguity in how he is being portrayed and understood. These stories, many times, diviatets when giving the retelling of Kabīr’s birth, caste, religious affiliation and whether or not he ‘descended’ upon earth or was simply born into the world from a materialized body. In several accounts given, about Kabīr, a multifold of them show a clear aim to make him more into that of a Hindu than a Muslim, since Kabīr often, if not always, is said to discard his own background as a muslim weaver in order to get initiated into the Vaiṣṇava guru Rāmananda’s teachings.72Furthermore, is can also be noted that attempts to deify Kabīr has also been stressed several times by the writers of these legends, however, here too somewhat dubious, since there doesn't seem to be a clear cut between being of a divine essence or being that of God himself, a discussion that will be further explored later in this study.
Not only may these legends serve as a way of making the image of Kabīr lean towards a more pro-Hindu or pro-Brahmanic view. Furthermore, they also gives insight on several vital points of interest when piecing together an understanding of how and why Kabīr Panthīs may recreate the life of Kabīr, in order to legitimize certain customs, myth of creation and identity, which in turn may reflect, the creators’ of legends, own socio-religious struggles, ideology and their understanding of historical identity and religious praxis or theology. Three points of interest can here be drawn towards an introducing discussion that will further be expanded upon later in the study. All three points find themselves, inside the matter of why many of the legends of Kabīr’s life may rely heavily upon a more Hinduiznied form of retelling and imagery. Firstly, may it be for the reason to compete with other contemporary sects, alongside the already established orthodox Hindu traditions that Kabīr is established in a divine form? May it be for the reason of convenience when ascribing Kabīr the imagery of already popularized puranic avatar doctrines? Or is the construction of Kabīr made for the
72To create an image of Kabīr as a Hindu may be seen as a clear case of Hinduization. This term refers to the process of assimilating, rewriting texts or reimagen images and cultural phenomena of non-Hindu elements into that of Hindu elements.
71 Lorenzen, N. David. (1991), p 122. This giving of Darśan from Viṣṇu to Kabīr is very similar to the story when Kṛṣṇa gives Darśan to Arjun in the Bhagavad-gītā.
sole purpose of fostering Sanskritization? It can already be stated that to all the three questions, the answer can be both yes and no. Very dull answer indeed, however, it cannot be speculated further without taking all other aspects of ritual, praxis and the imagery found in the Bījak and the Anurāg Sagār into consideration.
2
Kabīr Panth: Praxis and rituals
“The Kabir Panth exists as a protest against the religious exclusiveness of the twice-born castes. As a natural result few but Sudras whose cause it champions have associated themselves with the movement. The Panth contends for a truth Which forms part of the Gospel of Creation, viz. that all men have spiritual powers which should find their natural expression in communion with God, now in this life.”73
The Founders and the śākhās
In accordance with the traditions established by the Kabīr Panthīs, four main disciples of Kabīr founded the four major independent branches (śākhās) of the panth. Surat Gopal founded the Kabīr Chaurā Maṭh, Banaras in Uttar Pradesh, Dharmadas the Dharmadasī śākhā of Chhattisg ̣arh in Madhya Pradesh. Jagudas created the branch of Bidupur in Bihar, and another located at Shivpur, close to Banaras. Last, the Bhagathi branch at Dhanauti, Bihar, founded by Bhagodas.74 The first two mentioned śākhās, Kabīr Chaurā and Dharmadasī of Chhattisg ̣arh, are seen as the two principal branches of the Kabīr Panth and frequently as rivals, even in some cases, according to Westcott, known also as the father and the latter being the mother.75
The Kabīr Chaurā in Banaras finds itself, in accordance with tradition, sitting on the location and supposed site of Kabīr’s family home and the original seat from which the other branches have descended. Historical information of the Maṭh in Banaras is, however, scarcely found and no dates of any formal establishment has been documented. At first there was not any form of temples (mandir), at the Maṭh. However, according to Wescott, the site of Kabīr’s home has gradually developed, over a long period of time, into the temple and courtyard complex found today.76 And as far as the Panthīs are concerned, it's own history is understood almost solely on that of their traditions in the form of legends and biographies.
76Westcott, G.H. (1953), p 69.
75Westcott, G.H. (1953), p 66.
74Lorenzen, N. David. (1987). The Kabir-Panth and Social Protest. In Schomer, Karine & McLeod, William Hewat’s The Sants: studies in a devotional tradition of India, p 290.
73Westcott, G.H. (1953), p 72-73.
The earliest date, of any temple, at the site is that of the Samadhi mandir (shrine dedicated to Kabīr) constructed on the order of Maharaja Veerdev Singh, the king of Banaras in 1587 Vikram Samvat, approximately 1658 c.e.77 Any more than this specific historical documentation has yet to appear, however, as previously stated, the foundation of the Kabīr Panth was done by Kabīr’s successor Surat Gopal after the passing of Kabīr in 1518 c.e.
The legends, focusing on the story of how Kabīr and Surat Gopal first met, are various but share a somewhat coherent storyline. Sarvananda was a Brahman pandit from South India who was given the name Surat Gopal when he became Kabīr’s disciple. Before meeting his future guru Surat travelled throughout India, debating rival scholars and when there were no more rivals to best, he proudly gave himself the name Sarvajit, conqueror of all.78 However, in his moment of pride he was told that not all rivals had been defeated in religious debate and that he had to travel to Banaras where a man named Kabīr was located.
The journey to Banaras was long and when he arrived he challenged Kabīr, debating Surat, Kabīr soon understood that his opponent was; “hopelessly afflicted with the disease of useless talk and would never be cured in this way.” Kabīr asked Surat what he wanted, Surat answered that since Kabīr lost he should write that on a piece of paper that he accepts Surat’s victory. Kabīr answered that he did not know how to write so Surat had to write it for himself, so he did. However, on his return home Surat saw that the writing had been shifted to that of
“Sarvananda lost and Kabir Saheb won.” Upon this, Surat returned to Kabīr with the realization that Kabīr could not be anything else than the Lord Himself. Surat then chose to become Kabīr’s disciple, and later became the founder and head of the Chaurā Maṭh.79
The Dharmadasī branch of Chhattisg ̣arh, seen as “the rival branch” of the Kabīr Chaurā, does not, find themself as the founding Chaurā, located the site of Kabīr’s family home and the original teaching. However, favored location or not, the followers of Dharmadas has greatly been popularizing Kabīr and his teachings through creation of many brightly coloured legends, playing on resistens to caste-based rules and the local socio-religious environment.80 The Dharmadasī branch has attracted nearly sixty percent of the all Kabīr Panth membership living in the central provinces, according to the survey presented in Ramdas Lamb’s Rapt in the name: the Ramnamis, Ramnam, and untouchable religion in Central India (2002).81
81Lamb, Ramdas (2002). Rapt in the name: the Ramnamis, Ramnam, and untouchable religion in Central India.
Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, p 47.
80Texts and legends such as Kabīr Manśūr, Kabīr Sāgar, Gyān Prakāś, and the Ānurag Sāgar.
79Lorenzen, N. David. (1991), p, 64
78Lorenzen, N. David. (1991), p 63.
77http://www.kabirchaura.com/index.htm.
