संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 1296 of 4582

Abhanga 1296

For today: the saint-meeting is like thirst-water, hunger-feast, mother-child reunion — kaḷavaḷā of bhēṭī; let the sanga be that.

When the saint-meeting is like thirst meeting water / sweet-food at hunger / mother-and-child reunion — that kaḷavaḷā of bhēṭī

The verse

त्रुशाकाळें उदकें भेटी । पडे मिठी आवडीची ॥१॥ ऐसियाचा हो कां संग । जिवलग संतांचा ॥ध्रु.॥ मिष्टान्नाचा योग भुके । म्हणतां चुके पुरेसें ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे माते बाळा । कळवळा भेटीचा ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: At thirst-time, the meeting with udaka — falls a clasp of āvaḍī. Let the sanga be of such — the jīvalaga of saints. Sweet-food's yōga at hunger — saying enough fails. Tuka says: mother and child — the kaḷavaḷā of bhēṭī.

मराठी: त्रुषेच्या काळीं उदकाची भेटी — आवडीची मिठी पडते. ऐसा-च संग असो — संतांचा जीवलग. भुकेला मिष्टान्नाचा योग — "पुरें" म्हणणें — चुकतें. Tukā म्हणे — माते-बाळा — कळवळा भेटीचा.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
त्रुशाकाळें उदकें भेटी "at the time of trṣā (thirst), the bhēṭī (meeting) with udaka (water)"
पडे मिठी आवडीची "falls a miṭhī (clasp / embrace) of āvaḍī (love)"
ऐसियाचा हो कां संग "let the sanga be of such"
जिवलग संतांचा "the jīvalaga (close-companion) of saints"
मिष्टान्नाचा योग भुके "sweet-food (miṣṭānna)'s yōga (combination) at hunger (bhuke)"
म्हणतां चुके पुरेसें "saying enough (purēsē) — fails (cukē) (= doesn't apply)"
माते बाळा कळवळा भेटीचा "to mother and child — the kaḷavaḷā (heart-pang) of bhēṭī (meeting)"

What it means

Saint-meeting-as-need-meeting-fulfillment abhang. Three image-pairs:

  1. Truṣā-kāḷē udakē bhēṭī — miṭhī āvaḍīcīthe parched throat meeting water — there is no thirst-against-water; only embrace.
  2. Miṣṭānnācā yōga bhukē — mhaṇatām cukē purēsēsweet-food at hunger — saying enough fails. The hungry person can't say purē (enough); the satiation-point keeps moving.
  3. Mātē bāḷā kaḷavaḷā bhēṭīcāmother-and-child — the kaḷavaḷā of bhēṭī. The mother-child reunion-pang. The mother and child don't meet like strangers; they meet with kaḷavaḷā (the body-heart's pang).

All three describe the bhakta-saint meeting: it's need-meeting-its-own-fulfillment, not two parties exchanging. The sanga of the jīvalaga of saints (the close-friend of saints) is what one wants — being a jīvalaga of saints means being that close.

[T]

For someone today

For today: the saint-meeting is like thirst-water, hunger-feast, mother-child reunion — kaḷavaḷā of bhēṭī; let the sanga be that.

Where this applies

Related verses