संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 256 of 4582

Abhanga 256

This abhang names what makes textual-knowledge real:

When you've been reciting without bhāva — and the abhang says the kathā needs bhāva

When the knowing-root needs uprooting — and you accept this rule

When the texts gather around the Viṭṭhal-coin in the kathā — and you recognize the kathā's central-status

The verse

पंडित वाचक जरी जाला पुरता । तरी कृष्णकथा ऐके भावें ॥१॥ क्षीर तुपा साकरे जालिया भेटी । तैसी पडे मिठी गोडपणें ॥ध्रु.॥ जाणोनियां लाभ घेई हा पदरीं । गोड गोडावरी सेवीं बापा ॥२॥ जाणिवेचें मूळ उपडोनी खोड । जरी तुज चाड आहे तुझी ॥३॥ नाना परिमळद्रव्य उपचार । अंगी उटी सारचंदनाची ॥४॥ जेविलियाविण शून्य ते शृंगार । तैसी गोडी हरिकथेविण ॥५॥ ज्याकारणें वेदश्रुति ही पुराणें । तें चि विठ्ठलनाणें तिष्ठे कथे ॥६॥ तुका म्हणे येर दगडाचीं पेंवें । खळखळ आवघें मूळ तेथें ॥७॥

Literal translation

English: Even a complete pundit-reciter — let him hear Krishna-kathā with bhāva. Milk-ghee-sugar meeting — such an embrace in sweetness. Knowing the gain, take in your fold; sweet-on-sweet, savor, father. Uproot the jāṇīvē-mūla (knowing-root) — if you have love for your-(own-self). Various perfume-substances, body-paste of pure-sandal — without eating, the śṛngāra is empty; such is sweetness without Hari-kathā. The Vedas-śrutis-Purāṇas exist for-which-cause — that very Viṭṭhal-coin stands in the kathā. Tuka says: the rest is stones in a hopper — kha-la-kha-la — all the root there.

मराठी: पंडित वाचक जरी जाला पुरता — तरी कृष्णकथा ऐके भावें. क्षीर-तुपा-साकरे जालिया भेटी — तैसी पडे मिठी गोडपणें. जाणोनियां लाभ घेई हा पदरीं — गोड गोडावरी सेवीं बापा. जाणिवेचें मूळ उपडोनी खोड — जरी तुज चाड आहे तुझी. नाना परिमळद्रव्य उपचार — अंगी उटी सारचंदनाची. जेविलियाविण शून्य ते शृंगार — तैसी गोडी हरिकथेविण. ज्याकारणें वेदश्रुति ही पुराणें — तें चि विठ्ठलनाणें तिष्ठे कथे. तुकाराम म्हणतात — येर दगडाचीं पेंवें — खळखळ आवघें मूळ तेथें.

Word-by-word gloss

Marathi	Meaning
पंडित वाचक जरी जाला पुरता	"even (one) become a pundit-reciter, complete"
तरी कृष्णकथा ऐके भावें	"let him hear Krishna-kathā with bhāva"
क्षीर तुपा साकरे जालिया भेटी	"milk-ghee-sugar — meeting"
तैसी पडे मिठी गोडपणें	"such embrace — in sweetness"
जाणोनियां लाभ घेई हा पदरीं	"knowing the lābha (gain), take in your padara (fold of cloth)"
गोड गोडावरी सेवीं बापा	"sweet-on-sweet, savor (consume), father"
जाणिवेचें मूळ उपडोनी खोड	"uproot the root of jāṇīvē (knowing-ness)"
जरी तुज चाड आहे तुझी	"if you have cāḍa (love) for your-(own-self)"
नाना परिमळद्रव्य उपचार	"various perfume-substances, treatments"
अंगी उटी सारचंदनाची	"body-paste of pure-sandal"
जेविलियाविण शून्य ते शृंगार	"without eating, empty is the śṛngāra"
तैसी गोडी हरिकथेविण	"such sweetness without Hari-kathā"
ज्याकारणें वेदश्रुति ही पुराणें	"for-which-cause the Vedas-śrutis-Purāṇas (exist)"
तें चि विठ्ठलनाणें तिष्ठे कथे	"that very Viṭṭhal-coin stands in the kathā"
येर दगडाचीं पेंवें	"the rest is stones in a hopper"
खळखळ आवघें मूळ तेथें	"kha-la-kha-la — all the root there"

What it means

A 7-verse pro-kathā / anti-mere-panditry abhang. Six structural moves:

Even the complete pundit-reciter must hear with bhāva. Pandita-vācaka jarī jālā puratā — tarī Kṛṣṇa-kathā aikē bhāvē. The bhāva-requirement applies even to the most-accomplished pundit. The technical-mastery is not enough; the bhāva is required.
Milk-ghee-sugar embrace in sweetness. Kṣīra-tupā-sākare jāliyā bhēṭī — taisī paḍē miṭhī goḍapaṇēm. When bhakta-with-bhāva meets Krishna-kathā, the meeting is like milk-ghee-sugar mixing — each-sweet meets each-sweet; the embrace is in-sweetness-itself.
Uproot the jāṇīvē-mūla. Jāṇīvēcēm mūla upaḍonī khōḍa. The root of knowing-ness must be uprooted. If you love your-(own-self), do this. (Compare 243's jāṇa-paṇa creates antarāya.) Knowing-root is the obstacle.
Empty śṛngāra without eating; sweetness without Hari-kathā is the same. Jevilaiyāvīṇa śūnya tē śṛngāra — taisī goḍī hari-kathēvīṇa. Decorating the body without-eating leaves śṛngāra empty; sweetness without Hari-kathā is the same — external-decoration without nourishment.
The Viṭṭhal-coin in the kathā. Vēda-śruti-purāṇē — tēm chi viṭṭhala-nāṇē tiṣṭhē kathē. The purpose-of-the-texts is to be near the Viṭṭhal-coin (the real-currency) in the kathā. The kathā is the kingdom; the Viṭṭhal-coin is the currency; the texts gather as supplements. The kathā is central, the texts are around it.
Closing: the rest is stones in a hopper. Yēra dagaḍācīm pēmvē — khaḷa-khaḷa avaghēm mūḷa tēthēm. Without the Viṭṭhal-coin in the kathā, the rest of learning, recitation, panditry is just stones in a hopper rattling (kha-la-kha-la) — the entire root is there (= that's all that is — stones, no real currency). [T]

For someone today

This abhang names what makes textual-knowledge real:

Even a complete pundit must hear with bhāva. Mastery is not enough. Bhāva is structurally required — even for the most-learned. If you have technical-mastery without bhāva, you have stones in a hopper.
Sweet meets sweet. Milk-ghee-sugar embrace. When bhāva-having bhakta meets Krishna-kathā, the meeting is sweet-on-sweet. If your meeting with the kathā does not feel sweet-on-sweet, the bhāva is missing.
Uproot the jāṇīvē-mūla*. If you love yourself, uproot the knowing-root. Don't accumulate-more-knowing as the path; uproot the root of knowing-ness. (Compare 243's more knowing → greater obstacle*.)
Decoration without nourishment is empty. Body-paste without eating leaves śṛngāra empty. Apply this to spiritual-life: external-decoration without internal-nourishment is empty. The sweetness without Hari-kathā is external-decoration.
Texts gather around the kathā, not vice-versa. Vedas-Purāṇas stand-by for the Viṭṭhal-coin in the kathā. The real-currency is in the kathā; the texts are around it. If you have been putting the texts at the center and the kathā around them, invert the structure.
Without the Viṭṭhal-coin, learning is stones in a hopper. Yēra dagaḍācīm pēmvē, khaḷa-khaḷa. Stones rattling — that's all the non-bhāva-learning is. Don't be impressed by the rattle.

For today: when engaging with spiritual-texts / kathā / teaching, make sure the bhāva is there; sweet-meets-sweet is the marker; the Viṭṭhal-coin (the real-presence) must be in the kathā; otherwise, it is stones in a hopper.

मराठी: ही ओवी textual-knowledge real कधी होतं नाव सांगते:

पूर्ण पंडित सुद्धा भावाने ऐकावा. Mastery पुरेसं नाही. भाव structurally required — most-learned साठीही. Technical-mastery without bhāva — stones in a hopper.
गोड गोडाला भेटतं. क्षीर-तुप-साखर मिठी. Bhāva असलेला bhakta Krishna-kathā ला भेटतो — meeting sweet-on-sweet. कथेसह तुमची भेट sweet-on-sweet वाटत नसेल — भाव missing.
Jāṇīvē-mūla उपटा. स्वतःवर प्रेम असेल — knowing-root उपटा. अधिक-knowing accumulate करणं path नाही; knowing-ness चं मूळ उपटा.
Nourishment शिवाय decoration empty. खाल्ल्या-शिवाय body-paste — śṛngāra empty. Spiritual-life: internal-nourishment शिवाय external-decoration empty. Hari-kathā शिवाय sweetness external-decoration.
Texts कथेच्या भोवती जमतात, उलट नाही. Vedas-Purāṇas — कथेमधल्या Viṭṭhal-coin साठी उभे. Real-currency कथेमध्ये; texts भोवती. तुम्ही texts मध्यभागी आणि कथा भोवती ठेवत असाल — structure invert करा.
Viṭṭhal-coin शिवाय learning stones in a hopper*. येर दगडाचीं पेंवें, खळखळ. Stones rattling — non-bhāva-learning हेच आहे. Rattle ने impressed होऊ नका*.

आज: spiritual-texts / kathā / teaching शी engage करताना — भाव आहे ना याची खात्री करा; sweet-meets-sweet marker; कथेमध्ये Viṭṭhal-coin (real-presence) हवा; नसेल — stones in a hopper.

Where this applies

Even pundit must hear with bhāva. Mastery is not enough.
Sweet meets sweet. Marker of real meeting.
Uproot the jāṇīvē-mūla. Knowing-root is obstacle.
Texts gather around the kathā. Don't invert.
Without Viṭṭhal-coin, stones in a hopper. Empty rattle.