Abhanga 345
True greatness comes from treating everyone with equal compassion, letting go of ego, and no longer needing to display what you know.
The verse
जे कां सिच्चदानंदीं नित्यानंदु । जे कां मोक्षसिद्धी तीर्थ वंदूं रे ॥१॥ भूतकृपा मोडीं द्वेषकंदु । शत्रु मित्र पुत्र सम करीं बंधु रे ॥ध्रु.॥ लघुत्व सर्वभावें अंगीकारीं । सांडीमांडी मीतूंपण ऐसी थोरी रे ॥२॥ वर्ते समाधानीं जाणोनि नेणता । साधु भेट देती तया अवचिता रे ॥३॥ साधुदर्शन नित्यकाळ त्यास । तुका म्हणे जो विटला जाणीवेस रे ॥४॥
Literal translation
He who is nityānanda in sac-cid-ānanda — the mokṣa-siddhī tīrtha to be venerated. Through bhūta-kṛpā break the dvēṣa-kanda — make enemy, friend, son equal, O brother. Embrace laghutva in every way — abandon mī-tūmpaṇa — such is greatness. Live in samādhāna — knowing-yet-unknowing — saints give bhēṭa unexpectedly. Saint-darśana every-time for him — Tuka says — who is viṭalā of jāṇīva.
मराठी: जे कां सिच्चदानंदीं नित्यानंदु — जे कां मोक्षसिद्धी तीर्थ वंदूं रे. भूतकृपा मोडीं द्वेषकंदु — शत्रु मित्र पुत्र सम करीं बंधु रे. लघुत्व सर्वभावें अंगीकारीं — सांडीमांडी मीतूंपण ऐसी थोरी रे. वर्ते समाधानीं जाणोनि नेणता — साधु भेट देती तया अवचिता रे. तुकाराम म्हणतां — साधुदर्शन नित्यकाळ त्यास — जो विटला जाणीवेस रे.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| जे कां सिच्चदानंदीं नित्यानंदु | "He who is nityānanda in sac-cid-ānanda" |
| जे कां मोक्षसिद्धी तीर्थ वंदूं रे | "the mokṣa-siddhī tīrtha to be venerated" |
| भूतकृपा मोडीं द्वेषकंदु | "(by) bhūta-kṛpā — break the dvēṣa-kanda (root of enmity)" |
| शत्रु मित्र पुत्र सम करीं बंधु रे | "make enemy, friend, son — equal, O brother" |
| लघुत्व सर्वभावें अंगीकारीं | "laghutva (lowliness) — embrace in every way" |
| सांडीमांडी मीतूंपण ऐसी थोरी रे | "abandon mī-tūmpaṇa — such is thōrī (greatness)" |
| वर्ते समाधानीं जाणोनि नेणता | "live in samādhāna — knowing-yet-unknowing" |
| साधु भेट देती तया अवचिता रे | "saints give bhēṭa (meeting) — avacita (unexpectedly)" |
| साधुदर्शन नित्यकाळ त्यास | "saint-darśana — every time — for him" |
| तुका म्हणे जो विटला जाणीवेस रे | "Tuka says: who is viṭalā (sick) of jāṇīva" |
What it means
A marks-of-the-saint-darśana-attractor abhang. Five claims:
-
जे कां सिच्चदानंदीं नित्यानंदु — जे कां मोक्षसिद्धी तीर्थ वंदूं रे — He who is nityānanda in sac-cid-ānanda — venerate that mokṣa-siddhī tīrtha. The opening-pointer: the saint who lives nityānanda in sac-cid-ānanda is the mokṣa-siddhī tīrtha. Such a saint is to be venerated.
-
भूतकृपा मोडीं द्वेषकंदु — शत्रु मित्र पुत्र सम करीं बंधु रे — through bhūta-kṛpā break the dvēṣa-kanda — make enemy, friend, son equal, O brother. The first-mark: bhūta-kṛpā (compassion-toward-all-beings) breaks the dvēṣa-kanda (root-of-enmity). Treat enemy, friend, son as equal.
-
लघुत्व सर्वभावें अंगीकारीं — सांडीमांडी मीतूंपण ऐसी थोरी रे — embrace laghutva in every way — abandon mī-tūmpaṇa — such is thōrī. The second-mark: laghutva (lowliness, smallness) embraced in every way; mī-tūmpaṇa (I-ness and you-ness, ego-other distinction) abandoned. That is the realthōrī(greatness). The paradox: greatness is in laghutva.
-
वर्ते समाधानीं जाणोनि नेणता — साधु भेट देती तया अवचिता रे — live in samādhāna — knowing-yet-unknowing — saints give bhēṭa unexpectedly. The third-mark: live in samādhāna (composure, contentment); jāṇōnī nēṇatā (knowing-yet-unknowing — one who knows but does not parade jāṇīva). To such a one, saints come to give darśana — avacita (unexpectedly).
-
साधुदर्शन नित्यकाळ त्यास — तुका म्हणे जो विटला जाणीवेस रे — saint-darśana every-time for him — Tuka says — who is viṭalā of jāṇīva. The closing-rule: saint-darśana is every-time-available for the one who is viṭalā (sick / weary / disgusted) of jāṇīva (knowing-as-display). The anti-jāṇīva qualification is the key. (Compare 342's kāya karisī yukta jāṇīvēcī; same anti-cleverness register.)
[T]
For someone today
Tukaram names the qualities of a person to whom saints naturally come. Compassion toward all beings cuts away the root of enmity, so that enemy, friend, and even one's own child are treated with the same regard. Real greatness lies in embracing humility completely, letting go of the sharp line between "me" and "you" — the more fully you accept smallness, the greater you actually become. Such a person lives in quiet contentment, carrying knowledge without ever needing to display it, and saints appear to such people unexpectedly, as if drawn to them. Tukaram concludes that anyone who has grown weary of showing off what they know will find saints appearing to them at every turn.
मराठी: तुकाराम इथे अशा व्यक्तीचे गुण सांगतात, ज्याच्याकडे संत आपणहून येतात. सर्व जीवांबद्दलची करुणा वैराचे मूळच तोडून टाकते, त्यामुळे शत्रू, मित्र आणि स्वतःचा मुलगा यांनाही सारखेच मानले जाते. खरी थोरवी संपूर्ण नम्रता स्वीकारण्यात असते, 'मी' आणि 'तू' यातील तीक्ष्ण भेद सोडून देण्यात असते — जितकी लहानपण मनापासून स्वीकारावे, तितकी खरी मोठेपणा प्राप्त होते. अशी व्यक्ती शांत समाधानात राहते, ज्ञान बाळगते पण ते दाखवण्याची गरज तिला वाटत नाही, आणि अशा व्यक्तीकडे संत अनपेक्षितपणे येऊन भेटतात. तुकाराम शेवटी सांगतात की जो आपले ज्ञान मिरवण्याचा कंटाळा आला आहे, त्याला संत सतत भेटत राहतात.
Where this applies
- Bhūta-kṛpābreaksdvēṣa-kanda. Equalize all.
- Embrace laghutva, abandon mī-tūmpaṇa. Greatness-paradox.
- Live in samādhāna — jāṇōnī-nēṇatā. Composure-and-not-display.
- Viṭalāofjāṇīva — saint-darśana every-time. Anti-cleverness.