Abhanga 1490
For today: no human really saves others — they often spoil the good and discard anyhow; gold was pure at home, spoiled by the goldsmith into ornaments; one-wheat is made into many forms; the grinder spoils fresh butter; trust the original-pure, not the processed-modifications.
The verse
आणिकांसी तारी ऐसा नाहीं कोणी । धड तें नासोनि भलता टाकी ॥१॥ सोनें शुद्ध होतें अविट तें घरीं । नासिलें सोनारीं अळंकारीं ॥ध्रु.॥ ओल शुद्ध काळी काळें जिरें बीज । कैंचें लागे निज हाता तेथें ॥२॥ एक गहू करिती अनेक प्रकार । सांजा दिवसीं क्षीर घुगरिया ॥३॥ तुका म्हणे विषा रुचि एका हातीं । पाधानी नासिती नवनीत ॥४॥
Literal translation
English: No one is such that he saves others — the dhaḍa, spoiling, anyhow discards. Gold was śuddha, aviṭa, at home — spoiled by sōnāra into aḷankāra. Ōla was śuddha, kāḷī; kāḷēm jirēm, the bīja — whence would nija touch hand there? One gahū — they make anēka prakāra — sāñjā, divaśī, kṣīra, ghugariyā. Tuka says: viṣa-and-ruci in one hand — the pādhānī spoils nava-nīta.
मराठी: आणिकांसी — तारी — ऐसा — नाहीं — कोणी; — धड — तें — नासोनि — भलता — टाकी. सोनें — शुद्ध — होतें — अविट — तें — घरीं; — नासिलें — सोनारीं — अळंकारीं. ओल — शुद्ध — काळी — काळें — जिरें — बीज; — कैंचें — लागे — निज — हाता — तेथें. एक — गहू — करिती — अनेक — प्रकार; — सांजा — दिवसीं — क्षीर — घुगरिया. Tukā म्हणे — विषा — रुचि — एका — हातीं; — पाधानी — नासिती — नवनीत.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| आणिकांसी तारी ऐसा नाहीं कोणी | "(one who) saves others — like that — there is no one" |
| धड तें नासोनि भलता टाकी | "the good (dhaḍa) — spoiling (nāsōnī) — anyhow (bhalatā) — discards (ṭākī)" |
| सोनें शुद्ध होतें अविट तें घरीं | "gold — was śuddha — aviṭa (= unmixed / pure) — at home" |
| नासिलें सोनारीं अळंकारीं | "spoiled — by the sōnāra (goldsmith) — into aḷankāras" |
| ओल शुद्ध काळी काळें जिरें बीज | "ōla (= sugarcane / juice-stalk) — śuddha, kāḷī (= the cane); — kāḷēm jirēm — bīja (seed)" |
| कैंचें लागे निज हाता तेथें | "whence (kaimcēm) — would the nija (one's own / pure) — touch the hand — there?" |
| एक गहू करिती अनेक प्रकार | "one (variety of) wheat — they make — anēka prakāra (many forms)" |
| सांजा दिवसीं क्षीर घुगरिया | "sāñjā (farina), divaśī (= dosa-pancake), kṣīra (rice-pudding), ghugariyā (sweet-fritter)" |
| तुका म्हणे विषा रुचि एका हातीं | "Tuka says — poison and taste — in one hand (= single-handedly)" |
| पाधानी नासिती नवनीत | "the pādhānī (= grinder / millstone-keeper) — spoils — nava-nīta (fresh-butter)" |
What it means
No-one-saves-others-they-spoil-the-pure abhang. A subtle, image-rich warning about human-mediated-religion. The opening: āṇikāmsī tārī aisā nāhīm kōṇī — dhaḍa tēm nāsōnī bhalatā ṭākī — one who saves others — like that, no-one; — the good — spoiling — anyhow discards. No human is a real-savior; whoever takes-on-the-saving-role spoils the pure-thing and discards anyhow. (Compare 1428's true-guru-doesn't-take-disciple-service; here the sharper claim that human-mediation generally corrupts.)
The cluster of transformation-spoils-original images:
(1) Goldsmith-image: sōnēm śuddha hōtēm aviṭa tēm gharī — nāsilēm sōnārīm aḷankārīm — gold was pure-and-unmixed at home — spoiled by the sōnāra (goldsmith) — into aḷankāras. The aḷankāra-making image: gold was already pure; the goldsmith's adding-of-decoration is a spoiling. (Striking — usually goldsmith enhances; here the work spoils. Implication: the original / pure-state is what matters, not the decorated-version. Compare 1474's bāpuḍēm-jñāna-bhakti-vīṇa — same anti-decoration-of-the-pure register.)
(2) Sugarcane-and-cumin: ōla śuddha kāḷī kāḷēm jirēm bīja — kaimcēm lāgē nija hāta tēthēm — sugarcane was pure (= directly-edible-as-cane); cumin-seed (kāḷēm jirēm) is the seed; — whence would the nija (= the original / one's own) touch hand there? The cane-vs-seed contrast: cane is directly-eaten; cumin-seed is not-eaten-as-seed but ground / processed. Where can you touch the original-pure when the form is processed-seed?
(3) One-wheat-many-forms: ēka gahū karitī anēka prakāra — sāñjā divaśīm kṣīra ghugariyā — one (kind of) wheat — they make — many prakāra: sāñjā (= farina-pudding), divaśī (= dosa), kṣīra (= rice-pudding), ghugariyā (= sweet-fritter). The modification-multiplication image: one-pure becomes many-shapes; — the original-grain is lost in the various preparations.
(4) Closing-grinder-image: viṣā ruci ēkā hātīm — pādhānī nāsitī nava-nīta — poison and taste — in ēka hāta (= one hand, single-handed); — the pādhānī (= grinder / mill-keeper) — spoils — nava-nīta (fresh butter). One-hand has both poison and taste (= the same agent gives both rasa and ruin); the grinder spoils fresh butter (= further-processing destroys the pure-product).
[T]
For someone today
For today: no human really saves others — they often spoil the good and discard anyhow; gold was pure at home, spoiled by the goldsmith into ornaments; one-wheat is made into many forms; the grinder spoils fresh butter; trust the original-pure, not the processed-modifications.
Where this applies
- No-one-really-saves-others-they-spoil.* Āṇikāmsī-tārī-na-dhaḍa-nāsōnī.
- Gold-pure-at-home-spoiled-by-goldsmith.* Sōnēm-śuddha-aviṭa-sōnārīm-aḷankāra.
- One-wheat-many-forms.* Ēka-gahū-anēka-prakāra.
- Grinder-spoils-fresh-butter.* Pādhānī-nāsitī-nava-nīta.