Abhanga 581
God pervades everything the way sweetness pervades jaggery, and the devotee is no more separate from God than a wave is from water or a gold ornament is from gold.
The verse
गोडीपणें जैसा गुळ । तैसा देव जाला सकळ ॥१॥ आतां भजों कवणे परी । देव सबाह्य अंतरीं ॥ध्रु.॥ उदका वेगळा । नव्हे तरंग निराळा ॥२॥ हेम अळंकारा नामीं । तुका म्हणे तैसे आम्ही ॥३॥
Literal translation
Gōḍī-paṇa — guḷa — deva — sakaḷa. Now — bhajan — what way? — sa-bāhya-amtarīm. From udaka — separate — taranga not nirāḷā. Hēma — aḷankāra — by nāma. Tuka says: thus we are.
मराठी: गोडीपणें जैसा गुळ — तैसा देव जाला सकळ. आतां भजों कवणे परी — देव सबाह्य अंतरीं. उदका वेगळा — नव्हे तरंग निराळा. हेम अळंकारा नामीं. तुकाराम म्हणतां — तैसे आम्ही.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| गोडीपणें जैसा गुळ | "gōḍī-paṇa — guḷa" |
| तैसा देव जाला सकळ | "deva — sakaḷa" |
| आतां भजों कवणे परी | "now — bhajan — what way?" |
| देव सबाह्य अंतरीं | "sa-bāhya-amtarīm" |
| उदका वेगळा | "from udaka — separate" |
| नव्हे तरंग निराळा | "taranga — not nirāḷā" |
| हेम अळंकारा नामीं | "hēma — aḷankāra — by nāma" |
| तुका म्हणे तैसे आम्ही | "thus we are" |
What it means
A deva-pervades-by-sweetness-bhakta-deva-merger abhang. Three classical-images for non-difference. Three claims:
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गोडीपणें जैसा गुळ — तैसा देव जाला सकळ — आतां भजों कवणे परी — देव सबाह्य अंतरीं — gōḍī-paṇa — guḷa — deva — sakaḷa — now — bhajan — what way? — sa-bāhya-amtarīm. The opening-pervasion-claim: by the way ofgōḍī-paṇa(sweetness) — likeguḷa(jaggery, palm-sugar); the deva has becomesakaḷa(all); now in what way tobhajan? — the deva issa-bāhya-amtarīm(outside-and-inside). Deva-pervades-everything-like-sweetness-pervades-jaggery; how-to-worship-Him-apart? (The classical jaggery-sweetness image: every-bit-of-jaggery is sweet; you can't-separate-the-sweetness-from-the-jaggery.)
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उदका वेगळा — नव्हे तरंग निराळा — from udaka — separate — taranga — not nirāḷā. The wave-water-image: separate fromudaka(water) — thetaranga(wave) is notnirāḷā(different). Wave-and-water-not-different. Bhakta-and-deva-not-different.
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हेम अळंकारा नामीं — तुका म्हणे तैसे आम्ही — hēma — aḷankāra — by nāma — thus we are. The closing-gold-and-ornament-image: likehēma(gold) in theaḷankāra(ornaments) bynāma(name only); Tuka says: thus we are. Gold-is-the-substance-of-ornaments; only-the-name-distinguishes-them. Bhakta-and-deva: same-substance, different-only-by-name. (The classical Vedānta-image: bracelet-and-necklace are gold; only the name differs.)
[T]
For someone today
Sweetness cannot be pulled out of jaggery — every bit of it is sweet through and through. That is how Tukaram describes God pervading everything, not sitting apart from the world watching it, but soaked into it, inside and out. A wave is never separate from the water it is made of, and gold is still gold whether it is shaped into a bracelet or a necklace, only the name changes. In the same way, you and God are not two separate things trying to meet; you already share the same substance, wearing a different name.
मराठी: गुळाच्या प्रत्येक कणात गोडी भरलेली असते, ती वेगळी काढताच येत नाही. तुकाराम म्हणतात, देवही असाच सर्वत्र भरलेला आहे — बाहेरही आणि आतही. जशी लाट पाण्यापासून वेगळी नसते, आणि सोने बांगडी किंवा गळ्यातला दागिना असो तरी सोनेच राहते, फक्त नाव बदलते, तसेच भक्त आणि देव हे दोन वेगळे घटक भेटायला निघालेले नाहीत; ते मुळातच एकाच तत्त्वाचे आहेत, फक्त नावाने वेगळे दिसतात.
Where this applies
- Sweetness pervades jaggery. Universal-immanence.
- Sa-bāhya-amtarīm. Outside-and-inside.
- Wave-water non-difference. Bhakta-deva.
- Gold-ornament by name only. Substance-identity.