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 1508 of 4582

Abhanga 1508

For today: I am bhāgya-hīna among all today; my only capital is the name held at my throat; nothing else; I don't know who made me this much worldly-fame.

When you'd see your only-asset is the name — I'm bhāgya-hīna; only this bhāṇḍavala — name at throat; don't know who made the fame

The verse

असें येथींचिया दिनें । भाग्यहीन सकळां ॥१॥ भांडवल एवढें गांठी । नाम कंठीं धरियेलें ॥ध्रु.॥ आणिक तें दुजें कांहीं । मज नाहीं यावरी ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे केली कोणें । एवढा नेणें लौकिक ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: I am of these days — bhāgya-hīna among all. Bhāṇḍavala this much in gānṭha — name held at kaṇṭha. Any other dujēm thing — none beyond this for me. Tuka says: who made (this) — I don't know — this much laukika.

मराठी: असें — येथींचिया — दिनें; — भाग्य-हीन — सकळां. भांडवल — एवढें — गांठी; — नाम — कंठीं — धरियेलें. आणिक — तें — दुजें — कांहीं; — मज — नाहीं — यावरी. Tukā म्हणे — केली — कोणें; — एवढा — नेणें — लौकिक.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
असें येथींचिया दिनें "I am — yēthīciyā dinē (= of these days, today)"
भाग्यहीन सकळां "bhāgya-hīna (without good-fortune) — among all (sakaḷām)"
भांडवल एवढें गांठी "bhāṇḍavala — this much (ēvaḍhēm) — in the gānṭha"
नाम कंठीं धरियेलें "nāma — at the kaṇṭha (throat) — held (dhariyēlēm)"
आणिक तें दुजें कांहीं "any other (āṇika) — dujēm (second) — anything"
मज नाहीं यावरी "to me — there is none — over-and-above this (yā-varī)"
तुका म्हणे केली कोणें "Tuka says — who has made (kēlī)?"
एवढा नेणें लौकिक "this much — I don't know (nēṇē) — laukika (worldly fame)"

What it means

Only-bhāṇḍavala-is-name-at-throat abhang. A humble self-portrait. The opening: asēm yēthīciyā dinē — bhāgya-hīna sakaḷāmI am — of these days; — bhāgya-hīna — among all. The self-deprecating-opening: I'm without good-fortune compared to all. (Compare 1482's ranka-Tukā-nāma — same humility-mode.)

The treasured-asset: bhāṇḍavala ēvaḍhēm gānṭhī — nāma kaṇṭhīm dhariyēlēmthis much — bhāṇḍavala — in the gānṭha (knot); — nāma — at the kaṇṭha (throat) — held. My only capital is this much: the name held at my throat. (Compare 1421's avaghēm bhāṇḍavala — Viṭhṭhala ēkalā* — same theme.)

The exclusive-singularity: āṇika tēm dujēm kāhīm — maja nāhīm yā-varīno second thing — for me — over-and-above this. I have nothing else.

The closing-wonder: kēlī kōṇē — ēvaḍhā nēṇē laukikawho made (this) — this much laukika (worldly-fame) — I don't know. I don't know how I came to have this much fame in the world. (= the bhāṇḍavala of nāma — small in self-estimation — has somehow created laukika; Tuka's wonder-at-his-own-fame, attributing it to kōṇē (= someone, i.e., Hari).)

[T]

For someone today

For today: I am bhāgya-hīna among all today; my only capital is the name held at my throat; nothing else; I don't know who made me this much worldly-fame.

Where this applies

Related verses