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It Is Needless To Ask Of A Saint

Kabir

It is needless to ask of a saint the caste to which he belongs;
For the priest, the warrior.  the tradesman, and all the
thirty-six castes, alike are seeking for God.
It is but folly to ask what the caste of a saint may be;
The barber has sought God, the washerwoman, and the carpenter-
Even Raidas was a seeker after God.
The Rishi Swapacha was a tanner by caste.
Hindus and Moslems alike have achieved that End, where remains no mark of distinction.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 08, 2023

25 sec read
183

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCBDCEF
Closest metre Iambic heptameter
Characters 454
Words 86
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 8
Full analysis for It Is Needless To Ask Of A Saint »

Kabir

 · 1440 · Banaras
 · 1518 · Maghar

Kabīr was a mystic poet and saint of India, whose writings have greatly influenced the Bhakti movement. The name Kabir comes from Arabic al-Kabīr which means 'The Great' – the 37th name of God in Islam. Kabir's legacy is today carried forward by the Kabir Panth, a religious community that recognizes him as its founder and is one of the Sant Mat sects. Its members, known as Kabir panthis, are estimated to be around 9,600,000. They are spread over north and central India, as well as dispersed with the Indian diaspora across the world, up from 843,171 in the 1901 census. His writings include Bijak, Sakhi Granth, Kabir Granthawali and Anurag Sagar. more…

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