Abhanga 309
Two actions can look identical from the outside, meditation versus laziness, chanting versus sleep, renunciation versus a livelihood, devotion for gain versus real love for God, yet what's inside determines completely different results.
The verse
एक तटस्थ मानसीं । एक सहज चि आळसी ॥१॥ दोन्ही दिसती सारिखीं । वर्म जाणे तो पारखी ॥ध्रु.॥ एक ध्यानीं करिती जप । एक बैसुनि घेती झोप ॥२॥ एकां सर्वस्वाचा त्याग। एकां पोटासाठीं जोग ॥३॥ एकां भक्ति पोटासाठीं । एकां देवासवें गांठी ॥४॥ वर्म पोटीं एका । फळें दोन म्हणे तुका ॥५॥
Literal translation
One taṭastha in mānasī; one naturally ālasī. Both look the same — the pārakhī knows the varma. One — does japa in dhyāna; one — sitting, takes sleep. One — tyāga of sarva-svā; one — jōga for the belly. One — bhakti for belly; one — gānṭhī with the deva. Tuka says: the varma — in pōṭa — one — fruits two.
मराठी: एक तटस्थ मानसीं — एक सहज चि आळसी. दोन्ही दिसती सारिखीं — वर्म जाणे तो पारखी. एक ध्यानीं करिती जप — एक बैसुनि घेती झोप. एकां सर्वस्वाचा त्याग — एकां पोटासाठीं जोग. एकां भक्ति पोटासाठीं — एकां देवासवें गांठी. तुकाराम म्हणतां — वर्म पोटीं एका — फळें दोन.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| एक तटस्थ मानसीं | "onetaṭasthainmānasī" |
| एक सहज चि आळसी | "one naturallyālasī" |
| दोन्ही दिसती सारिखीं | "both look the same" |
| वर्म जाणे तो पारखी | "thepārakhīknows thevarma" |
| एक ध्यानीं करिती जप | "one — does japa indhyāna" |
| एक बैसुनि घेती झोप | "one — sitting, takeszōpa(sleep)" |
| एकां सर्वस्वाचा त्याग | "one —tyāgaofsarva-svā(everything)" |
| एकां पोटासाठीं जोग | "one —jōgafor thepōṭa(belly)" |
| एकां भक्ति पोटासाठीं | "one — bhakti for belly" |
| एकां देवासवें गांठी | "one —gānṭhī(knot / connection) with the deva" |
| वर्म पोटीं एका | "thevarma— inpōṭa— one" |
| फळें दोन म्हणे तुका | "fruits two — Tuka says" |
What it means
A same-look-different-substance abhang. Four pair-images:
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तटस्थ-मानसीं vs आळसी — taṭastha-in-mind vs naturally-lazy. Taṭastha — the still, established meditation-state. Ālasī — the lazy, idle, unmoved-from-not-wanting state. Externally identical. The pārakhī (expert) knows the varma (secret-mark).
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ध्यानीं जप vs बैसुनि झोप — japa in dhyāna vs sitting and sleeping. Both appear-as-sitting-eyes-closed. One does inner-japa; one sleeps. Externally identical.
-
सर्वस्वाचा त्याग vs पोटासाठीं जोग — renunciation of everything vs jōga for the belly. Both appear-as-renouncer. One renounces all; one performs renunciation as a livelihood. Externally identical. (Compare 244 abhimāna-renunciation; 273 no maṭha-pati for the real bhakta.)
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भक्ति पोटासाठीं vs देवासवें गांठी — bhakti for belly vs gānṭhī with the deva. Both appear-as-bhakti. One does bhakti for livelihood / for siddhi / for material-prizes; one has gānṭhī (knot, real-connection) with the deva. Externally identical. (Compare 256 Viṭṭhal-coin in the kathā; 304 prema-bhāva in antara.)
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वर्म पोटीं एका — फळें दोन — the varma is in the belly — one fruit, two effects. The closing-claim. Two pair-acts that look-identical externally produce fruits-two. The varma (the internal-secret-mark) is in the pōṭa (belly / inner-region). Same external-form, different internal-orientation, different fruits.
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For someone today
Tukaram points out that two things which look identical on the outside can be completely different on the inside. A person sitting still in deep meditation can look exactly like someone who's just lazy and unmotivated, someone quietly chanting can look just like someone dozing off, someone who has truly given up everything can look the same as someone performing renunciation as a livelihood, and someone practicing devotion for personal gain can look just like someone who has real, deep love for God. Only someone with real insight, an expert eye, can tell these apart, because the difference lives inside a person, not in what their posture or actions look like from outside. Two acts that appear the same can quietly produce two completely different outcomes.
मराठी: तुकाराम सांगतात की बाहेरून सारख्या दिसणाऱ्या दोन गोष्टी आतून पूर्णपणे वेगळ्या असू शकतात. ध्यानात स्थिर बसलेली व्यक्ती आणि नुसती आळशी, उत्साहहीन व्यक्ती सारख्याच दिसू शकतात; शांतपणे जप करणारी व्यक्ती आणि झोपी गेलेली व्यक्ती सारख्याच दिसू शकतात; खरोखर सर्वस्वाचा त्याग केलेली व्यक्ती आणि उदरनिर्वाहासाठी संन्यासाचा आव आणणारी व्यक्ती सारख्याच दिसू शकतात, आणि स्वार्थासाठी भक्ती करणारी व्यक्ती आणि देवाशी खरा, खोल संबंध असलेली व्यक्ती सारख्याच दिसू शकतात. फक्त खरी नजर असलेला, अनुभवी माणूसच हा फरक ओळखू शकतो, कारण हा फरक बाहेरून दिसणाऱ्या हालचालींत नसून आतल्या मनात असतो. एकसारख्या दिसणाऱ्या दोन कृतींचे फळ मात्र पूर्णपणे वेगळे असू शकते.
Where this applies
- External-forms can be identical; substance differs. Four pair-confusions.
- The varma is in the pōṭa. Check internal-orientation.
- Pārakhī-eye required. Discrimination needs expertise.
- One fruit, two effects. Form ≠ determinant; orientation does.