Abhanga 1531

For today: in the jñānī's house, the very-process of seeking Deva produces aham-bhāva clinging at the back; abandon such means and firmly hold his feet; even Veda-pundits can't agree among themselves; the talked-of ātma-niṣṭhā shows upside-down behavior; yogis who haven't cooled their bodies grumble-and-growl; Hari, don't make me dependent on any of these.

The verse

Literal translation

What it means

Anti-academic-and-yogic-spirituality polemic abhang. A 5-verse sustained-diagnosis of pseudo-spiritual-categories. The opening: jñāniyāñcē gharī cōjavitām Deva — tēthēm ahambhāva pāṭhī lāgē — in thejñānī's house — whenDeva is being sought— there —aham-bhāva—clings at the back. In the very-process of seeking-Deva-as-a-jñānī, aham-bhāva clings to the seeker. (Pithy diagnosis: jñāna-mode-itself produces aham-bhāva.)

Tuka's response: aisē sāṇḍilē upāya — dhariyēlē pāya dṛḍha tujhē — suchupāyas —abandoned; —firmly— yourpāya—held. Tuka has abandoned all suchupāyas; just firmly holds Hari's feet.

The Veda-pundit observation: Veda-pārāyaṇa paṇḍita vācaka — na maḷitī ēka ēkām-madhīm — Veda-pārāyaṇa, paṇḍita-vācaka (= reciters) — do not get-along — one-with-another. Even the Veda-pārāyaṇa-pundits can't agree among themselves. (= the outer-credentials don't produce inner-harmony; cf. 1456's bhinna-bhāva-Vedānta.)

The ātma-niṣṭhā probe: pāhōm gēlōm bhāva kaisī ātma-niṣṭhā — tēthēm dēkhēm cēṣṭā viparīta — I went tosee bhāva— what kind ofātma-niṣṭhā(= self-anchoredness); — there — I see —cēṣṭā viparīta(= upside-down behavior). I went to check the bhāva and ātma-niṣṭhā quality — found upside-down behavior. (= the talked-of-state doesn't match the visible-conduct.)

The yogi-image: āpuliyā nāhīm nivālē jē angē — yōgi karitī rāgē gura-guru — those —not cooled— in their own body; —yogis—make rage-grumbling.Yogis who haven't cooled-down-their-own-body grumble-and-growl in anger. (Striking:gura-guru— onomatopoeia for thegrowling-of-cats-or-dogs; applied toyogis—they sound like growling-animals in their anger.)

The closing-prayer: Tukā mhaṇē maja kōṇāñcā pāngilā — nakō bā Viṭhṭhalā karūm ātām — Tuka says — to me —of whom— is thepāngilā(= dependence / obligation)?; —don't, dearViṭhṭhala— make (it) — now. Don't make me dependent on any of these (jñānī, paṇḍita, yogi); take me directly.

[T]

For someone today

For today: in the jñānī's house, the very-process of seeking Deva produces aham-bhāva clinging at the back; abandon such means and firmly hold his feet; even Veda-pundits can't agree among themselves; the talked-of ātma-niṣṭhā shows upside-down behavior; yogis who haven't cooled their bodies grumble-and-growl; Hari, don't make me dependent on any of these.

Where this applies

• When you notice that pursuing spiritual knowledge is quietly feeding your ego instead of humbling you
• When experts or scholars in the same field can't agree with each other and it shakes your trust in credentials alone
• When someone talks a big game about their inner peace but their actual behavior says otherwise
• When a teacher or guide who's supposed to be spiritually advanced loses their temper and snaps at people

Related verses

• Abhanga 4482 — Tukaram teaches that no ritual equals sincerely speaking the Lord's name, that self-center
• Abhanga 3417 — Simple, heartfelt singing can bring you closer to the divine than years of rigid ritual, b
• Abhanga 3871 — Sit in worry-free devotion to one Lord alone, let go of every other ritual and any sense o
• Abhanga 3916 — Tukaram laments that clever arguments against ritual, sacred images, storytelling, and tem