Abhanga 1342
Do not destroy the very source that sustains you, whether it is your family, your tradition, or your home, because afterward you will have nowhere left to turn.
The verse
मातेचीं जो थानें फाडी । तया जोडी कोण ते ॥१॥ वेदां निंदी तो चांडाळ । भ्रष्ट सुतकिया खळ ॥ध्रु.॥ अगी लावी घरा । मग वसती कोठें थारा ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे वर्म । येरा नाचवितो भ्रम ॥३॥
Literal translation
One who tears the mother'sthāna— what jōḍī for him? One who reviles the Vedas is a cāṇḍāḷa, bhraṣṭa, sutakiyā, khaḷa. One who sets fire to his own house — then where will he find vasatī? Tuka says: the varma — bhrama dances the others (around).
मराठी: मातेचें थान — जो फाडी — त्याला कोण जोडी? वेदांना निंदितो — तो चांडाळ — भ्रष्ट, सुतकिया, खळ. आपल्या घराला अगि लावे — मग वसती कुठें — थारा (आसरा)? Tukā म्हणे — वर्म (तेंच) — येरांना (इतरांना) — भ्रम-च नाचवीतो.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| मातेचीं जो थानें फाडी | "one who tears (phāḍī) — the mother's thāna (breast)" |
| तया जोडी कोण ते | "for him — what jōḍī (gain / company)?" |
| वेदां निंदी तो चांडाळ | "one who reviles (nindī) the Vedas — is a cāṇḍāḷa" |
| भ्रष्ट सुतकिया खळ | "bhraṣṭa, sutakiyā (impure-by-pollution-period), khaḷa (wicked)" |
| अगी लावी घरा | "(one who) sets fire (āgī lāvī) to (his own) ghara" |
| मग वसती कोठें थारा | "then — vasatī (dwelling) — where (kōṭhē) — thārā (resting-place)?" |
| तुका म्हणे वर्म | "Tuka says — the varma" |
| येरा नाचवितो भ्रम | "to others — bhrama dances them (around)" |
What it means
Self-destructive-behavior condemnation abhang. Three escalating images of self-destruction:
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Mātēcīm jō thānē phāḍī — tayā jōḍī kōṇa tē? — one who tears the mother'sthāna(breast) — whatjōḍī(gain / company) for him? The mother's breast is the very source of one's nourishment; tearing it is destroying one's own life-source. The jōḍī (= compatible-spouse, paired-mate, gain) cannot come to such.
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Vēdām nindī tō cāṇḍāḷa — bhraṣṭa sutakiyā khaḷa — one who reviles the Vedas is acāṇḍāḷa(= the lowest outcaste),bhraṣṭa(fallen / corrupted),sutakiyā(= impure-by-being-in-the-pollution-period of birth/death),khaḷa(wicked). The Veda-reviler is given four pejoratives stacked. (Note: this is consistent with Tukaram's stance that Veda's authority is real but its meaning is bhakti — cf. 1311 Tuka kṣarā-akṣarā-vēgaḷā pāhē nigama-kaḷā. Tuka does not revile the Vedas.)
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Agī lāvī gharā — maga vasatī kōṭhē thārā? — one who sets fire to his ownghara(house) — thenvasatī(dwelling),thārā(resting-place) —where? The most precise image: burning your own home leaves you homeless.
The closing aphorism: Tukā mhaṇē varma — yērā nācavitō bhrama — Tuka says — thevarma—bhramadances the others (around). The varma (the secret / vital truth) is hidden; bhrama (delusion) keeps the rest dancing around it without finding it. The self-destructive behaviors above all stem from missing-the-varma and being-danced-by-bhrama.
[T]
For someone today
For today: don't tear your own life-source; don't revile the very tradition that nourishes you; don't set fire to your own home; the varma is hidden — bhrama dances the rest around.
Where this applies
- When you are angry at your family and say things that cut off the very support that raised you
- When you dismiss the tradition or teacher who shaped your understanding, just because you are frustrated with it
- When you damage your home, your health, or your closest relationships in a moment of rage, forgetting you will need them tomorrow
- When you feel confused and keep circling a problem, chasing surface answers instead of the real truth underneath