Abhanga 1040
Some overwhelming experiences can't be fixed or reasoned with; the most loving response is to sit quietly and truly see the person while there's still time.
The verse
जीव खादला देवत । माझा येणें महाभूतें । झोंबलें निरुतें । कांहीं करितां न सुटे ॥१॥ आतां करूं काय । न चले करितां उपाय । तुम्हां आम्हां सय । विघडाविघड केली ॥ध्रु.॥ बोलतां दुश्चिती । मी वो पडियेलें भ्रांती । आठव हा चित्तीं । न ये म्हणतां मी माझें ॥२॥ भलतें चि चावळे । जना अवघिया वेगळे । नाठवती बाळें । आपपर सारिखें ॥३॥ नका बोलों सये । मज वचन न साहे । बैसाल त्या राहें । उग्या वाचा खुंटोनी ॥४॥ तुम्हां आम्हां भेटी । नाहीं जाली जीवेंसाटीं । तुका म्हणे दृष्टी । पाहा जवळी आहे तों ॥५॥
Literal translation
Dēvata — ate jīva — mahā-bhūta — jhōmbalē niruta — doesn't release. Upāya — sayē — vighaḍa-vighaḍa. Du-ścittī — bhrānti — āṭhava — mī mājhē. Cāvaḷē — separate — bāḷē — āpa-para. Don't speak — vacana — vāca khuṇṭōnī. Meeting — jīvē-sāṭīm — Tuka says: drṣṭi — while-near.
मराठी: जीव खादला देवत — माझा येणें महा-भूतें — झोंबलें निरुते — कांहीं करितां न सुटे. आतां करूं काय? — उपाय करितां न चलें — तुम्हां-आम्हां सये — विघड-विघड केली. बोलतां दुश्चिती — मी, वो, पडियेलें भ्रांती — आठव हा चित्तीं न ये — म्हणतां मी-माझें. भलतें-च चावळे — जना अवघियां वेगळें — बाळें नाठवती — आप-पर सारिखें. नका बोलों, सये — मज वचन न साहे — बैसाल त्या राहें — उग्या वाचा खुंटोनी. तुम्हां-आम्हां भेटी — जीवें-साटीं नाहीं जाली — Tuka म्हणे: दृष्टी — जवळी आहे तों पाहा.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| जीव खादला देवत | "Dēvata — ate jīva" |
| माझा येणें महाभूतें | "mahā-bhūta" |
| झोंबलें निरुतें | "jhōmbalē niruta" |
| कांहीं करितां न सुटे | "doesn't release" |
| आतां करूं काय | "what to do" |
| न चले करितां उपाय | "upāya" |
| तुम्हां आम्हां सय | "sayē" |
| विघडाविघड केली | "vighaḍa-vighaḍa" |
| बोलतां दुश्चिती | "du-ścittī" |
| मी वो पडियेलें भ्रांती | "bhrānti" |
| आठव हा चित्तीं | "āṭhava" |
| न ये म्हणतां मी माझें | "mī mājhē" |
| भलतें चि चावळे | "cāvaḷē" |
| जना अवघिया वेगळे | "separate from jana" |
| नाठवती बाळें | "bāḷē not-remembered" |
| आपपर सारिखें | "āpa-para sārikhē" |
| नका बोलों सये | "don't speak, sayē" |
| मज वचन न साहे | "vacana not-bear" |
| बैसाल त्या राहें | "sit-stay" |
| उग्या वाचा खुंटोनी | "vāca khuṇṭōnī" |
| तुम्हां आम्हां भेटी | "meeting" |
| नाहीं जाली जीवेंसाटीं | "jīvē-sāṭīm" |
| तुका म्हणे दृष्टी पाहा जवळी आहे तों | "drṣṭi — while-near" |
What it means
A a-deity-has-eaten-my-soul-by-this-great-spirit-firmly-clinging-doesn't-release-however-we-try-what-to-do-now-remedies-don't-work-between-you-and-me-friend-everything-has-been-undone-speaking-to-you-anxious-I-fell-into-delusion-this-memory-doesn't-come-to-mind-saying-I-mine-I-blab-anything-separate-from-all-people-children-aren't-remembered-own-and-other-become-alike-don't-speak-friend-words-don't-bear-with-me-sit-and-stay-with-throat-blocked-silent-between-you-and-me-the-meeting-hasn't-happened-for-life-Tuka-says-look-while-she-is-near abhang. Look-while-she-is-near-soul-eaten-by-deity register. A remarkable possessed-by-Hari abhang in feminine voice. The speaker is one possessed by a deity / mahā-bhūta — i.e. spirit-possessed by Hari — and addresses a friend (sayē, vō) about the symptoms. The friend is being told: don't try to bring me back — sit and watch quietly while there's still time. Six claims:
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जीव-खादला — झोंबलें-निरुत — सुटे-न. Soul-eaten-claim. ADēvata has eaten my jīva;by this mahā-bhūta, jhōmbalē niruta (firmly-clinging); does-not-release however (we) try.
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उपाय-न — विघड-विघड. Remedies-don't-work-claim. What to do now? —upāyasdon't work; between you and me,sayē, vighaḍa-vighaḍa has been made (everything-broken).
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दुश्चिती — भ्रांती — आठव-न-येत — मी-माझें. Fell-into-delusion-memory-doesn't-come-claim. Speaking todu-ścittī (the anxious one), I fell intobhrānti;this āṭhava doesn't come to chittī, (when I try) to say mī mājhē. (Can't even remember the I-mine-distinction.)
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भलतें-चावळे — जना-वेगळे — बाळ-नाठवती — आप-पर-सारिखें. Blab-anything-separate-claim. Anything-at-all (I)cāvaḷē (blab, gibber); separate from alljana;bāḷas(children) don't get remembered,āpa-para sārikhē (own and other become alike).
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नका-बोलों — वचन-न-साहे — वाचा-खुंटोनी. Don't-speak-friend-claim. Don't speak,sayē;vacanadoesn't bear with me; sit (and) stay withvāca khuṇṭōnī (throat-blocked).
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भेटी-नाहीं-जीवें-साटीं — Tuka: दृष्टी-जवळी-तों. Meeting-hasn't-happened-look-while-she-is-near-claim. Between you and me — meeting hasn't happenedjīvē-sāṭīm (for-life); Tuka says: drṣṭi — see while she is near. (See her while she's still near — the speaker is passing-into-Hari and the friend should look quietly while there's still time. The 'she' is the possessed-soul about to slip away.)
[T]
For someone today
Tukaram writes in a woman's voice, describing what it feels like to be overtaken by God: so completely absorbed that it feels like being eaten alive, seized so firmly that nothing she or her friends try can break the hold. She is disoriented, can no longer tell herself apart from others, blabbers, and can barely speak. She isn't asking her friend to fix her or pull her back. Instead she asks the friend to stop talking, sit quietly, and simply watch her closely while there's still time, because a meeting this deep has never happened before. Some experiences, like deep grief, overwhelming love, or spiritual absorption, cannot be reasoned away or solved. The most loving response isn't to intervene, but to be present, watch closely, and honor what's happening while it's still happening.
मराठी: या ओवीत तुकाराम एका स्त्रीच्या आवाजात देवाने पूर्णपणे व्यापून टाकल्याचा अनुभव मांडतात. जणू ती पूर्णपणे गिळली गेली आहे, इतकी घट्ट पकडली गेली आहे की कितीही प्रयत्न केला तरी सुटका होत नाही. ती गोंधळलेली आहे, स्वतःला आणि इतरांना वेगळं ओळखू शकत नाही, बरळते, आणि नीट बोलूही शकत नाही. ती आपल्या मैत्रिणीला स्वतःला सावरायला किंवा परत आणायला सांगत नाही; उलट म्हणते की बोलू नकोस, शांत बैस आणि नुसतं बघ. अजून वेळ आहे तोवर नीट पाहून घे, कारण असं खोल भेटणं आधी कधी झालं नव्हतं. काही अनुभव, जसे की खोल दुःख, अतीव प्रेम किंवा अध्यात्मिक विलीनता, तर्काने सोडवता येत नाहीत. अशावेळी सर्वात प्रेमळ प्रतिसाद म्हणजे हस्तक्षेप न करता शांतपणे सोबत राहणं आणि जे घडतंय ते नीट पाहून घेणं, जोवर वेळ आहे.
Where this applies
- Soul-eaten. Mahā-bhūta.
- Remedies-fail. Vighaḍa-vighaḍa.
- Lost-self. Bhrānti.
- Severed. Āpa-para.
- Silent-watch. Vāca-khuṇṭōnī.
- Look-while-near. Javaḷī.