Abhanga 1349
For today: śānti is the only conqueror of abhimāna; the varma is elusive; sharp to the sharp, soft to the soft.
The verse
अभिमानाची स्वामिनी शांति । महत्व घेती सकळ ॥१॥ कळोनि ही न कळे वर्म । तरि श्रम पावती ॥ध्रु.॥ सर्व सत्ता करितां धीर । वीर्यां वीर आगळा ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे तिखट तिखें । मृदसखें आवडी ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: The svāminī of abhimāna is śānti — she takes the mahatva of all. Though understood, the varma is not understood — yet śrama is paid. With sarva-sattā, dhīra; in vīrya, the vīra is āgaḷa. Tuka says: sharp to the sharp; to the soft-friend, āvaḍī.
मराठी: अभिमानाची स्वामिनी — शांति; — महत्व सकळ — ती-च घेती. कळून-हि — वर्म कळत नाहीं — तरी — श्रम-च पावे. सर्व सत्तेनें — धीरच (सरते); वीर्यांत वीर — आगळा-च. Tukā म्हणे — तिखटाला तिखें-च; — मृद-सख्याला — आवडी.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| अभिमानाची स्वामिनी शांति | "of abhimāna — the svāminī (mistress / lord-female) — is śānti" |
| महत्व घेती सकळ | "she takes mahatva (greatness) of all" |
| कळोनि ही न कळे वर्म | "though kaḷ-ōnī (understood) — the varma is not kaḷ-ē (understood)" |
| तरि श्रम पावती | "yet — śrama is paid (pāvatī)" |
| सर्व सत्ता करितां धीर | "with sarva-sattā (full authority) — dhīra (firmness)" |
| वीर्यां वीर आगळा | "in vīrya (valor) — the vīra is āgaḷā (set-apart, superior)" |
| तुका म्हणे तिखट तिखें | "Tuka says — tikhaṭa (sharp) — to tikhē (sharp-things)" |
| मृदसखें आवडी | "(but) to the mṛda-sakhē (soft-friend) — āvaḍī (delight, fondness)" |
What it means
Śānti-mistress-of-abhimāna abhang. The opening: abhimānācī svāminī śānti — mahatva ghētī sakaḷa — the svāminī (mistress) of abhimāna is śānti; she takes the mahatva (greatness) of all. Abhimāna (ego-pride) submits only to śānti (peace / serene-equanimity); no other power can master abhimāna. Mahatva (greatness) belongs to her alone — all greatness is śānti's.
The middle: kaḷōnī hī na kaḷē varma — tarī śrama pāvatī — though it is understood, the varma is not understood — yet śrama is paid. People think they understand the varma (the secret) of śānti-conquering-abhimāna, but they don't really understand; so they pay śrama (toil) without result. The varma stays elusive.
Sarva sattā karitām dhīra — vīryām vīra āgaḷā — with full authority, dhīra (firmness) is what acts; in vīrya (valor), the vīra (warrior) is set-apart. Sarva-sattā (full sovereignty) doesn't act through aggression but through dhīra (steady firmness). And among the brave, the true vīra is āgaḷa (a class apart) — superior precisely because they don't display vīrya.
The closing aphorism: tikhaṭa tikhē — mṛda-sakhē āvaḍī — to the tikhaṭa (sharp / acrid) — be tikhē (with sharp-things); to the mṛda-sakhē (soft-friend) — āvaḍī (delight). Calibrate the response to the interlocutor: with the abrasive, be matched-sharp; with the soft-friend, give delight. (Compare 1262 khōṭyā khōṭēpaṇē vākhē — with the false, speak with falseness.)
[T]
For someone today
For today: śānti is the only conqueror of abhimāna; the varma is elusive; sharp to the sharp, soft to the soft.
Where this applies
- Śānti-mistress-of-abhimāna.* Abhimānācī-svāminī-śānti.
- Varma-elusive-śrama-paid-anyway.* Kaḷōnī-na-kaḷē-varma-śrama-pāvatī.
- Dhīra-and-set-apart-warrior.* Sarva-sattā-dhīra-vīryām-vīra-āgaḷā.
- Sharp-to-sharp-soft-to-soft.* Tikhaṭa-tikhē-mṛda-sakhē-āvaḍī.