Contents
Kabir
Creating devotional poetry that challenges religious division and empty ritual.
Songs and couplets · Bijak
- Born
- Unknown
- Birthplace
- Varanasi, India
- Died
- Unknown
More people
Kabir
Kabir was a fifteenth-century poet and spiritual teacher associated with Varanasi. His verses question pretension and sectarian boundaries, and survive in several religious and oral traditions.
Early life
Uncertain origins
His exact birth date and many details of his life remain disputed.
Weaving tradition
Accounts commonly place him in a Muslim weaving household in Varanasi.
Career
- 15th century
Poetic teaching
Expressed spiritual ideas in accessible vernacular verse.
- 15th century
Religious criticism
Challenged practices he regarded as hollow in both Hindu and Muslim communities.
Selected work
Songs and couplets
His attributed verses circulated through singers and followers.
Bijak
An important collection preserves poems associated with his teaching.
Sikh scripture
Verses attributed to Kabir were included in the Adi Granth.
Beyond work
Multiple traditions
Different communities remember his life in different ways.
Continuing influence
His poems remain widely sung, and the Kabir Panth carries forward his teachings.
Sources & photo credit
Life, career and references ↗Poetry Foundation biography ↗Photo: Traditional painted depiction; Unknown author Unknown author. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
