Abhanga 584
Tukaram refuses to be mocked or cheated, insisting that a true devotee can always tell the real flavor of things from the fake.
The verse
मजसवें नको चेष्टा । नव्हे साळी कांहीं कोष्टा ॥१॥ बैस सांडोनि दिमाख । जाय काळें करीं मुख ॥ध्रु.॥ येथें न सरे चार । हीण आणीक वेव्हार ॥२॥ तुका विष्णुदास । रस जाणतो नीरस ॥३॥
Literal translation
Me — no cēṣṭā — not sāḷī-kōṣṭā. Sit — abandon dimākha — go — blacken mouth. Here — no cāra — hīṇa — vēvhāra. Tuka — Viṣṇu-dāsa — knows rasa — nīrasa.
मराठी: मजसवें नको चेष्टा — नव्हे साळी कांहीं कोष्टा. बैस सांडोनि दिमाख — जाय काळें करीं मुख. येथें न सरे चार — हीण आणीक वेव्हार. तुका विष्णुदास — रस जाणतो नीरस.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| मजसवें नको चेष्टा | "with-me — no cēṣṭā" |
| नव्हे साळी कांहीं कोष्टा | "not sāḷī or kōṣṭā" |
| बैस सांडोनि दिमाख | "sit — abandon dimākha" |
| जाय काळें करीं मुख | "go — blacken mouth" |
| येथें न सरे चार | "here — no cāra — passes" |
| हीण आणीक वेव्हार | "hīṇa — other vēvhāra" |
| तुका विष्णुदास | "Tuka — Viṣṇu-dāsa" |
| रस जाणतो नीरस | "knows — rasa from nīrasa" |
What it means
A don't-mock-me-Viṣṇu-dāsa-discriminates-rasa abhang. Sharp self-defense register. Three claims:
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मजसवें नको चेष्टा — नव्हे साळी कांहीं कोष्टा — me — no cēṣṭā — not sāḷī-kōṣṭā. The opening-no-mockery-claim: don't makecēṣṭā(mockery, joking-around) with me; I am not asāḷī(weaver) or kōṣṭā (cobbler / loom-worker)(= not your kind of low-tradesman to be made fun of, joked-with-and-cheated). Don't-treat-me-as-someone-who-can-be-mocked. (Note: Tukaram, born to the Vāṇī / shopkeeper-class, here uses caste-language about even-lower-castes being routinely-mocked-and-cheated — but here it's pointed against those-who-might-take-a-bhakta-as-easy-prey. The point is: don't-take-the-bhakta-as-easy.)
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बैस सांडोनि दिमाख — जाय काळें करीं मुख — येथें न सरे चार — हीण आणीक वेव्हार — sit — abandon dimākha — go — blacken mouth — no cāra — hīṇa — vēvhāra. The no-counterfeit-claim: sit — abandondimākha(pride, swagger); go — blacken-your-mouth (= go-and-be-shamed); here,cāra(cheating / counterfeit-coin) doesn'tsaratē(pass); hīṇa (low-grade, debased) — and other vēvhāra (transactions, dealings).No-counterfeit-transactions-here; the bhakta's-place won't accept fake-coin-or-debased-dealings.
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तुका विष्णुदास — रस जाणतो नीरस — Tuka — Viṣṇu-dāsa — knows rasa — nīrasa. The closing-discrimination-claim: Tuka —Viṣṇu-dāsa; knowsrasa(juice, essence, true-flavor) fromnīrasa(juiceless, un-essence, false-flavor). Viṣṇu-dāsa-discriminates-real-from-fake. Discrimination-is-the-bhakta's-quality.
[T]
For someone today
Tukaram draws a hard line here: do not treat me as someone you can mock or cheat, he says, because I know the difference between what is real and what is fake. He tells whoever is testing him to drop the swagger and go, because no counterfeit coin and no cheap trick passes with him. As a servant of Vishnu, he claims a plain kind of self-respect: he can taste the true flavor of things and is not fooled by imitation. Devotion does not mean being an easy target; you are allowed to refuse being mocked or conned, especially by people faking sincerity.
मराठी: तुकाराम इथे स्पष्ट सीमारेषा आखतात: माझी चेष्टा करू नका, कारण मला खरं आणि खोटं यातला फरक कळतो. जो कोणी त्यांची परीक्षा घेत असेल त्याला ते म्हणतात, रुबाब सोडा आणि चालते व्हा, इथे कोणतंही खोटं नाणं चालणार नाही. विष्णुदास म्हणून तुकाराम एक साधासा स्वाभिमान सांगतात, त्यांना गोष्टींची खरी चव कळते, ते नकलेने फसत नाहीत. भक्ती म्हणजे सहज बळी पडणं नव्हे, खोट्या भक्तीचं नाटक करून कोणी तुम्हाला फसवत असेल तर त्याला नकार द्यायचा तुम्हाला पूर्ण अधिकार आहे.
Where this applies
- Don't mock me. Self-respect.
- No cāra passes. No-counterfeit.
- Rasafromnīrasa. Discrimination.