Luther of India. The sect has now split into two
branches, the headquarters of one of these being at Benares, and of
the other at Kawardha, or Damakheda in Raipur. Bishop Westcott gives
the date of Kabir's life as A.D. 1440--1518, while Mr. Crooke states
that he flourished between 1488 and 1512. Numerous legends are now
told about him; thus, according to one of these, he was the son of a
virgin Brahman widow, who had been taken at her request to see the
great reformer Ramanand. He, unaware of her condition, saluted her
with the benediction which he thought acceptable to all women, and
wished her the conception of a son. His words could not be recalled,
and the widow conceived, but, in order to escape the disgrace which
would attach to her, exposed the child, who was Kabir. He was found
by a Julaha or Muhammadan weaver and his wife, and brought up by
them. The object of this story is probably to connect Kabir with
Ramanand as his successor in reformation and spiritual heir; because
the Ramanandis are an orthodox Vaishnava sect, while the Kabirpanthis,
if they adhered to all Kabir's preaching, must be considered as quite
outside the pale of Hinduism. To make out that Kabir came into the
world by Ramanand's act provides him at any rate with an orthodox
spiritual lineage. For the same reason [289] the date of Kabir's birth
is sometimes advanced as early as 1398 in order to bring it within
the period of Ramanand's lifetime (_circa_ 1300-1400). Another story
is that the deity took mortal shape as a child without birth, and was
found by a newly-married weaver's wife lying in a lotus flower on a
tank, like Moses in the bulrushes. Bishop Westcott thus describes the
event: "A feeling of thirst overcame Nima, the newly-wedded wife of
Niru, the weaver, as after the marriage ceremony she was making her
way to her husband's house. She approached the tank, but was much
afraid when she there beheld the child. She thought in her heart,
'This is probably the living evidence of the shame of some virgin
widow.' Niru suggested that they might take the child to their house,
but Nima at first demurred, thinking that such action might give
rise to scandal. Women would ask, 'Who is the mother of a child so
beautiful that its eyes are like the lotus?' However, laying aside
all fears, they took pity on the child. On approaching the house
they were welcomed with the songs of women, but when the women saw
the child dark thoughts arose in their heads