The garden well.

There is a sufi story about a well in a persian garden where a sufi saint would sit to meditate. During the day time the gardener would draw water from the well for the plants. One day he came to find that the garden was flooded with water. He was very surprised and angry, and suspected that it was the sufi monk who was sitting in the garden who had done this. So the gardener decided that the useless old man who spent his time praying in the garden was spoiling plants. So he threw the sufi out of the garden. But then to his surprise the tree under which the sufi used to sit, uprooted itself and followed the saint. Then all the plants seemed to pull themselves from the earth, and also began to follow the sufi. Even the well lifted up from the ground, and left the garden, in pursuit of the man of prayer. Then the gardener realized that the whole garden depended on the prayer of the sufi, and it was his inner life that brought the water up from the depths, and sustained the beauty of the garden. Then the gardener followed the Sufi, and begged him to return, so that his garden could once again be re-established.

A tree full of fishes.

Kabir is known for his up-side-down metaphors. He creates images out of opposites. So in one of his songs he speaks of a tree which is full of fishes. Fishes are meant to be in the waters, and are not like birds that live in trees. But in a sense a tree is like a river flowing upwards to the heavens. The sap which flows through the branches of the tree, is like a stream of life that instead of flowing downwards, defies gravity, and reaches for the skies. We are even led to believe that birds were originally fish that developed wings, whose scales turned into feathers. So what is below will come up, and this in fact is the basic principle underlying Kundaleeni Yoga, where the energy that lies at the base of the spine, slowly is lifted up, transforming the whole body.

The brave Parrot.

In one of the songs ascribed to Kabir, we hear of a story that is found in the Jatakas, or former lives of the Buddha. There was a parrot who lived in the branches of a sandal wood tree in the forest. One day a fire spread from a clump of bamboos in the forest, and engulfed the whole forest. All the animals and birds fled. But the parrot refused to leave the tree which had been its home. The tree spoke to the bird, saying: You have wings, so fly away. I am a tree rooted in the ground, so I have to perish." But the bird refused to leave the tree that had been its dear friend and companion. However, seeing that soon both tree and bird may be destroyed, the parrot decided to fly to a nearby pool, where it flapped its wings in the water, and carried some drops that it sprinkled on the sandal wood tree. Back and forth the bird went carrying a few drops of water from the pool in the hope of quenching the forest fire. The gods were watching this brave effort of the parrot, and Garuda, the Sun bird came down to earth to see what this little bird was doing in the burning forest. Garuda was so moved by the love of the bird for the tree, that tears began to fall from his eyes. When Garuda weeps, the clouds begin to rain, and so finally the forest was saved from the fire, and the sandal wood tree was not consumed.

The burning home.

Kabir spoke of burning the home. The home is like the nest of the Cosmic bird. In mythology there is always a tension between the heavenly bird, and the serpent that has its home in the earth. The serpent is sometimes called the "Vasthu Sarpa" or serpent of the inhabited place. The Bird attacks and destroys this serpent with its fiery wings. The home is now taken up and consumed by the fire of the spirit.

The Mountain of Emptiness.

Kabir refers to Sunya Shikhara, or the mountain of emptiness. This is like the high peaks of the Himalayas, over which the Hamsa flies. In the heart of the mountain there is a cave, which is also a symbol of the heart. This cave or Guha, is between heaven and earth. It is here that we can hear the cosmic sound, or unstruck note which could be related to the Word that brings all creation into being. The Shabda, or Primal Word, is also the sound AUM, which the sacred Name of the Divine. The Hamsa has a particular cry, which is like Ham--sa--ham--sa--ham----. This could be interpretted as the sanskrit 'Sa ham' which means "I am that". Here the soul discovers its identity in the Divine Presence that resides in the cave of the heart.

The Fire Bird.

The image of Fire is used as a metaphor for the spiritual quest. Kabir often speaks of the fire that consumes the world, and also the body when it is being spritually transformed.

Bird in Flight.

One of the most important images that we find in the poetry of Kabir is that of the Hamsa, which is a bird in flight. This bird crosses over the Himalayas, and is known to circle round Lake Mansarova at the foot of Mount Kailash. It then descends to the Indian planes. It becomes a metaphor for the soul.