MPPSC 2022 Prelims Paper-I · Question 62 of 100

Correct — A, Kabir. This is one of Kabir's most quoted dohas: 'the world died reading scriptures (pothis) again and again, none became wise; whoever reads the two-and-a-half letters of love (prem) becomes truly wise.' It captures Kabir's core teaching that direct devotion and love for the divine outweigh ritual bookish learning — a recurring theme across his verses, compiled in the Bijak and the Guru Granth Sahib.

• (b)Raidas — A fellow Bhakti/Nirguna saint-poet and cobbler by profession, but this particular doha is attributed to Kabir, not Raidas.
• (c)Guru Nanak — Founder of Sikhism and composer of hymns in the Guru Granth Sahib, but not the author of this specific couplet.
• (d)Chaitanya Mahaprabhu — A Vaishnava Bhakti saint associated with Krishna devotion in Bengal, not with this Hindi/Awadhi doha.

Kabir (c. 15th century) was a Nirguna Bhakti poet-mystic who rejected both rigid Hindu ritualism and Islamic orthodoxy, preaching formless devotion to one God and union through love, not scripture or caste. He composed in vernacular Hindi/Awadhi dohas (couplets) that were later compiled in collections like the Bijak and also included in the Sikh Guru Granth Sahib.

Exams test both the content of Kabir's dohas (identify the saint from the verse) and biographical facts (his profession as a weaver, his guru, his social background). The trap is confusing Kabir with other Nirguna/Bhakti contemporaries like Raidas (a cobbler) or Nanak (a distinct, separate tradition founder).

• Kabir was a Nirguna Bhakti saint-poet, believed to have been raised by a Muslim weaver family in Varanasi/Kashi
• His verses reject bookish ritualism in favour of direct, loving devotion — the theme of this doha
• His compositions are preserved in the Bijak and also appear in the Sikh Guru Granth Sahib
• He is traditionally described as a disciple of the Bhakti saint Ramananda

• Attributing Kabir's dohas to Raidas or Nanak due to shared Nirguna Bhakti themes
• Confusing Kabir (Nirguna, north India) with Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (Saguna, Krishna-bhakti, Bengal)

MPPSC and UPSC both quote a doha/couplet and ask which saint composed it, or ask the saint's profession/guru — memorise the couplet-to-poet mapping, not just the poet's name.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Kabir is traditionally believed to have been a disciple of which Bhakti saint?

  • (a)Ramananda
  • (b)Vallabhacharya
  • (c)Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
  • (d)Namdev

  Answer(a) Ramananda — traditionally regarded as Kabir's guru.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which of the following Bhakti saints belonged to the Nirguna tradition (formless, attribute-less God)?

  • (a)Kabir and Raidas
  • (b)Tulsidas and Surdas
  • (c)Mirabai and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
  • (d)Vallabhacharya and Ramanuja

  Answer(a) Kabir and Raidas — both Nirguna Bhakti poets, unlike the Saguna (form-worshipping) saints in the other options.