International Society for Sant Kabir Ji

It was sometime in mid 15th century that the poet-saint Kabir was born in Kashi (Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh). The details about the life of Kabir are shrouded in uncertainty. There are differing opinions, contrasting facts and multiple legends about his life. Even sources discussing his life are scanty. Earliest sources include the Bijak and Adi Granth. Others are Nabhaji by Bhakta Mal, Dabistan-i-Tawarikh by Mohsin Fani and Khajinat al-Asafiya.

It is said that Kabir was conceived miraculously. His mother was a devout Brahmin widow who had accompanied her father on a pilgrimage to a famous ascetic. Impressed by their dedication, the ascetic blessed her and told her she would soon bear a son. After the son was born, to escape dishonor (as she was not married), Kabir’s mother abandoned him. Young Kabir was adopted by Nima, the wife of a Muslim weaver. In another version of the legend, the ascetic assured the mother that the birth would be in an unusual manner and so it was, Kabir was born out of the palm of his mother! In this version of the story too, he was later adopted by the same Nima.

When people started doubting and questioning Nima about the child, the newly born miraculously proclaimed in a firm voice, “I was not born of a woman but manifested as a boy...I have neither bones, nor blood, nor skin. I reveal to men the Shabda (Word). I am the highest being...”