संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 461 of 4582

Abhanga 461

English (selected): Āhā re bhāī — Gangā is not water — vṛkṣa not banyan-pipal — tulsī-rudrākṣa not garland — these are the śreṣṭha body of deva.

When one might mistake the deva-thing for a physical-thing — and you have to recognize this register

When the X-is-not-Y litany teaches the deva-saturated cosmology — and you accept this perception-shift

When Tuka has received this prasāda at Pandharī — and you receive this closing-grace

The verse

आहा रे भाई । गंगा नव्हे जळ । वृक्ष नव्हे वड पिंपळ । तुळसी रुद्राक्ष नव्हे माळ । श्रेष्ठ तनु देवाचिया ॥१॥ समुद्र नदी नव्हे पैं गा । पाषाण म्हणों नये लिंगा । संत नव्हती जगा । मानसा त्या सारिखे ॥२॥ काठी म्हणों नये वेतु । अन्न म्हणों नये सांतु । राम राम हे मातु । नये म्हणों शब्द हे ॥३॥ चंद्र सूर्य नव्हती तारांगणें । मेरु तो नव्हे पर्वता समान । शेष वासुकी नव्हे सर्प जाण । विखाराच्या सारिखे ॥४॥ गरुड नव्हे पाखरूं । ढोर नव्हे नंदिकेश्वरू । झाड नव्हे कल्पतरू । कामधेनु गाय न म्हणावी ॥५॥ कूर्म नव्हे कासव । डुकर नव्हे वराह । ब्रम्हा नव्हे जीव । स्त्री नव्हे लक्ष्मी ॥६॥ गवाक्ष नव्हे हाड । पाटाव नव्हे कापड । परीस नव्हे दगड । सगुण ते ईश्वरीचे ॥७॥ सोनें नव्हे धातु । मीठ नव्हे रेतु । नाहीं नाहीं चर्मांतु । कृष्णजिन व्याघ्रांबर ॥८॥ मुक्ताफळें नव्हेति गारा । खड्याऐसा नव्हे हिरा । जीव नव्हे सोइरा । बोळवीजे स्वइच्छेनें ॥९॥ गांव नव्हे द्वारावती । रणसोड नव्हे मूर्ति । तीर्थ नव्हे गोमती । मोक्ष घडे दर्शनें ॥१०॥ कृष्ण नव्हे भोगी । शंकर नव्हे जोगी । तुका पांडुरंगीं । हा प्रसाद लाधला ॥११॥ ॥५॥

Literal translation

English (selected): Āhā re bhāī — Gangā is not water — vṛkṣa not banyan-pipal — tulsī-rudrākṣa not garland — these are the śreṣṭha body of deva. Samudra-nadī not water — pāṣāṇa not the linga — saints not equal to jaga-mānasa. ... [11 pādas] ... Krishna not bhōgī — Śankara not jōgī — Tuka at Pāṇḍurangī — this prasāda received. (Closing ॥५॥.)

मराठी: आहा रे भाई — गंगा नव्हे जळ — वृक्ष नव्हे वड पिंपळ — तुळसी रुद्राक्ष नव्हे माळ — श्रेष्ठ तनु देवाचिया. ... [११ pādas] ... तुकाराम म्हणतां — कृष्ण नव्हे भोगी — शंकर नव्हे जोगी — तुका पांडुरंगीं हा प्रसाद लाधला.

Word-by-word gloss

Marathi	Meaning
गंगा नव्हे जळ	"Gangā is not (just) jaḷa"
तुळसी रुद्राक्ष नव्हे माळ	"tulsī-rudrākṣa is not (just) māḷa"
श्रेष्ठ तनु देवाचिया	"the śreṣṭha body of the deva"
संत नव्हती जगा मानसा त्या सारिखे	"saints — not equal to jaga-mānasa"
राम राम हे मातु नये म्हणों शब्द	"Rāma-Rāma — not (just) śabda"
शेष वासुकी नव्हे सर्प	"Śeṣa-Vāsuki — not viṣa-snake"
झाड नव्हे कल्पतरू	"kalpataru not (just) tree"
कामधेनु गाय न म्हणावी	"kāmadhenu — not (just) gāya"
ब्रम्हा नव्हे जीव	"Brahmā not jīva"
स्त्री नव्हे लक्ष्मी	"strī not (just) Lakṣmī" (here meaning Lakṣmī is not just a strī)
परीस नव्हे दगड	"pārisa not (just) stone"
गांव नव्हे द्वारावती	"Dvāravatī not (just) gāva"
मोक्ष घडे दर्शनें	"mokṣa happens by darśana"
कृष्ण नव्हे भोगी शंकर नव्हे जोगी	"Krishna not bhōgī; Śankara not jōgī"
तुका पांडुरंगीं हा प्रसाद लाधला	"Tuka at Pāṇḍurangī — prasāda received"
॥५॥	"(end of 5 Āhā re bhāī abhangs)"

What it means

A X-is-not-Y-but-Z deva-saturated-cosmology litany abhang. Third (and longest) of the Āhā re bhāī triplet (459-461), with closing ॥५॥ marker (= 5 abhangs of Āhā re bhāī form). Eleven pādas, each listing 3-4 things-not-just-physical-thing-but-deva-body. Categories:

Sacred-objects: Gangā / vṛkṣa-vaḍa-pimpaḷa / tulsī-rudrākṣa — not (just) physical, the deva's śreṣṭha tanu**.
Sacred-rivers-and-stones: samudra-nadī / pāṣāṇa-linga / saints — not (just) jaḷa-pāṣāṇa-jana-mānasa.
Common-objects: kāṭhī-vētu / anna-sāmta / Rāma-Rāma-śabda — not (just) physical-thing.
Cosmic-objects: sun-moon-stars / Meru-pārvata / Śeṣa-Vāsuki — not just physical.
Mythic-animals: Garuḍa-bird / Nandīkeśvara-cattle / kalpataru-tree / kāmadhenu-cow — not just animal-or-tree.
Avatāras: Kūrma-tortoise / varāha-pig / Brahmā-jīva / strī-Lakṣmī (= Lakṣmī as just-a-woman) — not physical-version.
Materials: gavākṣa-bone / pāṭāva-cloth / pārisa-stone — saguṇa of Īśvara.
Substances: sōnē-dhātu / mīṭa-rētu / cārmānta — Kṛṣṇajina-vyāghrāmbara (skin-of-Kṛṣṇa-jīna and tiger-skin garment of Śiva are not mere skins).
Treasures: muktā-gārā (pearl-hailstone) / hīrā-khaḍyā / jīva-sōyarā — jīva goes by free-icchā.
Sacred-places: gāva-Dvāravatī / Raṇasōḍa-mūrti / tīrtha-Gomatī — mokṣa by darśana.
Closing — Krishna-bhōgī / Śankara-jōgī: don't reduce them to enjoyment-or-asceticism; Tuka at Pāṇḍurangī received this prasāda**.

Each X-nahvē-Y line claims: the deva-saturated thing is not the merely-physical-version. The deva-cosmology permeates everything; don't reduce sacred-things to physical-substrates.

[T]

For someone today

This abhang names the deva-saturated-cosmology / X-is-not-mere-Y register:

Gangā is not just water; tulsī is not just garland; saints are not just people. Don't reduce sacred-things to their physical-substrates. Each is the deva's śreṣṭha-tanu (best-body).
Common objects (rod, food, name) are not just physical. Even the Rāma-Rāma sounds are not just śabda; they carry the deva's-presence.
Mythic-creatures and avatāras are not reducible to their species. Garuḍa-not-bird, Kūrma-not-turtle, varāha-not-pig. The avatāra-form-and-the-species-form differ.
Materials and treasures: pearl-not-hailstone, diamond-not-stone. Treasures have inherent-quality, not just appearance.
Sacred-places: gāva-not-Dvāravatī; mokṣa by darśana. Some gāva is Dvāravatī; mokṣa happens by darśana, not by location-alone*.
Krishna not bhōgī; Śankara not jōgī. Don't reduce Krishna to enjoyment or Śankara to asceticism; they are the Saguṇa-Īśvara**.
Tuka at Pāṇḍurangī — prasāda* received. This prasāda (this entire-recognition that the world is not-merely-physical-but-deva-saturated) — Tuka received at Pāṇḍurangī*.

For today: don't reduce sacred-things to physical-substrates; recognize the deva-saturated-cosmology; each thing has śreṣṭha-tanu if it's deva-touched; seek darśana for mokṣa; receive the prasāda of recognition*.

This abhang is one of Tukaram's-most-comprehensive anti-physicalism declarations. The world is read as deva-saturated; nothing is merely what it seems. The prasāda is the recognition itself.

मराठी: ही ओवी deva-saturated-cosmology / X-is-not-mere-Y register नाव सांगते:

Gangā फक्त पाणी नाही; tulsī फक्त माळा नाही; saints फक्त लोक नाहीत. Sacred-things ला physical-substrates ला reduce नका. प्रत्येक deva ची śreṣṭha-tanu**.
Common objects (rod, food, name) फक्त physical नाहीत. Rāma-Rāma sounds सुद्धा फक्त śabda नाहीत; deva-presence carry करतात.
Mythic-creatures आणि avatāras species ला reducible नाहीत. Garuḍa-not-bird, Kūrma-not-turtle, varāha-not-pig. Avatāra-form आणि species-form differ.
Materials आणि treasures: pearl-not-hailstone, diamond-not-stone. Treasures ला inherent-quality, फक्त appearance नाही.
Sacred-places: gāva-not-Dvāravatī; mokṣa darśana ने. काही gāva Dvāravatī; Mokṣa darśana ने होतं, फक्त location ने नाही.
Krishna न bhōgī; Śankara न jōgī*. Krishna ला enjoyment ला reduce करू नका; Śankara ला asceticism ला नाही; ते Saguṇa-Īśvara*.
Tuka Pāṇḍurangī ला — prasāda* received. हा prasāda (entire-recognition की जग not-merely-physical-but-deva-saturated) Tuka ला Pāṇḍurangī ला मिळाला*.

आज: Sacred-things ला physical-substrates ला reduce नका; Deva-saturated-cosmology ओळखा; प्रत्येक deva-touched गोष्टीला śreṣṭha-tanu; Mokṣa साठी darśana शोधा; Recognition चं prasāda receive करा*.

Tukaram च्या most-comprehensive anti-physicalism declarations पैकी एक. जग deva-saturated म्हणून read; काहीही merely दिसतं तसं नाही. Prasāda — recognition itself*.

Where this applies

Don't reduce sacred to physical-substrate. Anti-physicalism.
Common objects are not just physical. Deva-permeation.
Avatāras not reducible to species. Form-distinction.
Treasures have inherent-quality. Not just appearance.
Sacred-places require darśana. Not location-alone.
Krishna not bhōgī; Śankara not jōgī. Saguṇa-Īśvara.