Final Analysis of The Abode of the Beloved

When Ms. Cawlfield first introduced this assignment, I was very excited to start looking for the perfect poem that would fit my personality to a tee. I thought that finding a poem would be the easy part, though I was wrong. Looking for a poem was difficult because it was crucial that I had a connection with the poem right away. I found the author Kabir when I was looking for poets based in the middle east and Asia. I saw a connection with Kabir when I began to read his bio. The thing that stood out to me the most was that he is a Indian saint, and he also has his own religion based around his own belief system. As I began to read more fascinating things about Kabir I knew I had to choose one of his poems for my final project, this is when I came across Abode of the Beloved, which really spoke to me on a spiritual level. When I read the poem for the first time I didn't really understand the deeper meaning right away, though I could hear Kabir's voice speaking to me throughout the entire poem. The poem has Sikh and Buddhist influences which I was also drawn to from the start. Now that I found my poem, I was excited to get started in the first stages of research.

Al-Kabir was a very spiritual man whose teachings appealed to the poor and less privileged. He often opposed the traditional Vedas and the Qur'an, and advocated for a simpler path to oneness in God. He wrote what he experienced and was strongly worded in order to grab the attention of the audience. In Kabir's poem Abode of the Beloved he talks about how people are too wound up in their material lives that they cannot stop and enjoy what they have or what they are capable of having if they connected with their spirituality. "Neither speech coming from vedas or books. Doing, not-doing, holding, leaving all these are all lost too in this place" (Kabir 10-13). Here Kabir is asking his audience to let go of what is familiar to them and experience life without unnecessary material objects. At first I thought the poem only related to ancient spiritual rituals though after my interview I realized that it can relate to the modern world as well. "No home, no homeless, neither outside or inside, Micro and macrocosm are non- exsistant"(Kabir 13-14). When Kabir says that there are no homes or homeless, he means that there are no bills to pay and no debt to tend to. Everyone's struggles are demolished and there are no expectations any more for anyone.

From the Abode of the Beloved I have learned that in the end when you are coming close to your death bed, it is not the material things that mater, but the spiritual connections that you have made throughout your life time. "No root or flower, neither branch or seed, without a tree fruit are adroning" (Kabir 17-18). Kabir is saying that without a seed (religion) you can still produce fruit (spirituality). That a person doesn't need organized religion to be liberalized. That in the end it isn't the books that a person has read that has makes them into the person that they are. If a person can find liberation within themselves without material things that is within their own duty. "There is radiance without light" (Kabir 7). I took this line of the poem to symbolize the fact that even if a person does not posses godly qualities they are still capable of producing their own unique spirituality means within themselves. I thought that this was an interesting idea considering that in the beginning of analysing the poem I wasn't completely sure what he was talking about when he mentioned there being a certain radiance without light. Many things were clarified during the interview portion of my project because it was helpful to hear from someone more mature than me, because they have experienced more than I have in my lifetime.

Kabir taught me many things about life that I took for granted before. Like to let the little things go and live more simplistically with out set rules and guidelines. "Whoever sees my indicative sign will accomplish the goal of liberation" (Kabir 25-26). I do believe this statement to be true. I think that once a person finally finds their key to spiritual happiness and satisfaction they will be liberalized. This will take a huge weight off of their shoulders and they will finally be able to live in peace. "Where the beloved is there is utterly nothing says Kabir I have come to realize"(Kabir 14-15). I have come to the realization that things don't make people happy, people make people happy. Maybe people are caught up in the material side of the world and are brain washed into believing that wealth and books and knowledge will bring prosperity and happiness where as only a persons soul can create complete spiritual oneness within themselves. This is how teachings of Buddhism ties into the poem. Kabir takes religion and twists the basic meaning around his own believe system. Not everyone has to follow him though everyone must find their own spiritual being.

Throughout the year I have really found myself as a writer. I think that I have written more in this year than I have in all of my Language Arts classes combined. That might be a bit of an overstatement but it is partially true. I really enjoy witting, it forces me to think and pour all of my thoughts out onto a page. I especially enjoyed reading the Lord of the Flies and the Metamorphosis. It was interesting how in depth and deep are conversations were as a class. I don't think I had ever  experienced such conversations. In years past we had just talked about plot in a story, but never as much in depth symbolic meaning as we did this year. It was very refreshing to say the least. In all honesty this class was the only class I didn't dread going to all year. We always were doing something and talking as a class. I think I have definitely grown intellectually, and I am excited for next years English class. Hopefully it will be just as great.