संत साहित्य
Work in progress. Translations and commentary are AI-generated and may contain inaccuracies or hallucinations — please use your own judgement and check against the original sources.
संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 897 of 4582

Abhanga 897

English: Tējyā — iśārata — taṭā phōka — take.

When the vigilant take heed of the signal and accept the lash on top — and you have to recognize this register
When not quarrel-mongers; pulling the cloth-corner as supplicants — and you accept this image
When blacken the face, bow the head — and you receive this final image

The verse

तेज्या इशारती । तटा फोक वरी घेती ॥१॥ काय सांगावें त्याहूनी । ऐका रे धरा मनीं ॥ध्रु.॥ नव्हे भांडखोर । ओढूनि धरूं पदर ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे तोंड । काळें करा खालीं मुंड ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: Tējyāiśāratataṭā phōka — take. What — more. Listen — hold — manī. Not — bhāṇḍa-khōrapadara. Tuka says: tōṇḍakāḷēmuṇḍa.

मराठी: तेज्या (तीक्ष्ण-जागे) इशारतीनं — तटा-फोक-च (फटका-च) वरी घेती. त्याहून काय सांगावें — ऐका रे, मनीं धरा. नव्हे भांड-खोर — ओढूनि पदर धरूं (विनवणी-च-गत). Tuka म्हणे: तोंड काळें करा — खालीं मुंड.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
तेज्या इशारती "tējyāiśārata"
तटा फोक वरी घेती "taṭā phōkavari — take"
काय सांगावें त्याहूनी "what — more"
ऐका रे धरा मनीं "listen — hold — manī"
नव्हे भांडखोर "not — bhāṇḍa-khōra"
ओढूनि धरूं पदर "pulling — padara"
तोंड "tōṇḍa"
काळें करा खालीं मुंड "kāḷēmuṇḍa"

What it means

A vigilant-take-heed-of-signal-accept-lash-on-top-not-quarrel-mongers-pulling-cloth-corner-blacken-face-bow-head abhang. Vigilant-take-heed-blacken-face-bow-head register. Three claims:

  1. तेज्या-इशारती — तटा-फोक-वरी — काय-सांगावें — ऐका-धरा-मनीं. Vigilant-take-the-signal-claim. The tējyā take the iśārata; take the taṭā phōka on top (= accept the lash too); what more (need be) said; listen and hold in manī. Vigilant-take-signal-and-accept-the-blow.

  2. नव्हे-भांड-खोर — पदर-ओढूनि-धरूं. Not-quarrel-mongers-supplicant-claim. We are not bhāṇḍa-khōra; (we) pull and dharūm the padara (cloth-corner — the supplicant's-gesture, the I-cling-to-your-cloth posture). Not-fighters; we-cling-as-suppliants.

  3. Tuka: तोंड-काळें — मुंड-खालीं. Blacken-face-bow-head-claim. Tuka says: blacken the tōṇḍa; bow the *muṇḍa. Bow-and-be-shamed-for-correction. (Closing-rebuke / image: blacken the face (in shame) and bow the head — i.e., accept the phajita and the correction.)

[T]

For someone today

This abhang names the vigilant-take-heed-blacken-face-bow-head register:

  1. Vigilant take the signal; accept the lash on top. Vigilant.

  2. Not quarrel-mongers; we cling as suppliants. Suppliants.

  3. Blacken the face, bow the head. Bow-head.

For today: the tējyā take the iśārata, even with the taṭā phōka on top; what (more) to say? — listen, hold in *manī; not bhāṇḍa-khōra; padara clutched as suppliant; blacken the *tōṇḍa, bow the muṇḍa*.

This abhang is Tukaram's vigilant-take-heed-blacken-face-bow-head registerone of the most-direct corrective-listener statements. Compare 0895 mimic-shamed-for-his-good (Tuka's mudra); same corrective-mode but here organized through take-the-lash-and-bow-the-head. The kāḷē karā khālīm muṇḍa (blacken the face, bow the head) is the precise corrective-acceptance image*.

मराठी: ही ओवी vigilant-take-heed-blacken-face-bow-head register नाव सांगते:

  1. तेज्या-इशारती; फोक-वरी. Vigilant.

  2. भांड-खोर-नव्हे; पदर. Suppliants.

  3. तोंड-काळें; मुंड-खालीं. Bow-head.

आज: Tējyā iśārata घेती, taṭā phōka वरी; Bhāṇḍa-khōra नव्हे; padara धरून; तोंड काळें, मुंड खालीं.

Tukaram च-vigilant-take-heed-blacken-face-bow-head-registerMost-direct corrective-listener statements पैकी एक. 0895 mimic-shamed-for-his-good (Tuka mudra) compare; तीच corrective-mode पण इथे take-the-lash-and-bow-the-head च्या मार्गाने. Kāḷē karā khālīm muṇḍa precise corrective-acceptance image.

Where this applies

Related verses