Abhanga 1582
For today: the world-show has appeared only as a rope-snake-form (illusion); therefore I remember the feet — I take them as my charm against ill; the visible tree-shaped garlands — I have made the all-witness the master of them; Tuka has been weighed in Tuka — filling the cosmos, he has remained beyond people.
The verse
रज्जुसर्पाकार । भासयेलें जगडंबर ॥१॥ म्हणोनि आठवती पाय । घेतों आलाय बलाय ॥ध्रु.॥ द्रुश द्रुमाकार लाणी । केलों सर्व सासी धणी ॥२॥ तुकीं तुकला तुका । विश्वीं भरोनि उरला लोकां ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: In rajju-sarpa-form, the jagat-ḍambara has appeared. Therefore I remember the feet — I take the ālāya-balāya. The visible, tree-shaped garlands — I have made the sarva-sākṣī the dhaṇī. Tuka has been weighed in Tuka — filling the world, has remained beyond people.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| रज्जुसर्पाकार | "in (the) rajju-sarpa-form (rope-snake)" |
| भासयेलें जगडंबर | "has appeared — the jagat-ḍambara (world-show)" |
| म्हणोनि आठवती पाय | "therefore — I remember — (the) feet" |
| घेतों आलाय बलाय | "I take — ālāya-balāya (folk-charm-against-ill)" |
| द्रुश द्रुमाकार लाणी | "the visible — tree-formed — garlands" |
| केलों सर्व सासी धणी | "I have made — the all-witness — master (dhaṇī)" |
| तुकीं तुकला तुका | "in Tuka — has been weighed — Tuka" |
| विश्वीं भरोनि उरला लोकां | "filling — the world — has remained beyond (uralā) — people" |
What it means
Rajju-sarpa-advaita + Tuka-cosmic-pun abhang. A post-realization abhang in cryptic-condensed register.
The opening: rajju-sarpākāra — bhāsayēlēm jaga-ḍambara — in rajju-sarpa-form (= rope-snake) — the jagat-ḍambara has appeared. The classical advaita-image: the rope mistaken for a snake — when you see the rope, the snake-perception was illusory. Jagat-ḍambara — the show / pomp of the world. The world-show has appeared (only) as rope-snake-form — illusory super-imposition on the substrate. (= the world is rope-snake-vivartā.)
The therefore-clause: mhaṇōni āṭhavatī pāya — ghētōm ālāya balāya — therefore I remember the feet — I take ālāya-balāya. Ālāya-balāya — a folk-charm-gesture for warding-off-ill; taking the (Lord's) feet as warding-off-ill. (= since the world is rope-snake-illusion, only the feet can ward off the danger of believing in it.)
The visibility-claim: dṛśya drumākāra lāṇī — kēlōm sarva-sākṣī dhaṇī — the visible, tree-shaped garlands; I have made the sarva-sākṣī (= all-witness) the dhaṇī (master). Drumākāra — tree-shaped; lāṇī — garland-strung-things. The visible-world is like tree-shaped garlands (= forms strung on the witness); the all-witness has been made the master (= the witness is recognized as the substrate). (Cryptic advaita-formulation: visible-multiplicity is garlanded-onto sākṣī.)
The closing: Tukīm tukalā Tukā — viśvīm bharōni uralā lōkām — Tuka has been weighed in Tuka — filling the cosmos, has remained beyond people. Tukīm tukalā — was weighed in Tuka; the Tuka-self-weighing-pun (Tukaram's name itself contains tukā = "weighed-equal-to"). Filling the cosmos, has remained-beyond (uralā = remained-over) people — cosmic-overflowing-Tuka. (= Tuka has been weighed against himself and found to be cosmic; the self-as-Brahman declaration in cryptic-pun-form.)
[T]
For someone today
For today: the world-show has appeared only as a rope-snake-form (illusion); therefore I remember the feet — I take them as my charm against ill; the visible tree-shaped garlands — I have made the all-witness the master of them; Tuka has been weighed in Tuka — filling the cosmos, he has remained beyond people.
Where this applies
- World-show-rope-snake-illusion.* Jagat-ḍambara-rajju-sarpa.
- Remember-feet-as-folk-charm-against-ill.* Pāya-ālāya-balāya.
- Visible-as-garlands-on-all-witness.* Dṛśya-drumākāra-lāṇī-sarva-sākṣī-dhaṇī.
- Tuka-weighed-in-Tuka-fills-cosmos-beyond-people.* Tukīm-tukalā-viśvīm-bharōni-uralā.