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1. A Vaishnava is he, who knows no other but the Lord. And by the Guru’s Grace, realizes himself. He holds his mind, and brings it (back) to its only Home. His self dies, and he utters (nothing but) the Name of the Lord. Blessed is such a Vaishnava, for he Merges in Truth.
(Var of Sri Rag, M. 4 with Shlokas)
2. All abide in Thy Hope: On all hearts rains (Thy Mercy). All are partners (in Thy Grace); O dear, Thou art alien to none. (Rag Majh M. 5)
3. Thou art here, Thou art Hereafter; All the creatures are Thy own Creation. (Majh M. 5)
4. He, whose inverse Lotus is upwards turned, gathers Light: And he Sees the All-pure in all, O dear ! (Majh M. 5)
5. Neither the body nor the caste go along (with one) in the world. Where one is to answer for one’s deeds. Yea, one is Released only by Practising the (Lord’s) Truth. (Majh M. 3)
6. What merits is in caste? Know thou the Truth within; (Of whatever caste one may be), he, who tastes the Poison will die ! (Var of Majh and the Shlokas of M. 1)
7. What is cold before the fire? What is night before the sun? What is darkness before the moon? What is caste before the water and the winds? Discriminate ye, O Saints, and search ye your hearts. For the Light of the Lord Pervades all; how, near how near is He ! Near, too near, is He to all the world; He, the Yonder Lord, beyond Measure. (Gauri Poorbi, M. 4)
8. (The Brahmin) spreads out his dhoti and on it he squats; And, like a donkey, gulps down he all that comes his way. But, without Deeds, he is Emancipated not, For, emancipation comes from dwelling upon the Lord’s Name. He bathes and anoints himself and worships (the diety), Then threatens he with the knife to receive in charity. He recites the Vedas, uttering them sweetly with the tongue. (Gauri M. 5)
9. True, True, True, is He. Nay, not one is separate from the True Purusha. (Gauri Bavan Akhri M. 5)
10. He, who dwells within and without on the Lord’s Name with Love And receives instruction from the Perfect Guru and abides with the Holy, is saved from Hell. Hell is not for him, Whose body and mind are permeated through with the Lord’s Name.
(Gauri Bavan Akhri M. 5)
11. He understands the essence of the Vedas, Puranas, and the Smritis, And finds the Apparent in the Subtle, He instructs all the four castes in the Lord’s Wisdom, Nanak: Such a Pundit I salute for ever. The seed of the Lord’s Name is in every heart. Let any of the four castes repeat His Name, And lo, he, who utters it, is Saved.
(Gauri Sukhmani M. 4, Ashtapadi)
12. He, whom Thou makest to realize (Thy Essence), He the one Receiveth Thy True Name. He looks upon all alike, he is the Knower of the Quintessence. Nanak: He is the Victor of the whole world. (Ashtapadi Gauri Sukhmani M. 5)
13. Remember the One Lord only in thy mind, Whose form is one, but manifestations may. (Gauri Sukhmani M. 5)
14. I am jealous of no one; I have become the Dust of all; And I recite Thy Nectar Name in the Society of the Holy. (Gauri Sukhmani M. 5)
15. He is Beauteous, Wise, the Knower of the Essence, Looking on all alike, Seeing the One always in all.
16. The Brahmins, the Kshatriyas, the Vaishyas, the Shudras, and even the low wretches are all Emancipated, Contemplating their Lord. (Thitti Gauri M. 5)
17. The True Beneficent Guru is for ever Compassionate: And he is withut envy too, and looks upon all as the creatures of the One Creator-Lord. (Var of Gauri M. 4)
18. In the womb of the mother, no one knows one’s caste, It is from the Lord’s Seed that the whole Creation came into being. Say, O Pundit, how did you become a Brahmin-born? Do not lose the Merit of thy human birth by calling thyself a high caste. If thou art a Brahmin born of a Brahmin mother, then why didn’t you choose to be born in somewise different than the others? How are you a Brahmin and I a low-caste? Is it that I have blood in my veins and you have milk? (3)
Says Kabir: "He alone who contemplates his Lord, Is renowned a Brahmin among the men of God." (Gauri Kabirji)
19. And have this thy Way that you look upon all, alike, And reflect on the Quintessence of Reality; nay, reflect not on another thought. (Gauri Kabirji)
20. On the eight day, know thou that the eight tissues make up the body, And, within it, Abides the Casteless He, thy King, the Great Treasure. (Rag Gauri Thitti of Kabirji)
21. See thou of each the Light within and ask not his caste: For, Hereafter, the caste is of no avail. (Asa, M. 1)
22. Hereafter goes not caste nor color with thee, And one becomes as are one’ s deeds. (Asa, M. 3)
23. If superior is your caste, O Bride, And you are honored in the society, and also you have a beauteous abode to live in, But, if you have Ego in your heart, you are indeed deformed. Charming, with well-cut figure, wise and clever may you be, But if you pride on yourself, you are consumed by infatuation. (Asa M. 5, Panchapadas)
24. Hereafter, caste and power are of no account, for a new man is born into the World of God. Yea, they whose Honor is of account to the Lord, they alone are men of Honor. (Asa Sri Kabirji Dupadas)
25. Says Kabir: "Listen, O my mother, See you not tht these shaven heads have made me lose my (low) caste?" (Asa Sri Kabirji Dupdas)
26. What have I to do with the distinctions of caste, For, I but Cherish ever the Name of the Lord?
(Asa: Word of Sri Namdevji)
27. To the Lord, the Sustainer of the earth, was Namdeva’s Mind attuned. And lo he, calico-printer of little worth, became worthy of Praise. Giving up his spinning and weaving, Kabir Cherished the Love of the Lord’s Feet, And he, the weaver of low birth, became the Treasure of Virtue. Ravidas, the cobbler, who carted the dead animals, abandoned the
love of Maya; and he became renowned through the companionship of the Saints and saw the vision of the Lord. Saina, the barber, who was engaged in doing odd little things, became known the world over, When he Enshrined the Transcendent Lord in the Mind, and was acknowledged among the Devotees of the Lord, Hearing all this, Dhanna, the Jat, also became dedicated to the God’s Way. And he was ushered into the Lord’s Presence: O how Fortunate was he ! (Word of Bhagat Dhannaji)
28. O mind, utter ever the Lord’s Praise. For, Singing and Hearing and Contemplating Him, one is Saved, caste or no caste. I know this Way, fo I’m merged into my Creator-Lord. (Devghandari M. 5)
29. Those turned Godwards belong to the Caste of the True God. For, within them Abides their Lord and Master who is their Bosom-friend.
(Vadhans M. 3)
30. Of a high caste or casteless, whoever Dwells on the (Lord’s) Name, he attains to the highest Boon (of Beautitude). So I dwell on the Lord’s Name: and my Mind is pleased with the Lord’s Name.
31. Unknowable is my Lord, Infinite. Unfathomable and Imperceptible, Who Dies not, nor is bound by the Writ of Karma. His Caste is casteless; He is incarnated not and is Self-existent: He is neither lured away by Doubt nor Attachment. (Sorath M. 1)
32. O Lord, I beg at Thy Door; Bless me Thou with Thy Grace. As saffron, flowers, musk and gold embellish the bodies of all, (without distinction), And as also does the scented Chandan, of the Saints too, this, indeed, is the merit that they make frgrant all who come unto them. Does anyone ever curse or slander butter or silk? (Tilang M. 1)
33. Contemplating the Lord, men of low caste attained a High Station. Pray, ask thou Vidura, the son of the slave-girl, with whom Krishna chose to abide. O brother! Hear thou the Unutterable Gospel of the Lord, which rids thee of thy Doubt and Woes and Hunger. Ravidas, the tanner, praised his Lord for a brief time. And he from a low-caste Wretch was Purified, and all the four castes repaired to his feet. Namdeva loved his Lord, though people called him a calico-printer. Yet, the Lord turned his back upon the high castes, and Hugged him, His Devotee, to His Bosom. Even the sixty-eight pilgrim-stations Anoint the Foreheads of the Devotees of the Lord. Nanak seeks to See their Vision every moment, only if the Lord Blesses him so. (Suhi, M. 4)
34. Wisdom is that which is imparted to the four castes alike: Nanak: He who Dwells on the Name of the All-pervading Lord, alone is Emancipated in the Kali-age. (Rag Suhi M. 5)
35. The Kshatriyas, the Brahmins, the Shudras and the Vaishyas: the Lord’s Word is equally for them all. So worship (the Word), thy Guru, as God, day and night, more and for
ever more. (Bilawal M. 4)
36. Of the egg-born, the sweat-born, the earth-born, the foetus born, and the creatures of all colors and kinds, Not one is Saved, save by seeking the Saint’s Refuge, Be he a Brahmin, a Krhatriya, a Vaishya or a Chandala. (6)
Namadeva, Jaideva, Trilochana, Kabir and Ravidasa, the untouchable tanner. And Dhanna, the Jat, and Saina (the barber), all Met with God, repairing to the Saints’ Feet. (Bilawal M. 4)
37. Yea, he is Highest of the high and Purest of the pure, in whose heart abides the Lord. Nanak washes the Feet of such a Devotee who Dedicates himself to his Lord, though he be of a low caste.
38. You are of high caste, but feed yourself upon the lower castes. Yea, by forcing your will, you fill yorr belly. And investing the Chaudasa and the Amavasa days with sanctity, you beg for alms: lo, you fall into the well, lamp in hand. You are a Brahmin whle I am a weaver from Kashi, how can I be your equal? But, while you are drowned with all your faith in the Vedas, I am Saved, uttering the Lord’s Name. (Kabir)
39. God is like sugar mixed with sand: the elephant in thee can pick it not. Says Kabir: "Abandon the Ego of thy caste and pick it, becoming (humble) like a little ant." (Kabir)
40. Yea, He minds not their caste or color, nor family nor lineage, And Blesses them with His Name, in His Mercy, and Embellishes them all-too-spontaneouslyl (Nat Narayan M. 5)
41. Be not proud of thy caste: For, he alone is a Brahmn who Knows Brahma, the only God.
(Rag Bhairo M. 3, Chaupadas)
42. Caste or no caste, whosoever contemplates God, is Emancipated, yea, whosoever dwells on Him. (Bhairo M. 5)
43. I’ve abandoned my father and mother, and have sold off myself to the Sainta; I have lost my caste, and Praise ever my (casteless) God. (Sarang M. 5)
44. Kabir: If turmeric loses its yellow, the wheat-flour its white, Then blessed is their love, for, it makes them lose their caste. (Shlokas of Bhakta Kabirji)
45. My weaver’s caste is no longe s stigma to me, for, within me I cherish my God And, lo, my Lord has taken me into his Embrace, and all my involvement is past. (Shlokas of Bhagat Kabirji)