Abhanga 171
This abhang names the rūdī-sulk moment in real bhakti / real practice / real love. After enough rounds, you figure out:
The verse
गडी गेले रडी । कान्हो नेदीस तूं चढी ॥१॥ आम्ही न खेळों न खेळों । आला भाव तुझा कळों ॥ध्रु.॥ न साहावे भार । बहु लागतो उशीर ॥२॥ तुका आला रागें । येऊं नेदी मागें मागें ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: The comrades have sulk-quit. Kanho, you do not let (us) win. We won't play, we won't play — your scheme has come to be understood. The burden cannot be borne; much delay is happening. Tuka came in anger — (he) does not let (anyone) come behind-behind.
मराठी: गडी रडीला गेले — कान्हो, तू चढी (विजय) देत नाहीस. आम्ही खेळणार नाही, खेळणार नाही — तुझा भाव (हेतू) आता कळलाय. भार साह्य होत नाही — फार उशीर लागतोय. तुका रागानं आला — मागे-मागे येऊ देत नाही.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| गडी गेले रडी | "the comrades have gone-into-rūdī" (sulk-quit, withdraw-from-play) |
| कान्हो नेदीस तूं चढी | "Kanho, you do not give the chaḍī (winning, going-up)" |
| आम्ही न खेळों न खेळों | "we will not play, will not play" |
| आला भाव तुझा कळों | "your bhāva (intent / scheme) has come to be understood" |
| न साहावे भार | "the burden cannot be borne" |
| बहु लागतो उशीर | "much delay is happening" |
| तुका आला रागें | "Tuka came in anger" |
| येऊं नेदी मागें मागें | "(he) does not let (anyone) come behind-behind" |
What it means
The rūdī-sulk abhang in the gopa-shikā / yamunā-tata cluster. Rūdī (रडी) is the Marathi children's-game term for sulking-quitting — when one player decides the game is rigged or the others are unfair, and withdraws. The gopa-comrades have done it.
The accusation: कान्हो नेदीस तूं चढी — Kanho, you don't let us win. आम्ही न खेळों न खेळों, आला भाव तुझा कळों — we won't play, we won't play; your scheme has come to be understood. The comrades have figured it out: Krishna is rigging the game so that he always wins. They will not play anymore.
The complaint underneath: न साहावे भार, बहु लागतो उशीर — the burden cannot be borne; much delay. The actual issue is fatigue and delay — they have been carrying weight (in the shikā-pyramid) and the wins have not come.
The Tukaram closing turn: तुका आला रागें, येऊं नेदी मागें मागें — Tuka came in anger; he does not let (anyone) come behind. Tuka's anger here is protective — he comes-up-angry and blocks others from following him into rūdī. The structural read: when one comrade has gone into recognized-the-trick sulk, the bhakti-saint comes in anger to prevent the contagion of rūdī through the band.
But there is a deeper paradox: the very recognition of Kanho's "trick" is part of the leelā. The comrades are not wrong that Krishna rigs the game; they are wrong that this is a problem. [T]
For someone today
This abhang names the rūdī-sulk moment in real bhakti / real practice / real love. After enough rounds, you figure out:
- आला भाव तुझा कळों — I see what you're doing. The deity / teacher / beloved seems to be rigging the game — you carry the weight, they get the win.
- न साहावे भार — I cannot bear this burden.
- बहु लागतो उशीर — the delay is too long.
- I quit.
This is a real moment — and Tukaram does not tell you you are wrong about the diagnosis. He tells you about the response: तुका आला रागें, येऊं नेदी मागें मागें — come in anger and block others from following the rūdī. Why? Because the rūdī-recognition is itself part of the leelā — what looks like being-rigged is actually being-loved-into-asymmetry. The deity does take more than the comrade gets — but only in this register; the post-rūdī register will reveal the aguṇa-joining (169) that was the actual prize all along.
The protective-anger keeps the band from all quitting at the same moment, because one or two staying past the rūdī allows the post-rūdī gift to be received — and then those who stayed bring the others back.
मराठी: ही ओवी real bhakti / real practice / real love मधला rūdī-sulk moment नाव सांगते. enough rounds नंतर तुम्ही figure out करता:
- आला भाव तुझा कळों — तू काय करतोयस ते मला कळलंय. देव / teacher / प्रिय खेळ rigging करतंय असं वाटतं — तुम्ही weight वाहता, ते जिंकतात.
- न साहावे भार — हा भार साह्य होत नाही.
- बहु लागतो उशीर — उशीर फार लागतोय.
- मी सोडतो.
ही खरी moment आहे — तुकाराम diagnosis बद्दल चूक म्हणत नाहीत. response बद्दल म्हणतात: तुका आला रागें, येऊं नेदी मागें मागें — रागाने या आणि इतरांना rūdī मागे यायला अडवा. का? कारण rūdī-recognition स्वतः leelā चा भाग आहे — rigged दिसणं actually asymmetry-मध्ये-प्रेम केलं जाणं. देव जास्त घेतो कॉम्रेड पेक्षा — पण फक्त या register मध्ये; post-rūdī register मध्ये अगुणा-joining (169) — actual prize — revealed होतो.
protective-anger band ला एकाच वेळी सगळ्यांनी सोडण्यापासून थांबवते — कारण एक-दोन rūdī पलीकडे थांबले तर post-rūdī gift received होतो — मग थांबलेले इतरांना परत आणतात.
Where this applies
- Felt the rigging and ready to quit. Recognize rūdī-moment.
- Burden too much, delay too long. This is a real complaint — but the diagnosis isn't the cure.
- Tuka's protective-anger blocks others from following. Recognize this register.