संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 315 of 4582

Abhanga 315

This is one of Tukaram's most-radical bhakti-supremacy claims:

When the Veda's secret is gated by adhikāra — and the abhang says Viṭhobā's name has no gate

When the bhava-sindhu must be crossed — and one-time-saying-the-name does it

When vidhi-niṣedha has lapsed and the mārga is uccheda — and you receive this radical-claim

The verse

वेदाचें गव्हर न कळे पाठकां । अधिकार लोकां नाहीं येरां ॥१॥ विठोबाचें नाम सुलभ सोपारें । तारी एक सरे भवसिंधु ॥ध्रु.॥ जाणत्या असाध्य मंत्र तंत्र काळ । येर तो सकळ मूढ लोक ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे विधि निषेध लोपला । उच्छेद या जाला मारगाचा ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: The gavhara of the Veda — the pāṭhakas don't know — adhikāra to the (other) people — none. Viṭhobā's name — sulabha-sōpārē — one-time-saying — crosses the bhava-sindhu. To the jāṇatā — mantra-tantra-kāḷa — asādhya; the rest are all mūḍha. Tuka says: vidhi-niṣedha has lōpa; this mārga has uccheda*.

मराठी: वेदाचें गव्हर न कळे पाठकां — अधिकार लोकां नाहीं येरां. विठोबाचें नाम सुलभ सोपारें — तारी एक सरे भवसिंधु. जाणत्या असाध्य मंत्र तंत्र काळ — येर तो सकळ मूढ लोक. तुकाराम म्हणतां — विधि निषेध लोपला — उच्छेद या जाला मारगाचा.

Word-by-word gloss

Marathi	Meaning
वेदाचें गव्हर न कळे पाठकां	"the gavhara (cave / secret) of the Veda — the pāṭhakas don't know"
अधिकार लोकां नाहीं येरां	"adhikāra to the (other) people — none"
विठोबाचें नाम सुलभ सोपारें	"Viṭhobā's name — sulabha-sōpārē (simple-and-easy)"
तारी एक सरे भवसिंधु	"one-time-saying — crosses the bhava-sindhu**"
जाणत्या असाध्य मंत्र तंत्र काळ	"to the jāṇatā (knower) — mantra-tantra-kāḷa — asādhya**"
येर तो सकळ मूढ लोक	"the rest are all mūḍha (foolish)"
विधि निषेध लोपला	"vidhi-niṣedha (rule-and-prohibition) has lōpa (lapsed)"
उच्छेद या जाला मारगाचा	"this mārga has uccheda (cleared / obliterated)"

What it means

One of Tukaram's most-radical bhakti-claims. Three claims:

वेदाचें गव्हर न कळे पाठकां — अधिकार लोकां नाहीं येरां — Veda's gavhara not known by pāṭhakas — others have no adhikāra. The adhikāra-frame collapse. Pāṭhakas (Veda-reciters by tradition) — do not know the gavhara (cave / secret-meaning). Others (non-Brahmin-non-trained) — have no adhikāra by-tradition. So both modes — pāṭhaka and others — fail to access the Veda's secret. The Veda-as-textual-tradition is inaccessible to anyone in the standard frame.
विठोबाचें नाम सुलभ सोपारें — तारी एक सरे भवसिंधु — Viṭhobā's name simple-and-easy — one-time-saying crosses bhava-sindhu. The radical-alternative. The Viṭhobā-name is sulabha-sōpārē (simple-and-easy / accessible). Eka sare — one-saying / one-time-uttering — crosses the bhava-sindhu (ocean of becoming). The Viṭhobā-name is the anti-adhikāra-required path: no adhikāra-restriction, no traditional-training, no Veda-recitation — just one-time-name-saying.
जाणत्या असाध्य मंत्र तंत्र काळ — येर तो सकळ मूढ लोक — to the jāṇatā, mantra-tantra-kāḷa is asādhya — the rest are all mūḍha. Jāṇatā (the knower / one-who-knows-the-traditional-paths) finds mantra-tantra-kāḷa unattainable (despite all his knowing). The rest (the un-knowing) are mūḍha (foolish). So both knower and un-knower fail at the mantra-tantra-kāḷa path. (Kāḷa here possibly = time / death / right-moment; mantra-tantra to access the kāḷa is impossible.)
तुका म्हणे विधि निषेध लोपला — उच्छेद या जाला मारगाचा — Tuka says: vidhi-niṣedha has lapsed; this mārga has uccheda. The most-radical-closing. Vidhi-niṣedha — the rule-and-prohibition system (= the karma-mīmāmsā framework of right-and-wrong actions) — has lōpa (lapsed, fallen-out, no-longer-applicable). This mārga (the standard-textual-mārga of vidhi-niṣedha) has uccheda — been cleared-out, obliterated. In the bhakti-frame, the vidhi-niṣedha framework is no-longer-the-mārga. (Compare 0258's Hari does not remember the past — same anti-rule-system frame; here, the rule-system itself has lapsed.)

[T] [Important — this is one of Tukaram's most-radical anti-textual-tradition claims]

For someone today

This is one of Tukaram's most-radical bhakti-supremacy claims:

Both adhikāra-paths fail. Pāṭhakas don't know the gavhara; others have no adhikāra. The Veda-as-secret-knowledge is inaccessible to anyone in the standard-frame. (The pāṭhaka knows the recitation but not the secret; others don't have the recitation.)
Viṭhobā-name is sulabha-sōpārē*: one-saying crosses bhava-sindhu. This is radical. The bhava-sindhu (samsara) is crossed by one-time-saying-of-the-name. No adhikāra-required, no training, no preparation, no qualification. (Compare 256's one nāma makes all sānga; 197's fukā nāma āle*.)
Mantra-tantra is asādhya to the knower. Jāṇatā asādhya mantra-tantra-kāḷa. Even the trained-knower cannot accomplish through mantra-tantra alone. The complex-method fails; the simple-name succeeds.
Vidhi-niṣedha has lapsed; this mārga is uccheda. The rule-prohibition system is no-longer-the-path. The standard textual-mārga has been cleared-out. (Important reading: this is not anti-ethics in general; it is anti-the-rule-system-as-the-mārga-to-the-deity. Ethics matters in everyday-life; the rule-system is not the path-to-the-deity. The path-to-the-deity is the simple-name.)

For today: recognize that the textual-adhikāra-frame fails for everyone; the Viṭhobā-name is the simple-and-accessible path; one-time-saying crosses the bhava-sindhu; don't try to get to the deity through mantra-tantra-mastery; recognize that the rule-system has lapsed in this register.

This abhang is foundationally important for anti-elite-spirituality (compare 222, 233, 241, 245, 258). It places the access-to-the-deity outside the textual-tradition's gates. Anyone can say the name; the saying-crosses-the-sindhu; no tradition required.

The vidhi-niṣedha-lōpa claim is theologically bold: it suspends the rule-system as the path. (The rule-system as ethics for everyday-life remains; the rule-system as path-to-deity is suspended.) The bhakti-mārga is the direct-path via the simple-name.

मराठी: ही तुकारामांच्या most-radical bhakti-supremacy claims पैकी एक:

दोन्ही adhikāra-paths fail. Pāṭhakas ला gavhara माहित नाही; इतरांना adhikāra नाही. Veda-as-secret-knowledge standard-frame मध्ये कोणालाही inaccessible.
Viṭhobā-name sulabha-sōpārē*: one-saying bhava-sindhu cross करते. Radical. Bhava-sindhu (samsara) one-time-name-saying ने cross होतो. Adhikāra-required नाही, training नाही, preparation नाही, qualification नाही*.
Mantra-tantra knower-ला asādhya. जाणत्या असाध्य mantra-tantra-kāḷa. Even trained-knower mantra-tantra alone-ने accomplish करू शकत नाही. Complex-method fails; simple-name succeeds.
Vidhi-niṣedha lapse झाला; mārga uccheda. Rule-prohibition system no-longer-the-path. Standard textual-mārga cleared-out. (General-ethics-against नाही; rule-system-as-the-mārga-to-the-deity-against. Everyday-life मध्ये ethics matter; deity-कडे चा path rule-system नाही. Deity-कडे path simple-name.)

आज: textual-adhikāra-frame सर्वांसाठी fail होतो ओळखा; Viṭhobā-name simple-and-accessible path; one-time-saying bhava-sindhu cross करतं; mantra-tantra-mastery ने देवाकडे जाण्याचा प्रयत्न करू नका; या register मध्ये rule-system lapse झाला आहे ओळखा.

ही ओवी anti-elite-spirituality साठी foundationally important. Deity-access textual-tradition च्या gates च्या बाहेर ठेवते. कोणीही नाव म्हणू शकतो; saying-sindhu-cross करतं; no tradition required.

Vidhi-niṣedha-lōpa claim theologically bold: rule-system path-म्हणून suspend करतं. (Rule-system everyday-life ethics म्हणून राहतं; path-to-deity म्हणून suspended.) Bhakti-mārga direct-path simple-name मार्फत.

Where this applies

Both adhikāra-paths fail. Pāṭhakas don't know; others have no adhikāra.
Viṭhobā-name is sulabha-sōpārē; one-time-saying crosses bhava-sindhu.
Mantra-tantra-kāḷa is asādhya to knower. Complex method fails.
Vidhi-niṣedha has lapsed; this mārga is uccheda. Rule-system as path is suspended; simple-name is the direct-path.