संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 809 of 4582

Abhanga 809

English: Rāsabha — washed — mahā-tīrtha — tējī — śyāma-karṇa — not.

When donkey washed in tīrtha doesn't become race-horse — and you have to recognize this register
When snake's inside-poison stays even after sweet-nectar — and you accept this image
When dog vomits milk-meal as it eats — and you receive this final image

The verse

रासभ धुतला महा तीर्थांमाजी । नव्हे जैसा तेजी शामकर्ण ॥१॥ तेवीं खळा काय केला उपदेश । नव्हे चि मानस शुद्ध त्याचें ॥ध्रु.॥ सर्पासी पाजिलें शर्करापीयूष । अंतरींचें विष जाऊं नेणे ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे श्वाना क्षिरीचें भोजन । सवें चि वमन जेवी तया ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: Rāsabha — washed — mahā-tīrtha — tējī — śyāma-karṇa — not. Khaḷa — upadeśa — mānasa — śuddha — not. Sarpa — śarkarā-pīyūṣa — antarīm-viṣa — go — doesn't. Tuka says: śvāna — kṣīra-bhōjana — savē-ci vamana — eats.

मराठी: रासभ धुतला महा-तीर्थांमाजी — नव्हे जैसा तेजी शाम-कर्ण. तेवीं खळाचा काय केला उपदेश — नव्हे-चि मानस शुद्ध त्याचें. सर्पासी पाजिलें शर्करा-पीयूष — अंतरींचें विष जाऊं नेणे. Tuka म्हणे: श्वाना क्षिरीचें भोजन — सवें-च वमन जेवी तया.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
रासभ धुतला महा तीर्थांमाजी "rāsabha — washed — mahā-tīrtha"
नव्हे जैसा तेजी शामकर्ण "doesn't — tējī — śyāma-karṇa"
खळा काय केला उपदेश "khaḷa — what — upadeśa"
नव्हे चि मानस शुद्ध त्याचें "mānasa — śuddha — not"
सर्पासी पाजिलें शर्करापीयूष "sarpa — śarkarā-pīyūṣa"
अंतरींचें विष जाऊं नेणे "antarīm-viṣa — go — doesn't"
श्वाना क्षिरीचें भोजन "śvāna — kṣīra-bhōjana"
सवें चि वमन जेवी तया "savē-ci vamana — eats"

What it means

A donkey-tīrtha-not-race-horse-khaḷa-no-upadeśa-snake-sweet-poison-inside-dog-vomits-milk abhang. Animal-image-cluster-2-against-khaḷa register. Three claims (with parallels-to-0808):

  1. रासभ-तीर्थ-धुतला — नव्हे-तेजी-शाम-कर्ण — खळ-उपदेश-मानस-न-शुद्ध. Donkey-tīrtha-not-race-horse-claim. The donkey washed in mahā-tīrtha; doesn't become a tējī (race-horse) of śyāma-karṇa (dark-ear-breed — a fine-breed); likewise, what for the khaḷa is upadeśa? — his mānasa doesn't become śuddha. Donkey-tīrtha-doesn't-make-race-horse; khaḷa-upadeśa-doesn't-make-pure.

  2. Sarpa-pīyūṣa-pāzilē — antarīm-viṣa-न-जाई. Snake-sweet-poison-inside-stays-claim. To a snake, fed śarkarā-pīyūṣa (sugared-nectar); the antarīm-viṣa (inside-poison) doesn't go. Snake-sweet-feeding-doesn't-remove-inside-poison.

  3. Tuka: श्वाना-क्षीर-भोजन — सवें-च-वमन-जेवी. Dog-vomits-milk-as-eating-claim. Tuka says: a śvāna given kṣīrīcē bhōjana (milk-meal); vomits-while-eating-it (savē-ci vamana jēvī). Dog-vomits-as-it-eats-the-milk.

This continues the animal-image-cluster of 0808 with donkey, snake, dog — all illustrating that the constitutionally-bad cannot-be-improved by good-feeding/upadeśa.

[T]

For someone today

This abhang names the animal-image-cluster-2-against-khaḷa register:

  1. Donkey washed in tīrtha doesn't become race-horse; khaḷa given upadeśa — manas not pure. Donkey-image.

  2. Snake fed sweet-nectar — inside-poison stays. Snake-image.

  3. Dog given milk-meal vomits-as-it-eats. Dog-image.

For today: the khaḷa (the wicked-one) cannot be reformed by upadeśa, just as *donkey-washing-doesn't-make-race-horse, snake-sweet-nectar-doesn't-cure-poison, dog-vomits-milk-while-eating. (The triple-animal-image is a classical-Indian polemical-pattern emphasizing constitutional-incorrigibility.)

This abhang is Tukaram's animal-image-cluster-2-against-khaḷa-and-snake-poison-inside-dog-vomits register — parallel to 0808 with overlapping-imagery. The savē-ci vamana jēvī (vomits-while-eating) is the precise inverse-image: even-the-eating-becomes-vomiting.

मराठी: ही ओवी animal-image-cluster-2-against-khaḷa register नाव सांगते:

  1. रासभ-tīrtha; khaḷa-upadeśa-शुद्ध-नाही. Donkey-image.

  2. Sarpa-sweet-नेक्टर; अंतर-विष. Snake-image.

  3. Śvāna-क्षीर; वमन-while-eating. Dog-image.

आज: Khaḷa upadeśa-ने reform-होऊं-शकत-नाही, donkey-washing-race-horse-नाही, snake-sweet-nectar-poison-राहतं, dog-milk-eats-and-vomits. (Triple-animal-image classical-Indian polemical-pattern emphasizing constitutional-incorrigibility.)*

Tukaram च-animal-image-cluster-2-against-khaḷa-and-snake-poison-inside-dog-vomits-register — 0808-parallel with overlapping-imagery. Savē-ci vamana jēvī precise inverse-image — eating-becomes-vomiting.

Where this applies

Bhakti Anti-ritual / Yoga-bhakti dog-vomits-milk-as-eating animal-image-cluster-2

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