Abhanga 1249
When faith feels humiliating and promises seem broken, it is honest to protest to God directly, because even that raw complaint can itself be his grace speaking through you.
The verse
कां गा किविलवाणा केलों दीनाचा दीन । काय तुझी हीन शक्ति जालीसी दिसे ॥१॥ लाज येते मना तुझा म्हणवितां दास । गोडी नाहीं रस बोलिली यासारिखी ॥ध्रु.॥ लाजविलीं मागें संतांची हीं उत्तरें । कळों येतें खरें दुजें एकावरूनि ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे माझी कोणें वदविली वाणी । प्रसादावांचूनि तुमचिया विठ्ठला ॥३॥
Literal translation
Why have you made me piteous — the dīna of dīnas? Does your śakti look hīna? Shame comes to mind to be called your dāsa — there's no gōḍī, no rasa in being so-spoken. The saints' replies (promises) have been shamed before — the truth is known: from one (case) the other follows. Tuka says: who else made me speak this vāṇī — except your prasāda, Viṭṭhalā?
मराठी: कां गा — मला किविलवाणा केलें — दीनांचा दीन? — तुझी शक्ति हीन झालेली दिसते कां? तुझा दास म्हणवून घेण्यांत मनाला लाज वाटते — त्यांत कुठली गोडी, कुठला रस? मागें संतांचीं उत्तरें (तुझ्यावरील विश्वास-वचनें) लाजवली गेलीं — एकावरून दुजें — खरें कळतें. Tukā म्हणे — माझी ही वाणी कोणी वदवून घेतली? — तुमच्या प्रसादा-वांचून, विठ्ठला?
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| कां गा किविलवाणा केलों दीनाचा दीन | "why made me kivilavāṇā (piteous) — the dīna of dīnas?" |
| काय तुझी हीन शक्ति जालीसी दिसे | "does your śakti look hīna (diminished)?" |
| लाज येते मना तुझा म्हणवितां दास | "shame comes to mind to be called your dāsa" |
| गोडी नाहीं रस बोलिली यासारिखी | "no gōḍī (sweetness), no rasa, in (being) so-spoken" |
| लाजविलीं मागें संतांची हीं उत्तरें | "the saints' (past) uttarās (replies/promises) have been shamed before" |
| कळों येतें खरें दुजें एकावरूनि | "(this) comes to be known truly — the second from the first" |
| माझी कोणें वदविली वाणी | "who made me speak this vāṇī?" |
| प्रसादावांचूनि तुमचिया विठ्ठला | "without your prasāda, Viṭṭhalā?" |
What it means
Sāsuravāsa 3 of 8 — Hari-tāḍ-style protest within the bride's-mode.
The opening is fierce: kāya tujhī hīna śakti jālīsī disē — does your śakti look hīna (diminished, weakened)? The Hari-tāḍ register from 1220-1226 returns, now in the bride's voice.
The novel argument: lājavilīm māgē samtāncī hīm uttarē — the saints' (earlier promises) have been shamed before. The saints have vouched for Hari to bhaktas; if Hari delays, the saints' word is shamed. Kaḷōm yētē kharē dujē ēkāvarūnī — by one shamed promise, the truth of all the others is suspected.
The closing twist: mājhī kōṇē vadavilī vāṇī — prasādāvāmcūnī tumaciyā Viṭṭhalā — who else made me speak this vāṇī (this complaint-speech) — except your own prasāda, Viṭṭhalā? The bhakta turns the sting around: even this protest is your own grace working through me. So you cannot reject it without rejecting your own prasāda.
[T]
For someone today
For today: the bhakta-protest, when severe, can rest on this: the saints' word vouches for Hari, and the protest itself is Hari's prasāda working through the bhakta.
Where this applies
- When you feel so let down by God or someone you trust that you want to demand an honest answer from them
- When a promise made on your behalf by others starts to feel broken, and you fear their word can no longer be trusted
- When you are ashamed of a devotion or loyalty that seems to be bringing you only humiliation
- When you realize that even your angriest complaint comes from love and could itself be a form of grace