Kabir

When evil-minded persons hear the praises given to the good, doubts arise in their hearts. Just as the sun arises and owls become ashamed and go into hiding, or thieves are intensely troubled when they see the moon rise, or a miser's mind burns with malice upon hearing great praise given to a donor, or a prostitute becomes angry hearing praise given to a dutiful wife, or a heretic becomes irritated upon hearing an exposition of Vedanta from anyone, so, as Kabir's high reputation spread, revilers sought to find fault in him.

These evil-minded persons met in private and discussed their plan. They acknowledged that Kabir's reputation had vastly increased due to his unusual service to saints and his ability to raise his own son from the dead. They decided to bring a company of saints and good men, unknown to Kabir, and write letters inviting Vaishnavas from various cities. Their intention was to overwhelm Kabir with the presence of a great number of saints, hoping he would run away and become disgusted with them. They believed that the saints would curse Kabir, and the blame would not be attached to them.

Drawing a parallel, just as Duryodhan endangered his merit and sent the yogi Durvas to trouble the Pandavas, these evil-minded individuals invited an innumerable number of saints with malicious thoughts in their minds. They wrote letters in Kabir's name and sent them to Hardwar, Mathura, Gokul, Vrindavan, and the city of Dwarka. All the Vaishnavas were invited to gather on a specific day in a certain month. Messengers were sent to invite mendicants living in the sacred cities. Their plan was to keep Kabir unaware of these arrangements.

Realizing that Kabir might be unable to provide food for such a large gathering, they decided to spend their own money in inviting the Vaishnavas. The evil men aimed to bring out Kabir's faults and arranged for his discomfiture. However, the Lord of Ayodhya, the life of Janaki (Ram), noticed the difficult situation and said to himself that he couldn't bear to have any lack found in his bhakta on his account. Recognizing Kabir's detachment from worldly thoughts, Ram decided to be his helper and protect him.

The Vaishnavas from the sacred cities arrived suddenly and encamped on the banks of the Ganga river. The Lord of the world (Ram) observed this and arrived to relieve Kabir in his distress. He took on various forms to serve these bhaktas, assuming the role of Kabir for many of the noble Vaishnavas. The Lord of the world assumed infinite forms and served the saints. The evil-minded individuals, seeking to see the fun, went into the gathering to investigate and were amazed when they saw an infinite number of Kabirs.

God took great pleasure in serving His saints and displayed His wonderful power of creating appearances. Everywhere people looked, they saw the bhakta Kabir serving the saints with reverence. Each Kabir performed different tasks, washing feet, giving baths, and preparing sandalwood paste for worship. Some Kabirs stood with hands joined in reverence, others massaged feet, and some held wooden sandals. These illusory forms of Hari (God) sang before them, fed them, and provided them with various services.

The Lord of the world sat with some, rubbing them with saffron and sandalwood paste, and adorned their foreheads with musk, giving beauty to their eyebrows. He dressed and adorned some, while others taught Him the knowledge of the soul. He held the sandals of some with reverence, sang songs before others, prepared straw mats for some to sleep on, and fulfilled their desires for opium. Countless people sat down to eat, and the Lord of the world served them with love. He gave water to drink, made garlands of tulsi for some, and waved fans to provide a cool breeze.

Ram sat beside some, massaging them, and listened attentively as books were read. He accompanied some to bathe, and others He took aside to ask how He could serve them. He shared a light lunch with some, and with His own hands, He adorned them with marks of white clay. He put garlands on them and held mirrors before them. He applied saffron and sandalwood paste to their bodies and adorned them with raiments and ornaments. He even learned from them the knowledge of the soul, holding their sandals with reverence and singing songs before them.

The Lord of the world prepared straw mats for some to sleep on and fulfilled the desires of those who craved opium. Innumerable people ate, and Krishna, the husband of Rukmini, made garlands of tulsi and placed them around their necks. He took fans in His hands and delighted people with a cool breeze. He made the saints lie down and sat beside them, massaging them. He sat attentively listening to books being read, and when some went to bathe, He went with them. Once the Vaishnavas had left, the invisible Lord of the heart revealed Himself before Kabir, and those evil-minded individuals came and embraced Kabir's feet.

They admitted their wrongdoing and acknowledged that although they had troubled him greatly, Ram had been his helper and had increased his extraordinary praise. They compared their actions to moths trying to extinguish the bright flame of a lamp or the hatred of a firefly failing to hide the brightness of the sun. They also drew parallels to the unsuccessful attempts of the Kauravas to burn down the Pandavas in lacquer houses and the ocean's internal fire seeking to burn up the ocean.

With these words, they prostrated themselves upon the ground again, putting aside their anger and expressing love and admiration for Kabir's goodness and good name.