Abhanga 1400
For today: take the stick after the body-personalities; lead them to the smaśāna and burn them there; no fear on the way — Deva experiences sukha-duḥkha; this is the nirvāṇa-test; without anubhava, sāsta is for the cōra.
The verse
हातीं घेऊनियां काठी । तुका लागला किळवरा पाठी ॥१॥ नेऊनि निजविलें स्मशानीं । माणसें जाळी ते ठाकणीं ॥ध्रु.॥ काडिलें तें ओढें । मागील उपचाराचें पुढें ॥२॥ नाहीं वाटों आला भेव । सुख दुःख भोगिता देव ॥३॥ याजसाटीं हें निर्वाण । केलें कसियेलें मन ॥४॥ तुका म्हणे अनुभव बरा । नाहीं तरी सास्त होय चोरा ॥५॥
Literal translation
English: Taking the kāṭhī in hand, Tuka went after the kiḷavara. Took it and laid it at the smaśāna — burnt the māṇasēm at that ṭhākaṇa. What was drawn — the ōḍhā — the māgīla upacāra is past. No bhēva came on the way — Deva is the experiencer of sukha-duḥkha. For this — nirvāṇa — the mana was test-rubbed. Tuka says: anubhava is good — otherwise sāsta happens to the cōra.
मराठी: हातीं — घेऊनियां — काठी; — Tukā — लागला — किळवरा — पाठी. नेऊनि — निजविलें — स्मशानीं; — माणसें — जाळी — ते — ठाकणीं. काडिलें — तें — ओढें; — मागील — उपचाराचें — पुढें. नाहीं — वाटों — आला — भेव; — सुख-दुःख — भोगितां — देव. याजसाटीं — हें — निर्वाण; — केलें — कसियेलें — मन. Tukā म्हणे — अनुभव — बरा; — नाहीं तरी — सास्त — होय — चोरा.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| हातीं घेऊनियां काठी | "in (the) hand — taking — the kāṭhī (= stick)" |
| तुका लागला किळवरा पाठी | "Tuka — went (lāgalā) — after (pāṭhī) — the kiḷavara (= the body / corpse)" |
| नेऊनि निजविलें स्मशानीं | "taking (it) — laid it down (nijavilēm) — at the smaśāna (cremation-ground)" |
| माणसें जाळी ते ठाकणीं | "the māṇasēm (= the persons / personalities) — burns (jāḷī) — at that ṭhākaṇa (= spot / station)" |
| काडिलें तें ओढें | "what was kāḍilēm (= taken out / drawn) — the ōḍhā (= drag / gully)" |
| मागील उपचाराचें पुढें | "the māgīla upacāra (= former treatments) — puḍhēm (= in front of / past)" |
| नाहीं वाटों आला भेव | "no — vāṭōm (on the way) — bhēva (fear) — came" |
| सुख दुःख भोगिता देव | "sukha-duḥkha — bhōgītā (the experiencer) — (is) Deva" |
| याजसाटीं हें निर्वाण | "for this — nirvāṇa (final-resolution / liberation-act)" |
| केलें कसियेलें मन | "(was) made — kasiyēlēm (= test-rubbed on touchstone / proven) — the mana" |
| अनुभव बरा | "anubhava (experience) — is good (barā)" |
| नाहीं तरी सास्त होय चोरा | "otherwise — sāsta (= punishment / chastisement) — happens — to the cōra (thief)" |
What it means
Tuka-took-stick-and-chased-the-body abhang. One of the most vivid deha-ātma-tyāga images in the Gatha. Hātīm ghē'ūniyām kāṭhī — Tukā lāgalā kiḷavarā pāṭhī — taking the kāṭhī (= stick / club) in hand — Tuka — went after — the kiḷavara (= the body / corpse). The body is treated as if it were a corpse (kiḷavara = literally a corpse); Tuka pursues it stick-in-hand, like a chastiser.
The destination: nē'ūnī nijavilēm smaśānīm — māṇasēm jāḷī tē ṭhākaṇīm — taking (it) — laid (it) down at the smaśāna (cremation-ground); — the māṇasēm (= the persons / personality-aspects) — jāḷī (burnt) at that ṭhākaṇa (= station / spot). The māṇasēm (plural of māṇūsa = person) — the multiple personalities / ego-aspects — are cremated at the smaśāna. (The image: a living-funeral of the body-personality.)
The retrospective: kāḍilēm tēm ōḍhēm — māgīla upacārācēm puḍhēm — what was kāḍilēm (= dragged out / drawn) — the ōḍhā (= drag-gully); — the māgīla upacāra (= the former treatments) — is puḍhēm (in front / surpassed). The earlier gentle upacāras (treatments) are now behind / surpassed by this radical action.
The walking-attitude: nāhīm vāṭōm ālā bhēva — sukha duḥkha bhōgītā Deva — no bhēva (fear) came on the vāṭā (way); — Deva is the bhōgītā (= experiencer) of sukha-duḥkha. Once the body has been handed-over-as-corpse and the personality-aspects burnt, who fears what? Deva is the experiencer; Tuka isn't.
The mind-test: yājasāṭīm hēm nirvāṇa — kēlēm kasiyēlēm mana — for this — the nirvāṇa (= final act / decisive resolution) — the mind was kasiyēlēm (= test-rubbed on the touchstone / proven). The radical action tests the mind on the touchstone — was the renunciation real or not? This event is the nirvāṇa-test.
The closing principle: anubhava barā — nāhīm tarī sāsta hōya cōrā — anubhava (experience) is good; — otherwise, sāsta (= punishment / chastisement) — happens to the cōra (= thief). Without direct experience (anubhava) — the experiencer is just a thief (= someone who has appropriated what isn't his); and a thief receives sāsta. The stick was for that thief — the body-personality that stole the I.
[T]
For someone today
For today: take the stick after the body-personalities; lead them to the smaśāna and burn them there; no fear on the way — Deva experiences sukha-duḥkha; this is the nirvāṇa-test; without anubhava, sāsta is for the cōra.
Where this applies
- Stick-after-body-corpse.* Hātīm-kāṭhī-kiḷavarā-pāṭhī.
- Burnt-at-cremation-ground.* Smaśānīm-māṇasēm-jāḷī.
- Old-treatments-surpassed.* Māgīla-upacāra-puḍhēm.
- No-fear-Deva-experiences.* Bhēva-nāhīm-Deva-bhōgītā.
- Mind-test-rubbed-on-touchstone.* Mana-kasiyēlēm-nirvāṇa.
- Anubhava-or-sāsta-for-thief.* Anubhava-barā-cōra-sāsta.