Kabeerdaas ji is categorized as a saint but his thoughts and compositions are not confined to religion, spirituality, meditation and bhajans alone. He also deals with worldly life – the character and behaviour of individuals; practices (and malpractices) rampant in society; evils of caste system which divides people into ‘high’ and ‘low’ classes, etc. He also goes in depth in denouncing superstitions and hypocrisy prevalent in practice of religions and sects in general. He considers them as obstructions in the way of health, peace and happiness of society. We should take all these things into account if we want to understand and interpret Kabeerdaas ji’s poetry correctly.

— Kusum Banthia

हिन्दी में पढ़िये

केसन कहा बिगारिया, जो मूँड़ो सौ बार ।
मन को क्यों नहिं मूँड़िये, जा मैं विषय विकार ।।

Kesan kahaa bigaaria, jo moondo sau baar
Man ko kyon nahin moondiye, jaa men vishaya vikaar

In some religious sects, an ascetic is expected to keep his/her head tonsured. According to Kabeerdaas ji this is an entirely unnecessary and superficial ritual since the negative tendencies like desire, anger, avarice etc., which stand in the way of penance, do not dwell in a person’s hair. The human heart is their abode and they tend to lead it away from the path of righteousness.
In this couplet, Kabeer addresses such ascetics and asks them why they keep shaving the hair on their heads off. This hair is not harming them in any way. If they want their penance to be fruitful, they should try to control their heart and rid it of negative feelings.

जहाँ प्रेम तहँ नेम नहिं, तहाँ न बुधि ब्यौहार ।
प्रेम मगन जब मन भया, कौन गिने तिथि वार ।।

Jahaan prem tanh nem nahin, tahaan na budhi byohaar
Prem magan jab man bhaya, kaun gine tithi waar

According to Kabeerdaas ji, love is the supreme and most sublime emotion. It is only through love that the human soul succeeds in becoming one with Brahman – the Supreme Spirit. In order to attain this oneness people, driven by worldly wisdom, keep observing various rules, rituals, fasts, pilgrimages and such other things. In the opinion of Kabeerdaas ji, these are merely worldly actions because they engage complete attention of the seeker and prevent him from devoting himself heart and soul to the Brahman. When a person, under the influence of true and complete devotion, loses himself/herself in the love of the Brahman, he/she cannot even think about these rituals, nor does he/she need to. This deep and absolute love is the only way to attain union with the Brahman.