This bhakti BS has served gurus well since who knows when. I wonder if the origin of the Indian word "bhaksheesh" is - bhak for devotion and sheesh for those dumb enough to believe it(myself included). I wouldn't be surprised if there were cro magnom or neanderthal creatures, pounding chests, demanding food and fealty for shamanistic favours. Excerpted below is more from Hans Yog Prakash. Like father like son.DEVOTION TO THE GURU
You will not get the privilege of having a human body again and again. You had better give up worldly pleasures, Kabir, and love your Guru.
A piece of gold does not lose its value if you drop it in a puddle. In the same way, whatever body a soul may take, any devotion which it has acquired will not be lost.
Devotion is very hard to come by, it cannot be reached without Truth. The path to devotion is very narrow, and sharp as a sword’s edge.
Devotion to the Guru is no easy job, it is a razor’s edge path. He who wavers is lost. Only the resolute can survive.
O Kabir, you may have a keen desire for devotion to your Guru, but how can one be a humble servant unless first one removes every other desire from the mind completely?
Devotion is the raft that brings salvation. One who climbs aboard is a saint. But lazy men keep on drowning one lifetime after another.
As long as you have any ties to this world, you cannot have devotion. As soon as you cut all your ties to this world, and put yourself to remember the Lord, you will be known as a devotee.
Without devotion you will never make it to safety, no matter how you try. Only he who has love for the True Name can reach the Kingdom of Heaven.
When Guru helps you, you will receive devotion. He who has both love and devotion is the most fortunate of men.
There is no way you can copy devotion. Imitation devotion falls apart in time of danger, as the leaves quit the trees in winter.
If you try to grab at devotion, your grasp will soon falter. Few are those devotees, maddened by love, who can truly hold fast to the Satguru.
Without the complete and perfect Knowledge, the heart cannot know any peace. Artificial devotion cannot hold the appearance of love for very long.
The devotee who knows the truth dies daily, for he longs to give up his sense of his own importance. An ignorant man cannot understand this mystery.
Greed undermines one’s understanding, and self-seeking and pride cause one to lose devotion.
People who are full of desires, bad temper and greed can never be devotees. Maybe one in a million forgets caste, creed, colour and family, and has true devotion.
O Kabir, life is worth nothing unless one has devotion for the Satguru. It is like so much smoke which dissolves in an instant.
Whoever is truly impartial can have devotion. Whoever has no illusions can have Knowledge. Whoever makes no distinctions in his mind can attain salvation. Whoever is without greed can dissolve in his Lord’s Lotus Feet.
True devotion keeps the mind perfectly in balance at all times. The true devotee lives modestly, he does not make a distinction between "mine" and "thine."
O Kabir, all my doubts have dissolved as a result of devotion to my Guru. To go for a day without devotion would be complete torture.
So long as one’s devotion is mixed with desire, it cannot bear fruit. O Kabir, why should the Lord, the Desireless One, come before one who is full of desire?
The seed of devotion does not change. It is the same now and for ever. One may be born in the families of beggars or king, it makes no difference. A saint will always be a saint.
Devotion is like a toy. Anyone can experience it. Kabir says, in devotion there is no difference between a king and a beggar.
No one can reach God without devotion to Satguru. He alone can give Knowledge of the Supreme.
Only by devotion to Satguru can you receive Knowledge of the Supreme. All scriptures sing the praises of devotion to the Perfect Master.
He who has as much devotion for his Guru as he has for God is called a great soul. His heart is illumined, afire.
TO LIVE WITHOUT GURU
There are some people who pass their entire lives without ever receiving Knowledge from a Guru. You should know that their lives are meaningless. Whatever they do, it is all in vain.
People who talk about the practice of the presence of God, but who are not the disciples of the Satguru, are like prostitutes who proclaim they would gladly die for love of their clients, says Kabir.
Lustful women who pay no heed to the words of Satguru, but make a show of modesty on the outside, says Kabir, become bitches who moan wherever they go. A king who has no devotion for the Guru is no better than a Bullock, says Kabir. He is good for transporting things from one place to another, but that is all.
What use is a temple, unless Satguru is worshipped there? What use is this human frame, unless we have Knowledge of the Self? Even if a million moons were to rise tonight, you couldn’t see clearly without the grace of Satguru.
There is a lightening flash in the sky. Only those who have a Guru will get you home in safety. There is a flash of divine light in the sky within you. Only those who have a Guru are able to see it. They alone will reach their final destination in safety.
You may try a thousand times, and try again, says Kabir, but without the grace of the True Guru, you will never understand the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven. It is only by the grace of the Guru that the mind can be controlled.
Without Guru there cannot be Knowledge. Without Guru there can be no salvation. Without Guru, Truth cannot be realised. Without Guru, you cannot shake of your bad habits.
The saints divide devotees into two types. The first type is he who approaches a Perfect Master because he understands that he has need of his spiritual guidance. He is called one who believes in his Guru, because he gives his life in service to his Guru.
The second type is known as one who follows his mind. He approaches the Guru because he sees that other people are coming to him. Although he has a Guru he continues to follow the dictates of his own mind, and continues to do only those things which he himself wants to do. This is why he is called a disciple of mind, while the other type of devotee is known as a disciple of his Guru Maharaj Ji.
When he wishes for the means to experience the essence of Truth, the devotee must accept a Guru. In the spirit of adoration, he should salute his noble Guru who is God Himself, who is enthroned in the thousand jewelled crown.
