Abhanga 1353
For today: form-and-name are māyā's place for speech; the wise know the unbroken pṛthivī beneath; Hari and hara are the kṣara-half of arūpa, taken on for the bhakti's sake.
The verse
रूप नांवें माया बोलावया ठाव । भागा आले भाव तयावरि ॥१॥ सींव वाटे परी न खंडे पृथिवी । शाहाणे ते जीवीं समजती ॥ध्रु.॥ पोटा आलें तिच्या लोळे मांड्यांवरि । पारखी न करी खंतीं चित्तीं ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे भक्तीसाटीं हरिहर । अरूपीचें क्षरविभाग हें ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: Rūpa-and-nāma — māyā's place for speech — the bhāva that came as bhāga on top. Looks like a sīmva, yet the pṛthivī isn't broken — the śāhāṇē know in the jīva. The (child) that came in her pōṭa rolls on the māṇḍī — the pārakhī doesn't make khantī in citta. Tuka says: for bhakti's sake — Hari and hara — these are the kṣara-vibhāga of arūpa.
मराठी: रूप-नामें — मायेची बोलण्याची ठाव — त्या-वर भाग आले भाव. सींव (मर्यादा) वाटतें — पण पृथ्वी खंडित होत नाहीं — शहाणे जीवीं समजतात. पोटा आली ती-च — तिच्या मांडीवर लोळते — पारखी (बाह्य परीक्षक) चित्तीं खंती करत नाहीं. Tukā म्हणे — भक्ती-साठीं हरि-हर — अरूपाचा क्षर-विभाग हे.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| रूप नांवें माया बोलावया ठाव | "rūpa-and-nāma — māyā's ṭhāva (place) — for bōlāvayā (speech-purposes)" |
| भागा आले भाव तयावरि | "the bhāva — that came as bhāga (share) — on it" |
| सींव वाटे परी न खंडे पृथिवी | "(it) seems like a sīmva (boundary) — yet the pṛthivī (earth) is not khaṇḍē (broken)" |
| शाहाणे ते जीवीं समजती | "the śāhāṇē (wise) — know it in the jīva" |
| पोटा आलें तिच्या लोळे मांड्यांवरि | "the (child) that came in her pōṭa — rolls (lōḷē) on the māṇḍī (lap)" |
| पारखी न करी खंतीं चित्तीं | "the pārakhī (= she-examining-her-own / outsider-judge) — does not make khantī (regret) in citta" |
| तुका म्हणे भक्तीसाटीं हरिहर | "Tuka says — for bhakti's sake — Hari and hara" |
| अरूपीचें क्षरविभाग हें | "(these are) the kṣara-vibhāga (perishable-half) of arūpa (formless)" |
What it means
Hari-and-hara-as-kṣara-half-of-arūpa abhang. Philosophical compression of the saguṇa-as-half-of-nirguṇa doctrine.
The opening: rūpa nāmvē māyā bōlāvayā ṭhāva — bhāgā ālē bhāva tayā-vari — rūpa-and-nāma (= form-and-name) — these are māyā's ṭhāva (= māyā's place) for speech — and the bhāva came on top of those as a bhāga (share). Form and name are māyā's-instruments-for-speech; the bhāva (devotional feeling) sits on top of them as the bhakta's share.
The image: sīmva vāṭē parī na khaṇḍē pṛthivī — śāhāṇē tē jīvīm samajatī — (political-borders) seem like sīmva (boundaries) — yet the pṛthivī (= earth itself) is not khaṇḍita (broken / divided); the śāhāṇē know in the jīva. The world looks divided into nation-states / kingdoms / castes / forms — but the underlying pṛthivī is one and unbroken. Wise know this in the jīva (= experientially).
The mother-image: pōṭā ālē ticyā lōḷē māṇḍyāmvarī — pārakhī na karī khantīm cittīm — the (child) that came into her pōṭa — rolls on her māṇḍī (lap) — the pārakhī (the examining-eye of the outsider-judge) does not make khantī (regret) in (the mother's) citta. The mother who has birthed the child rolls him on her own lap — no outsider's-judgment matters to her. The pārakhī-as-outsider-examiner would judge by external criteria; the mother knows by the pōṭa-bond.
The closing philosophical statement: bhakti-sāṭīm Hari-hara — arūpīcē kṣara-vibhāga hē — for the bhakti-sake — Hari (= Viṣṇu) and hara (= Śiva) — these are the kṣara-vibhāga (the perishable-half / kṣara-portion) of arūpa (the formless). Tukaram does the philosophical reconciliation: the saguṇa deities are the kṣara-vibhāga of the arūpa-Brahman — taken-on for the bhakti-sake. The bhakta loves Hari-and-hara as the touchable kṣara-portion of the untouchable arūpa. (Echoes 1291 kṣarā-akṣarācā bhāga karā lāga Paṇḍharīyē.)
[T]
For someone today
For today: form-and-name are māyā's place for speech; the wise know the unbroken pṛthivī beneath; Hari and hara are the kṣara-half of arūpa, taken on for the bhakti's sake.
Where this applies
- Form-and-name-as-māyā's-speech-place.* Rūpa-nāmvē-māyā-bōlāvayā-ṭhāva.
- Boundaries-seem-but-earth-not-broken.* Sīmva-vāṭē-parī-na-khaṇḍē-pṛthivī.
- Mother-lap-no-outsider-judge.* Pōṭā-ālē-māṇḍyāmvarī-pārakhī-na-khantī.
- Hari-and-hara-as-kṣara-half-of-arūpa.* Hari-hara-arūpīcē-kṣara-vibhāga.