Abhanga 267
This abhang gives three honest images of viraha-state:
The verse
कन्या सासुर्यासि जाये । मागें परतोनी पाहे ॥१॥ तैसें जालें माझ्या जिवा । केव्हां भेटसी केशवा ॥ध्रु.॥ चुकलिया माये । बाळ हुरू हुरू पाहे ॥२॥ जीवना वेगळी मासोळी । तुका म्हणे तळमळी ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: The daughter goes to the in-laws — looks back. Such has become my jīva — when, Keshava, will you meet me? (When the child has) missed the mother — the child sobs and looks (around). The fish separated from water — Tuka says — flounders.
मराठी: कन्या सासुर्यासि जाये — मागें परतोनी पाहे. तैसें जालें माझ्या जिवा — केव्हां भेटसी केशवा. चुकलिया माये — बाळ हुरू हुरू पाहे. जीवना वेगळी मासोळी — तुकाराम म्हणतात — तळमळी.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| कन्या सासुर्यासि जाये | "the kanyā (daughter) goes to the sāsuryā (in-laws)" |
| मागें परतोनी पाहे | "looks back (towards her natal home)" |
| तैसें जालें माझ्या जिवा | "such has become my jīva" |
| केव्हां भेटसी केशवा | "when will you meet (me), Keshava?" |
| चुकलिया माये | "(when the child has) missed / lost the māye (mother)" |
| बाळ हुरू हुरू पाहे | "the bāḷa (child) huru-huru (sob-sob, wail-wail) looks (around)" |
| जीवना वेगळी मासोळी | "the māsōḷī (fish) separated from jīvana (water / life-giving-water)" |
| तुका म्हणे तळमळी | "Tuka says: flounders / writhes" |
What it means
A viraha-bhāva abhang — three concrete-images of separation-longing:
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कन्या सासुर्यासि जाये — मागें परतोनी पाहे — the daughter goes to the in-laws — looks back. The Marathi cultural-image of the daughter leaving for her in-laws' house (a one-way departure in the traditional context). She looks back — toward her natal home — with longing. The gait-forward + glance-back is the bittersweet-departure image. Tukaram's jīva is like the daughter's: moving forward in life-and-time, but glancing-back-with-longing for the deity.
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केव्हां भेटसी केशवा — when will you meet (me), Keshava? The direct-question to the deity. Keshava — Krishna's epithet (one with beautiful long hair; or one who killed Keshī). The question is honest, vulnerable: when?
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चुकलिया माये — बाळ हुरू हुरू पाहे — (when the child has) missed the mother — the child sobs and looks. The child-lost-from-mother image. Hurū-hurū — the sobbing-shudder of small breaths — the body-grief of the lost child. The child looks around (pāhē) — searching, scanning, hoping-for-the-mother.
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जीवना वेगळी मासोळी — तळमळी — the fish separated from water — flounders. The deepest-image. Jīvana in Marathi means both water and life; the fish out of water has lost both water and life. The fish flounders (taḷamaḷī — writhes, struggles, gasps) — the body-distress of the fish-without-water is the bhakta's state without the deity.
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For someone today
This abhang gives three honest images of viraha-state:
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Daughter-leaves-and-looks-back. This is bittersweet: the daughter must go forward (to the in-laws / to the new-life), but the natal-home is what she longs-for. Apply: when life takes you forward and the deity is in the natal-direction, the forward-with-glance-back posture is the honest one. Don't pretend the longing is gone; don't refuse to go forward. Both — forward + glance-back.
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Direct-question is honest. Kevhām bheṭasī Keshavā? When will you meet (me)? Ask the deity the direct-question. Don't hide the longing; don't spiritualize it into not-asking.
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Child-lost-from-mother sob-and-look. When you have lost the deity-presence, the honest-response is sobbing-and-looking. Don't suppress the sob; don't stop looking. Both are the body-form of viraha.
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Fish-out-of-water is the deepest. When the deity is your jīvana (water-and-life), the absence is fish-out-of-water. Honor this. Don't moderate the writhing into something more dignified; the taḷamaḷī (flounder-writhe) is the truthful body-form.
For today: when in viraha-state, hold these three images — they will honor your state without forcing you to moderate-into-something-prettier. The daughter-looking-back, the child-sobbing, the fish-floundering are the truthful shapes of separation.
This is also important for understanding others: when someone in your life is in a viraha-state (loss, separation, longing), recognize these are the truthful body-forms; don't ask them to be more dignified. The fish flounders; that is the body-truth.
मराठी: ही ओवी viraha-state ची तीन honest images देते:
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मुलगी सासरी जाते आणि मागे पाहते. Bittersweet: मुलीला पुढे जायचंय (सासर / नवीन-जीवन), पण माहेर ओढ-घेणारं. लागू करा: जीवन तुम्हाला पुढे नेतंय आणि देव माहेरच्या-दिशेत — forward + glance-back posture honest. ओढ गेली असं pretend करू नका; पुढे जायला refuse करू नका. दोन्ही — forward + glance-back.
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Direct-question honest. केव्हां भेटसी केशवा? देवाला direct-question विचारा. ओढ लपवू नका; not-asking मध्ये spiritualize करू नका.
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मातेपासून हरवलेलं बाळ sob-and-look. तुम्ही देव-presence गमवली — honest-response sobbing-and-looking. Sob suppress करू नका; looking थांबवू नका. दोन्ही viraha चं body-form.
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पाणी-शिवाय मासे deepest. देव तुमचं jīvana (पाणी-आणि-जीव) — absence fish-out-of-water. हे honor करा. Writhing dignified-something मध्ये moderate करू नका; तळमळ truthful body-form.
आज: viraha-state मध्ये असाल — तीन images hold करा — ती तुमची state honor करतील — prettier-something मध्ये moderate करायला न लावता. मुलगी-मागे-पाहत, बाळ-sob, मासे-तळमळी — separation च्या truthful shapes.
इतरांना समजायला पण महत्त्वाचं: तुमच्या आयुष्यात कोणी viraha-state मध्ये आहे (loss, separation, longing) — recognize करा truthful body-forms; अधिक dignified व्हायला विचारू नका. मासे तळमळतात; ते body-truth.
Where this applies
- Daughter-glances-back-leaving. Forward + longing.
- Direct when? question is honest. Don't spiritualize.
- Child sobs and looks. Body-form of loss.
- Fish flounders out of water. Deepest viraha.