India’s great poet of devotion and love, Mirabai, widowed at a young age, dedicated her life upon her husband’s death to the worship of Krishna. It was a decision that led her parents-in-law to evict her from their home. She spent the rest of her life traveling from village to village, singing and dancing to celebrate her love of Krishna. The rapturous lyrics she wrote enthralled worshipers then and continue to be sung in India today.

Kabir, an illiterate weaver, celebrated both Indian and Muslim spirituality while criticizing each religion’s blinkered believers. His clear-eyed expression, his wit and the continued relevance of his cutting insights led to a body of poetry that resonates still.

Mirabai and Kabir have enchanted their devotees and fascinated their admirers for five centuries, Jonathan Richman among them. On tambura, Nicole Montalbano accompanies Jonathan as he plays his guitar and sings poems left to us by these two profoundly wise and beautiful spirits.