संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 1409 of 4582

Abhanga 1409

For today: fault grows by indulgence — once set, the imprint doesn't reverse easily; acting on good vacana is Nārāyaṇa himself; prārabdha runs by rule, toil remains as toil; only śānti held in the citta gives sukha.

When fault has grown by indulgence — act on the good saying — that itself is Nārāyaṇa; only śānti gives sukha when kept in the citta

The verse

सोसें वाढे दोष । जाला न पालटे कस ॥१॥ ऐसें बरवें वचन । करितां तें नारायण ॥ध्रु.॥ असे प्रारब्ध नेमें । श्रमुचि उरे श्रम ॥२॥ सुख देते शांती । तुका म्हणे धरितां चित्तीं ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: By sōsa, dōṣa grows — once become, kasa doesn't reverse. Such a good vacana — when made (acted on) — that is Nārāyaṇa. Prārabdha is by nēma — śrama alone remains as śrama. Tuka says: śānti gives sukha — when kept in the citta.

मराठी: सोसें — वाढे — दोष; — जाला — न — पालटे — कस. ऐसें — बरवें — वचन; — करितां — तें — नारायण. असे — प्रारब्ध — नेमें; — श्रमुचि — उरे — श्रम. सुख — देते — शांती; — Tukā म्हणे — धरितां — चित्तीं.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
सोसें वाढे दोष "by sōsa (= indulgence / addiction-like-craving) — dōṣa (fault) — grows (vāḍhē)"
जाला न पालटे कस "(once) become (jālā) — doesn't (na) — pālaṭē (reverse / change) — kasa (= the proof / test / set state)"
ऐसें बरवें वचन "such — good — vacana (word / saying)"
करितां तें नारायण "(when) one makes / does (karītām) — that — (is) Nārāyaṇa"
असे प्रारब्ध नेमें "prārabdha — by nēma (rule / fixed) — exists"
श्रमुचि उरे श्रम "śrama (toil) alone (chi) — remains — śrama"
सुख देते शांती "sukha — gives — śānti"
तुका म्हणे धरितां चित्तीं "Tuka says — (when) keeping (dharītām) — in the citta (mind)"

What it means

Fault-grows-by-indulgence abhang. The opening warning: sōsēm vāḍhē dōṣa — jālā na pālaṭē kasaby sōsa (= indulgence / craving) — dōṣa (fault) grows; — once it has jālā (become fixed) — the kasa (= the set-state / hold / impression) — doesn't reverse. Sōsa is the self-feeding form of desire; once a dōṣa has set-in, the kasa (the imprint) is hard to pālaṭa (reverse). (Compare 1402's āśā-buddhīcā-lōpa — desire-erases-discrimination; here the imprint-after-erasure is hard to undo.)

The corrective: aisēm baravēm vacana — karītām tēm Nārāyaṇasuch — baravēm (good) — vacana (word / saying); — when one makes (= acts upon, lives by) it — that itself is Nārāyaṇa. The good vacana (= saint's-saying or self-counsel) — acting on it — is Nārāyaṇa-himself-in-action. (Tuka's typical formulation: practice-is-the-Deva; not the abstract Deva.)

The corollary: asē prārabdha nēmēm — śramu chi urē śramaprārabdha is by nēma (= rule / fixed-quantum); — śrama (toil) is what's left — śrama. Prārabdha runs on a fixed-allotment; toil is what remains-as-toil — i.e., toil-against-prārabdha is just toil; the prārabdha runs out as fixed.

The closing principle: sukha dētē śāntī — dharītām cittīmsukha — givesśānti; — (when) holding (it) in the citta. Sukha-giver is śānti (calm-restraint); the condition is holding it in the citta. The only-cure for the dōṣa's kasa is śānti held-in-citta. (Compare 1391's vivēka-mokaḷē — discrimination-released; here citta-held-śānti.)

[T]

For someone today

For today: fault grows by indulgence — once set, the imprint doesn't reverse easily; acting on good vacana is Nārāyaṇa himself; prārabdha runs by rule, toil remains as toil; only śānti held in the citta gives sukha.

Where this applies

Related verses