Abhanga 1304
Speak and act from what feels honestly witnessed, sow confidently without testing the ground first, and remember whatever gift flows through you belongs to its giver, not to you.
The verse
वदे साक्षत्वेंसीं वाणी । नारायणीं मिश्रित ॥१॥ न लगे कांहीं चाचपावें । जातों भावें पेरीत ॥ध्रु.॥ भांडार त्या दातियाचें । मी कैचें ये ठायीं ॥२॥ सादावीत गेला तुका । येथें एकाएकीं तो ॥३॥
Literal translation
(The) vāṇī speaks with sākṣatvē — mixed with Nārāyaṇa. No groping is needed — I go sowing with bhāva. The storehouse is the dātya's — what am I in this place? Tuka went sādāvīta — here, suddenly, alone.
मराठी: वाणी साक्षत्वेंसीं वदते — नारायणांत मिश्रित. कांहीं चाच-पाव (अडखळणें) लागत नाहीं — जातों भावें पेरीत. भांडार त्या दात्याचेंच — मी ये ठायीं काय? Tukā सादावीत गेला — येथें एकाएकीं तो.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| वदे साक्षत्वेंसीं वाणी | "(the) vāṇī speaks with sākṣatvē (witnessing-quality)" |
| नारायणीं मिश्रित | "(it is) miśrita (mixed) — with Nārāyaṇa" |
| न लगे कांहीं चाचपावें | "no cāca-pāva (groping-foot / stumbling) is needed" |
| जातों भावें पेरीत | "(I) go — bhāvē-pērīta (sowing with bhāva)" |
| भांडार त्या दातियाचें | "the bhāṇḍāra (storehouse) — is the dātya's (giver's)" |
| मी कैचें ये ठायीं | "what am I (kaimcē) — in this place (yē ṭhāyīm)?" |
| सादावीत गेला तुका | "Tuka went sādāvīta (preserving / extending)" |
| येथें एकाएकीं तो | "here — suddenly — alone (ēkā-ēkīm)" |
What it means
Speech-as-witnessed abhang. The opening claim is theologically precise: vadē sākṣatvēsīm vāṇī — Nārāyaṇīm miśrita — the vāṇī speaks with the quality ofsākṣat(= directly-witnessed) — mixed with Nārāyaṇa. Sākṣatva (the state-of-being-witnessed) means Nārāyaṇa is the witness of every word; the vāṇī isn't Tuka's-own-fabrication.
The corollary: na lagē kāmhīm cāca-pāvē — jātō bhāvē pērīta — no cāca-pāva (groping-with-foot, stumbling) is needed — (I) go sowing with bhāva. Cāca-pāva is the verb of someone walking carefully through unfamiliar terrain (groping with the feet for safe spots). When the speech is sākṣatva-witnessed, no such caution is needed; one goes bhāvē pērīta — sowing with bhāva — confidently broadcasting like a farmer scattering seed.
The middle insight: bhāṇḍāra tyā dātiyācē — mī kaimcē yē ṭhāyīm — the storehouse is the dātya's; what am I in this place? The supply (of speech, of teaching) is from the dātya (giver = Hari); Tuka is just the channel. Mī kaimcē — what am I (here)? — radical denial of authorship.
The closing — sādāvīta gēlā Tukā — yēthē ēkā-ēkīm tō — Tuka went sādāvīta (preserving / extending) — here, suddenly, alone (ēkā-ēkīm). Sādāvīta is from sādhū — to make-good, to bring-to-success. Tuka brought-to-completion (sādāvīta) what was given — alone, without preparation.
[T]
For someone today
For today: true speech is sākṣatva-witnessed, mixed with Nārāyaṇa; no groping needed when you sow with bhāva; the storehouse isn't yours.
Where this applies
- When you're about to speak up honestly and hesitate because you're not sure the words are yours to say
- When you feel unqualified to share something you've learned and hold back instead of offering it freely
- When you keep delaying a good action because you feel unprepared, instead of trusting yourself to begin
- When you help or teach someone well and start to feel personally proud, as if the ability came from you alone