Abhanga 725
Formal rituals break with a single mistake, but simple wholehearted devotion needs only one sincere feeling and cannot be broken that way.
The verse
चहूं आश्रमांचे धर्म । न राखतां जोडे कर्म ॥१॥ तैसी नव्हे भोळी सेवा । एक भाव चि कारण देवा ॥ध्रु.॥ तपें इंद्रियां आघात । क्षणें एका वाताहात ॥२॥ मंत्र चळे थोडा । तरि धड चि होय वेडा ॥३॥ व्रतें करितां सांग । तरी एक चुकतां भंग ॥४॥ धर्म सत्व चि कारण । नाहीं तरी केला सिण ॥५॥ भूतदयेसि आघात । उंचनिच वाताहात ॥६॥ तुका म्हणे दुजें । विधिनिषेधाचें ओझें ॥७॥
Literal translation
Cahūm-āśrama-dharma — na rākhatām — karma forms. Not so — bhōḷī-sēvā — one bhāva — only kāraṇa — deva. Tapa — indriya — āghāta — by one kṣaṇa — vātāhāta. Mantra — caḷē — a little — dhaḍa-ci — utterly vēḍā becomes. Vrata — doing — thoroughly — one error — bhanga. Dharma — sat-va alone — kāraṇa — else siṇa. Bhūta-dayā — āghāta — unca-nica vātāhāta. Tuka says: the rest — vidhi-niṣēdha-ōjhē.
मराठी: चहूं-आश्रमांचे-धर्म — न-राखतां — कर्म जोडे. तसें नाही भोळी सेवा — एक-भाव-च-कारण देवा. तप-त इंद्रियांना आघात — एका-क्षणात वाताहात. मंत्र-थोडा-चळे — धड-च वेडा होतो. व्रत सांगपणें — एक-चुकलं तर भंग. धर्म — सत्व-च-कारण; नाही-तर सिण. भूत-दयेला आघात — उंच-निच वाताहात. Tuka म्हणे: दुजें — विधि-निषेधाचं ओझं.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| चहूं आश्रमांचे धर्म | "cahūm-āśrama — dharma" |
| न राखतां जोडे कर्म | "not-kept — karma forms" |
| तैसी नव्हे भोळी सेवा | "not so — bhōḷī-sēvā" |
| एक भाव चि कारण देवा | "one bhāva — only kāraṇa — deva" |
| तपें इंद्रियां आघात | "tapa — indriya — āghāta" |
| क्षणें एका वाताहात | "kṣaṇa — vātāhāta" |
| मंत्र चळे थोडा | "mantra — caḷē — a-little" |
| धड चि होय वेडा | "becomes — utterly — vēḍā" |
| व्रतें करितां सांग | "vrata — doing — thoroughly" |
| एक चुकतां भंग | "one — error — bhanga" |
| धर्म सत्व चि कारण | "dharma — sat-va — kāraṇa" |
| नाहीं तरी केला सिण | "else — siṇa" |
| भूतदयेसि आघात | "bhūta-dayā — āghāta" |
| उंचनिच वाताहात | "unca-nica — vātāhāta" |
| दुजें विधिनिषेधाचें ओझें | "the-rest — vidhi-niṣēdha-ōjhē" |
What it means
A formal-religion-fragile-bhōḷī-sēvā-only-bhāva-sat-only-cause-vidhi-niṣēdha-load abhang. Bhōḷī-sēvā-vs-formal-religion register. The structure is a sequence of fragility-of-formal-modes contrasted with the unconditional bhōḷī-sēvā. Seven claims:
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चहूं-आश्रम-धर्म — न-राखतां — कर्म जोडे. Āśrama-dharma-fragile-claim. The four-āśrama(brahmacarya, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, sannyāsa)dharma; if not kept (na rākhatām),karma(karma-debt, karmic-residue) forms. Āśrama-rules: must be kept perfectly, else karma-debt.
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तसं नाही भोळी सेवा — एक-भाव-च-कारण. Bhōḷī-sēvā-needs-only-bhāva-claim. Not so thebhōḷī-sēvā(the simple-minded sēvā); onebhāvaalone is thekāraṇa(cause, sufficient-condition). Bhōḷī-sēvā: only-bhāva-needed.
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तप-इंद्रियांना-आघात — क्षणांत-वाताहात. Tapas-fragile-claim. Intapa, theindriyasareāghāta(struck, attacked); by onekṣaṇa(moment), all isvātāhāta(scattered, like-wind-scattered). Tapas: one-moment-of-failure-scatters-everything.
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मंत्र-चळे-थोडा — धड-च-वेडा. Mantra-fragile-claim. If themantraslips (caḷē) a little — one becomes utterlyvēḍā(mad). Mantra: one-syllable-slip-makes-mad.
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व्रत-सांगपणें — एक-चुकलं-भंग. Vrata-fragile-claim. When doingvratas(vows, observances)sānga(thoroughly, completely); one error and (thevrata) isbhanga(broken). Vrata: one-error-breaks-it.
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धर्म-सत्व-कारण — नाही-तर-सिण — भूत-दयेला आघात — उंच-निच-वाताहात. Sat-only-cause-and-bhūta-dayā-fragile-claim. Dharma's onlykāraṇaissat-va(the genuine, the truthful); else, justsiṇa(toil); bhūta-dayā (mercy-on-beings) is āghāta (struck) by unca-nica (high-low caste-distinctions) which scatter it.Sat-is-the-cause-of-dharma; bhūta-dayā-fragile-when-distinctions-scatter.
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Tuka: दुजें — विधि-निषेध-ओझं. Vidhi-niṣēdha-load-claim. Tuka says: the rest (other-thanbhōḷī-sēvā) —loadofvidhi-niṣēdha(rules and prohibitions). All-rest-is-load-of-rules-and-prohibitions.
[T]
For someone today
Formal religious practices, such as following stage-of-life duties perfectly, austerities, exact mantras, or completed vows, are brittle: one slip and the whole thing is considered broken or wasted effort. Simple, wholehearted devotion does not work that way; it only needs one sincere feeling toward God, and that is already enough. Everything else, the endless list of do's and don'ts, is just extra weight you do not need to carry.
मराठी: औपचारिक धार्मिक आचरण, म्हणजे आश्रमधर्म काटेकोर पाळणे, तप, बरोबर मंत्र, पूर्ण व्रत, हे नाजूक असतं; एक चूक झाली की सगळं मोडतं किंवा वाया जातं. साधी, मनापासूनची भक्ती तशी नसते; तिला फक्त एक खरा भाव लागतो, आणि तेवढंच पुरेसं असतं. बाकी सगळं, म्हणजे नियम आणि निषेधांची लांबलचक यादी, हे उगाच वाहून नेण्याचं ओझं आहे.
Where this applies
- Formal-modes — fragile. Single-error.
- Bhōḷī-sēvā—bhāva. Only-cause.
- Vidhi-niṣēdha-ōjhē. Critique.