Originally published in 1976, with more than 75,000 copies in print, this collection of poems by fifteenth-century ecstatic poet Kabir is full of fun and full of thought. Columbia University professor of religion John Stratton Hawley has contributed an introduction that makes clear Kabir's immense importance to the contemporary reader and praises Bly's intuitive translations. By making every reader consider anew their religious thinking, the poems of Kabir seem as relevant today as when they were first written.

"Few major achievements of world literature are as little known to Americans as the great ecstatic poetry of the Hindus and Sufis, as exemplified by the work of the 15th century master, Kabir. Irreverent while being intensely religious, Kabir seems incredibly playful in his taunting of the sacred dogmas of his time--to readers accustomed to the solemnity and ideological fidelity of most Western religious poems. Kabir has been translated into English only once before, by Rabindranath Tagore and Evelyn Underhill. Unfortunately, Tagore's Victorian English was simply not equal to Kabir's directness, spontaneity, and irreverent humor. Working from the Tagore-Underhill translation, Bly has done much more than retranslate into American diction. A noted poet himself, he has breathed new life into the work of a fascinating poet"--From back cover.

Kabir was a 15th century Indian spiritual master who left a legacy of extraordinary poems which continue to capture the imagination of a diverse audience today. The poems downplay the importance of ritual and austerity, and teach that God is not confined to centers of worship or places of pilgrimage but found everywhere in creation. Most importantly, God is within us and this is where we must meet him. Kabir elevates us into the realm of the spirit - a world of beauty, majesty, even romance, where the relationship between lovers is a recurring metaphor for our relationship to the divine.For the last century, Rabindranath Tagore's classic translation, "Songs of Kabir," has been the standard, but over the years it has suffered the ravages of time. In "Kabir Says," David Masterman has reworked Tagore's translation and breathed new life into it for the 21st century reader. But this edition goes beyond merely updating language and style; it considerably enhances the poetic form and flow of the English translation, and a new introduction and appendix have also been added to add depth to the reader's understanding.

Kabir was an extraordinary oral poet whose works have been sung and recited by millions throughout North India for half a millennium. He may have been illiterate and he preached an abrasive, sometimes shocking, always uncompromising message that exhorted his audience to shed their delusions, pretentions, and empty orthodoxies in favor of an intense, direct, and personal confrontation with the truth. Thousands of poems are popularly attributed to Kabir, but only a few written collections have survived over the centuries. The Bijak is one of the most important, and is the sacred book of those who follow Kabir.

Originally published in 1976 and having sold more than 75,000 copies to date, Kabir is a classic. Now, we are proud to publish a revised, beautifully designed hardcover edition that includes 10 new translations. A weaver by trade but a poet-singer by calling, Kabir lived in fifteenth-century India. His philosophy incorporated the beliefs and practices of both Muslims and Hindus. Not only did Kabir influence these religious traditions, he was one of the major inspirations behind Sikhism as well. The power of Kabir's words come from his passion--and also from his humor. He is at once irreverent toward authority and amazed by divinity. He demands that readers live for themselves. In the tradition of ecstatic poetry, Kabir writes of bodily delights and of choices made by the heart, not the mind. Columbia University professor of religion John Stratton Hawley's new introduction places Kabir's work firmly into modern times, explaining the value of Bly's work with these poems. As our contemporary world struggles with political turmoil caused by religious beliefs, the poems of Kabir seem as relevant today as when they were first written.

Kabir was an extraordinary oral poet whose works have been recited by millions throughout north India for half a millennium. Thousands of poems are attributed to Kabir, but only a few written collections have survived over the centuries.

The book opens a new vista in the sphere of verse translation in India. In the introductory part there is a departure from a mass of Hindi criticism. The bases of selection of dohas from the Sakhi are: (1) Kabir`s proverbial and worldy wisdom, (2) analogy-finding gift, (3) richness and variety of imagery, (4) recurrent theme of death, (5) gift for satire, and (6) rhetorical powers. this introductory part primarily focusses on Kabir as poet, which is his `real estimate`. Thus, the introductory part is a piece of scholarly criticism judging and appreciating Kabir`s Sakhi on the canons of English literary criticism. The versification (four-line stanzaform in loose lambic tetrameter lines) has an easy flow and almost parallels the flow of Kabir`s dohas. With the Hindi version and notes, the book will be a valuable reading especially for the English-speaking readers.