संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 546 of 4582

Abhanga 546

Public honor and fame can burn like fire rather than bring happiness, so ask to be pulled out of that fire instead of deeper into it.

When the bhakta refuses honor and praise, finds them burning — and you have to recognize this register
When fine sweets become poison-equal — and you accept this revaluation
When the bhakta begs to be pulled out of the fire of fame — and you receive this petition

The verse

नाहीं सुख मज न लगे हा मान । न राहे हें जन काय करूं ॥१॥ देहउपचारें पोळतसे अंग । विषतुल्य चांग मिष्टान्न तें ॥ध्रु.॥ नाइकवे स्तुति वाणितां थोरीव । होतो माझा जीव कासावीस ॥२॥ तुज पावें ऐसी सांग कांहीं कळा । नको मृगजळा गोवूं मज ॥३॥ तुका म्हणे आतां करीं माझें हित । काढावें जळत आगींतूनि ॥४॥

Literal translation

No sukha — don't need māna — jana won't leave — what to do? Deha-upacāra — burn the body — viṣa-tulya — fine miṣṭānna. Can't bear stuti — thōrīva-speech — jīva — kāsāvīsa. Tell — kaḷā — to reach You — don't entangle in mṛga-jaḷa. Tuka says: do my hita — pull jaḷata out of agni.

मराठी: नाहीं सुख मज न लगे हा मान — न राहे हें जन काय करूं?. देहउपचारें पोळतसे अंग — विषतुल्य चांग मिष्टान्न तें. नाइकवे स्तुति वाणितां थोरीव — होतो माझा जीव कासावीस. तुज पावें ऐसी सांग कांहीं कळा — नको मृगजळा गोवूं मज. तुकाराम म्हणतां — आतां करीं माझें हित — काढावें जळत आगींतूनि.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
नाहीं सुख मज न लगे हा मान "no sukha — don't need māna"
न राहे हें जन काय करूं "jana won't leave — what to do?"
देहउपचारें पोळतसे अंग "deha-upacāra — burn the body"
विषतुल्य चांग मिष्टान्न तें "viṣa-tulya — fine miṣṭānna"
नाइकवे स्तुति वाणितां थोरीव "can't bear stuti — speech-of-thōrīva"
होतो माझा जीव कासावीस "jīva — kāsāvīsa"
तुज पावें ऐसी सांग कांहीं कळा "tell — kaḷā — to reach You"
नको मृगजळा गोवूं मज "don't entangle in mṛga-jaḷa"
आतां करीं माझें हित "do my hita"
काढावें जळत आगींतूनि "pull — jaḷata — out of agni"

What it means

A famous protest-against-fame-burning-pull-me-out abhang. The saint-suffering-from-fame register. As Tukaram's reputation-grew, he was increasingly the object of public-honor; this abhang protests-the-fame as burning-fire. Five claims:

  1. नाहीं सुख मज न लगे हा मान — न राहे हें जन काय करूं — no sukha — don't need māna — jana won't leave — what to do? The opening-protest: nosukhafor me; I don't need thismāna(honor, respect); but thejana(people) won'trāhē(stop, leave-off); what to do? Honor-burns-but-people-won't-stop.

  2. देहउपचारें पोळतसे अंग — विषतुल्य चांग मिष्टान्न तें — deha-upacāra burn the body — viṣa-tulya — fine miṣṭānna. The body-honors-as-poison-claim: deha-upacāra (body-attentions, body-honors = the formal-pūjā-style-honors people offer to a saint)—poḷatasē anga(burn the body); viṣa-tulya (poison-equal) — cānga miṣṭānna (fine sweets).Body-honors-burn; sweets-equal-poison.Re-valuation-of-honors-as-suffering.

  3. नाइकवे स्तुति वाणितां थोरीव — होतो माझा जीव कासावीस — can't bear stuti — thōrīva-speech — jīva kāsāvīsa. The can't-bear-praise-claim: I can'taikavē(bear-to-hear)stuti(praise); vāṇitām (extolling, praising-out)thethōrīva(greatness); thejīvabecomeskāsāvīsa(anguished, in agony). Praise-causes-jīva-anguish.

  4. तुज पावें ऐसी सांग कांहीं कळा — नको मृगजळा गोवूं मज — tell — kaḷā — to reach You — don't entangle in mṛga-jaḷa. The kaḷā-and-mṛga-jaḷa-claim: tell somekaḷā(skill, device, art) by which I reach You; don'tgōvūm(entangle) me inmṛga-jaḷa(mirage = the illusory-water-in-the-desert). Don't-entangle-me-in-the-mirage-of-fame.

  5. तुका म्हणे आतां करीं माझें हित — काढावें जळत आगींतूनि — Tuka says: do my hita — pull jaḷata out of agni. The closing-pull-me-out-claim: Tuka says: now do myhita(good); kāḍhāvē (pull, draw-out) me — jaḷata (burning) — out of the agni (fire).Pull-me-burning-out-of-the-fire-of-fame.Honest-burning-petition.

[T]

For someone today

Tukaram admits something surprising: being honored does not make him happy at all. The ceremonial attention people pay a respected figure, the touching of feet, the fine sweets, even praise of his greatness, feels to him like his body is burning and the sweets taste like poison. If you have ever felt more anguish than pleasure when people singled you out for praise, this verse tells you that reaction is not weakness, it is honest perception. He does not ask to be made comfortable with fame. He asks for a way to reach what actually matters and begs to be pulled, still burning, out of that fire before it consumes him.

मराठी: तुकाराम एक आश्चर्यकारक गोष्ट कबूल करतात, मान-सन्मानाने त्यांना अजिबात सुख मिळत नाही. लोक आदरणीय व्यक्तीला जे औपचारिक मानसन्मान देतात, पाय धरणे, गोड पदार्थ, मोठेपणाची स्तुती, हे सगळे त्यांना शरीर जळल्यासारखे आणि गोड विषासारखे वाटते. एखाद्या वेळी लोकांनी तुमचे कौतुक केले आणि तुम्हाला आनंदाऐवजी अस्वस्थता वाटली असेल, तर ही ओवी सांगते की ती भावना कमजोरी नाही, ती प्रामाणिक जाणीव आहे. ते प्रसिद्धीशी जुळवून घेण्याची मागणी करत नाहीत. ते फक्त खरे काय आहे तिथे पोहोचण्याचा मार्ग मागतात आणि जळत असतानाच त्या आगीतून बाहेर काढण्याची विनवणी करतात, त्याआधी की ती आग त्यांना पूर्ण गिळंकृत करेल.

Where this applies

Bhakti pull-me-burning-out-of-fire

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