संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 807 of 4582

Abhanga 807

You can feel real compassion for people harming themselves and still lack the power to change them, and it is honest, not unkind, to ask for relief from watching it.

When duḥkha hearing talk that causes severance from Your feet — and you have to recognize this register

When compassion seeing injury, but they don't listen — and you accept this image

When don't show me these mad-fellows before my gaze — and you receive this final cry

The verse

दुःख वाटे ऐसी ऐकोनियें गोष्टी । जेणें घडे तुटी तुझ्या पायीं ॥१॥ येतो कळवळा देखोनियां घात । करितों फजित नाइकती ॥ध्रु.॥ काय करूं देवा ऐसी नाहीं शक्ति । दंडुनि पुढती वाटे लावूं ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे मज दावूं नको ऐसे । दृष्टीपुढें पिसे पांडुरंगा ॥३॥

Literal translation

Duḥkha — feel — hearing — gōṣṭi — tuṭī — Your feet. Kaḷavaḷā — seeing — ghāta — phajita — don't listen. No — śakti — daṇḍuni — vāṭē — put-on-path. Tuka says: don't show — such — pisē — dṛṣṭi-puḍhē — Pāṇḍuranga.

मराठी: दुःख वाटे — ऐशी गोष्टी ऐकोनिये — जेणें तुटी घडे तुझ्या पायीं. कळवळा येतो घात देखूनियां — फजित करितों, नाइकती. काय करूं, देवा — ऐसी शक्ति नाहीं — दंडुनि पुढती वाटे लावूं. Tuka म्हणे: मज दावूं नको ऐसे — दृष्टी-पुढें पिसे, Pāṇḍurangā.

Word-by-word gloss

Marathi	Meaning
दुःख वाटे ऐसी ऐकोनियें गोष्टी	"duḥkha — feel — hearing — gōṣṭi"
जेणें घडे तुटी तुझ्या पायीं	"by which — tuṭī — Your feet"
येतो कळवळा देखोनियां घात	"kaḷavaḷā — seeing — ghāta"
करितों फजित नाइकती	"phajita — they don't listen"
ऐसी नाहीं शक्ति	"no — śakti"
दंडुनि पुढती वाटे लावूं	"daṇḍuni — vāṭē — put-on-path"
दावूं नको ऐसे दृष्टीपुढें पिसे	"don't show — such — pisē — dṛṣṭi-puḍhē"

What it means

A duḥkha-hearing-talk-tuṭī-at-feet-compassion-seeing-injury-no-śakti-to-discipline-don't-show-me-mad-ones abhang. Don't-show-me-mad-ones register. Three claims:

दुःख-गोष्टी-ऐकूनियें — तुटी-तुझ्या-पायीं — कळवळा-घात — फजित-नाइकती. Duḥkha-and-fajita-don't-listen-claim. Duḥkha I feel hearing suchgōṣṭi; by which atuṭīis made at Your feet; kaḷavaḷā (compassion) comes seeing the ghāta (injury);I make them phajita (exposed) — they don't listen.Tuka-pained-by-what-causes-severance-makes-them-exposed-but-no-listening.
ऐसी-शक्ति-नाहीं — दंडुनि-वाटे-लावूं. No-śakti-to-discipline-claim. I don't have suchśakti — to daṇḍa (punish) and put-them-on-the-path.No-power-to-discipline.
Tuka: दावूं-नको — पिसे-दृष्टी-पुढें — Pāṇḍurangā. Don't-show-mad-ones-claim. Tuka says: don't show me such ones — thesepisē(mad-fellows) before-my-gaze,Pāṇḍurangā. Don't-show-me-the-mad-ones.

[T]

For someone today

Tukaram says it hurts him to hear people talk in ways that cut them off from God. He feels genuine compassion seeing the harm they're doing to themselves, and he tries to call them out and warn them, but they simply will not listen. He admits he has no power to force anyone onto the right path or to discipline them into changing. So he turns to Pandurang with a tired, honest plea: please stop putting these lost, foolish people in front of me, because watching them and being unable to help is more than he can bear. This is a lesson in the limits of your own influence, that you can feel deep compassion for people who are hurting themselves and still be powerless to fix them, and that it is human to ask for relief from that particular kind of heartbreak.

मराठी: तुकाराम म्हणतात की जेव्हा लोक अशा प्रकारे बोलतात की ज्यामुळे त्यांचा देवाशी असलेला संबंध तुटतो, तेव्हा त्यांना खूप दुःख होते. त्या लोकांचे स्वतःचेच नुकसान होताना पाहून त्यांना खरी कणव वाटते, आणि ते त्यांना समजावण्याचा, सावध करण्याचा प्रयत्न करतात, पण ते लोक ऐकतच नाहीत. तुकाराम कबूल करतात की कोणालाही जबरदस्तीने योग्य मार्गावर आणण्याची किंवा शिस्त लावण्याची शक्ती त्यांच्याकडे नाही. म्हणून ते थकून, प्रामाणिकपणे पांडुरंगाला विनंती करतात की असे भरकटलेले, मूर्ख लोक माझ्यासमोर आणू नकोस, कारण त्यांना पाहणे आणि काहीच मदत करू न शकणे हे त्यांच्यासाठी असह्य आहे. यातून शिकायला मिळते की स्वतःच्या प्रभावाला मर्यादा असतात, की स्वतःचे नुकसान करून घेणाऱ्या लोकांबद्दल खोल कणव वाटूनही त्यांना बदलण्याची शक्ती नसू शकते, आणि अशा विशिष्ट प्रकारच्या वेदनेपासून सुटका मागणे हे माणुसकीचेच लक्षण आहे.

Where this applies

When you watch a friend or family member make choices that hurt them and nothing you say gets through
When you feel worn out from repeatedly warning someone who refuses to listen
When you realize you cannot force another person to change no matter how much you care
When you need to admit you're powerless over someone else's decisions and ask for relief from that pain

Bhakti