संत साहित्य
Work in progress. Translations and commentary are AI-generated and may contain inaccuracies or hallucinations — please use your own judgement and check against the original sources.
संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 1370 of 4582

Abhanga 1370

English: Fresh sukha by this vicāra — vicāra well in saint-company.

When the rūpa-remembrance makes both of us become — viyōga doesn't thin it; my anubhava is to keep my head on his feet

The verse

अभिन्नव सुख तरि या विचारें । विचारावें बरें संतजनीं ॥१॥ रूपाच्या आठवें दोन्ही ही आपण । वियोगें तो क्षीण होत नाहीं ॥ध्रु.॥ पूजा तरि चित्तें कल्पा तें ब्रम्हांड । आहाच तो खंड एकदेसी ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे माझा अनुभव यापरि । डोईं पायांवरि ठेवीतसें ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: Fresh sukha by this vicāra — vicāra well in saint-company. In the rūpa-remembrance, both we become — by viyōga, that doesn't go kṣīṇa. For pūjā, citta imagines the brahmāṇḍa — the partial is one-region. Tuka says: my anubhava is like this — I keep (my) head on the feet.

मराठी: अभिन्नव (नवें) सुख — ह्या विचारानें-च — विचारावें बरें — संत-जनीं. रूपाच्या आठवें — दोन्ही-च आपण (तू आणि मी) — वियोगानें-हि — तो क्षीण होत नाहीं. पूजा — चित्तानें — ब्रह्मांड कल्पावें — आहाच (आंशिक) तो — खंड — एक-देसी. Tukā म्हणे — माझा अनुभव — ह्या-परि — डोई पायांवर ठेवितसें.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
अभिन्नव सुख तरि या विचारें "abhinnava (fresh / new) sukha — by this vicāra"
विचारावें बरें संतजनीं "vicārāvē (deliberate) — well — in saint-company"
रूपाच्या आठवें दोन्ही ही आपण "in the rūpa-āṭhava (form-remembrance) — both (of us) — āpaṇa (we / ourselves)"
वियोगें तो क्षीण होत नाहीं "by viyōga — that — doesn't go kṣīṇa (thin / waste)"
पूजा तरि चित्तें कल्पा तें ब्रम्हांड "for pūjā — by citta — kalpa (imagine) — that brahmāṇḍa"
आहाच तो खंड एकदेसी "the āhāca (= the partial / what-is-actually-grasped) — is khaṇḍa (a fragment) — ēka-dēsī (one-region / fragmentary)"
माझा अनुभव यापरि "my anubhava — is in this manner"
डोईं पायांवरि ठेवीतसें "ḍō'ī (head) — on the feet — I keep"

What it means

Rūpa-remembrance-where-both-of-us-become abhang. The opening directs the bhakta: abhinnava sukha tarī yā vicārē — vicārāvē barēm samta-janīmfresh (= ever-new) sukha by this vicāra — do the vicāra well, in saint-company. The bhakti-vicāra is not solitary contemplation; it requires samta-janīm (saint-company) to keep the sukha abhinnava (always-fresh).

The dhruva is striking: rūpācyā āṭhavē dōnnhī hī āpaṇa — viyōgē tō kṣīṇa hōta nāhīmin rūpa-remembrance, both (of us) become āpaṇa (one's-own / ourselves) — by viyōga, that does not go kṣīṇa (thin). When the bhakta remembers the form, both bhakta and Hari become "ours" (āpaṇa) — and this "we-ness" is not weakened by viyōga (separation). Physical-separation cannot thin the āpaṇa-state generated by remembrance.

Pūjā tarī cittē kalpā tē brahmāṇḍa — āhāca tō khaṇḍa ēka-dēsīfor pūjā — let the citta imagine the brahmāṇḍa — the āhāca (= the partial / what's-grasped) is khaṇḍa (fragment) — ēka-dēsī (one-region / fragmentary). Mental-pūjā can imagine the entire cosmos as offering; physical-offerings are merely fragmentary. The manas-pūjā exceeds karma-pūjā. (Echoes 1286 avaghyā upacārā — ēka manē chi dātārā — for all upacāras, only the mind alone.)

The closing personal-mark: mājhā anubhava yāparī — ḍō'īm pāyāmvarī ṭhēvītasēmmy anubhava is like this — I keep (my) head on the feet. The simple posture: head on his feet. Whatever theological-elaboration above, practically — Tuka keeps his head at Hari's feet.

[T]

For someone today

For today: fresh sukha comes from vicāra-in-saint-company; in the rūpa-remembrance, both become "ours" — viyōga doesn't thin this; the citta-pūjā imagines the brahmāṇḍa; my anubhava is — head on his feet.

Where this applies

Related verses