Abhanga 769
Just as a magnet holds iron aloft and fire spares sandalwood while burning ordinary wood, God quietly sustains and protects the devotee through ordinary and dangerous moments alike.
The verse
लोह चुंबकाच्या बळें । उभें राहिलें निराळें ॥१॥ तैसा तूं चि आम्हांठायीं । खेळतोसी अंतर्बाहीं ॥ध्रु.॥ भक्ष अग्नीचा तो दोरा । त्यासि वांचवी मोहरा ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे अधीलपणें । नेली लांकडें चंदनें ॥३॥
Literal translation
Lōha — cumbaka — baḷa — stands — suspended — nirāḷē. So — You — with-us-place — play — antar-bāhīm. Bhakṣa — agni — dōrā — saves — mōharā. Tuka says: adhīla-paṇa — took — lānkaḍa — candana.
मराठी: लोह चुंबकाच्या बळें — उभें राहिलें निराळें. तैसा तूं च आम्हांठायीं — खेळतोसी अंतर-बाहीं. भक्ष अग्नीचा तो दोरा — त्यासि वांचवी मोहरा. Tuka म्हणे: अधीलपणें — नेली लांकडें, चंदनें.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| लोह चुंबकाच्या बळें | "lōha — cumbaka — baḷa" |
| उभें राहिलें निराळें | "stands — suspended — nirāḷē" |
| तैसा तूं चि आम्हांठायीं | "so — You — with-us-place" |
| खेळतोसी अंतर्बाहीं | "play — antar-bāhīm" |
| भक्ष अग्नीचा तो दोरा | "bhakṣa — agni — dōrā" |
| त्यासि वांचवी मोहरा | "saves — mōharā" |
| अधीलपणें | "adhīla-paṇa" |
| नेली लांकडें चंदनें | "took — lānkaḍa — candana" |
What it means
A iron-by-magnet-You-play-internally-externally-thread-saved-by-mōharā-fire-took-firewood-sandalwood abhang. You-play-with-us register. Three claims:
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लोह — चुंबक-बळें — निराळें-स्थित — तैसा तूं आम्हांठायीं — अंतर-बाहीं खेळ. Iron-by-magnet-You-play-claim. Thelōha(iron) — by thecumbaka's (magnet's) power —stands-suspended (nirāḷē — unsupported, separate);so You-only — with-us, in-our-place — play (khēḷatōsi) internally and externally (antar-bāhīm).Magnet-and-iron-image-applied-to-You-and-us; You-hold-us-suspended-and-play-both-inside-and-out.
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भक्ष-अग्नी-दोरा — मोहरा-वांचवी. Thread-saved-by-mōharā-claim. Thebhakṣa(food, fuel) of theagniis thedōrā(thread / string); but themōharā(a jewel / agate, possiblyHari-mōharāor some-protective-stone) saves (vāncavī) it. Even-the-fire-bound-thread-can-be-saved-by-the-mōharā.
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Tuka: अधीलपणें — नेली लांकडें — चंदनें. Fire-took-firewood-sandalwood-claim. Tuka says: inadhīla-paṇa(greedy-haste, attached-eagerness, indiscriminate-grasping); theagnitook (nēlī) thelānkaḍa(firewood); (but) thecandana(sandalwood, also wood-but-precious) (escaped / was-spared). Fire-takes-firewood-but-spares-sandalwood. (Reading: the discriminating-fire-takes-only-firewood, sparing-the-sandalwood; or: even-greedy-fire makes-this-distinction. The bhakta is the candana — fragrant, special — and spared even when others are taken.)
[T]
For someone today
Just as a piece of iron hangs suspended in the air by a magnet's invisible pull, God holds you and plays through you, both inside and out, even when you cannot see the support. When danger comes close, like a thread tied near a fire, an unseen grace can still save what is precious. Fire may look like it consumes everything, yet it burns ordinary firewood while sparing sandalwood; in the same way, the devotee is protected even in the middle of loss and destruction around them.
मराठी: जसा लोखंडाचा तुकडा चुंबकाच्या अदृश्य शक्तीने हवेत तरंगत राहतो, तसाच देव तुम्हाला धरून ठेवतो आणि आतून-बाहेरून तुमच्यातून खेळतो, जरी आधार दिसत नसला तरी. संकट अगदी जवळ आलं, जसा धागा आगीजवळ बांधलेला असतो, तरीही अनाहूत कृपा मौल्यवान गोष्टीला वाचवू शकते. आग सगळंच जाळणारी वाटली तरी ती सामान्य लाकूड जाळते आणि चंदन मात्र सोडून देते, त्याचप्रमाणे भक्त सभोवतालच्या नाशाच्या मध्येही सुरक्षित राहतो.
Where this applies
- Iron-magnet. Suspension.
- Mōharā saves. Protection.
- Fire spares sandalwood. Spared.