Abhanga 1769
For today: why have you made my speech speak — don't disengage from it now, Pāṇḍurangā; to whom else should I ask for vicāra — at the root, I have already distanced samsāra; I have taken svāmi-sevā into my keeping — do the work you have told me; Tuka says — the one who hasn't taught it — let him stay quiet at these words.
The verse
कां हो तुम्ही माझी वदविली वाणी । नेदा हे निवडूनि पांडुरंगा ॥१॥ आणीक म्यां कोणां पुसावा विचार । मुळीं संवसार दुराविला ॥ध्रु.॥ स्वामिसेवा म्हुण घेतली पदरीं । सांगितलें करीं कारण तें ॥२॥ तुका म्हणें नाहीं शिकविलें जेणें । तो याच्या वचनें उगा राहे ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: Why have you made my speech speak — don't sort it out (= don't disengage from it now), Pāṇḍurangā? To whom else should I ask for vicāra — at the root, I have distanced samsāra. Svāmi-sevā therefore I have taken into my padara — do the work you have told me. Tuka says: the one who hasn't taught it — let him stay quiet at these words.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| कां हो तुम्ही माझी वदविली वाणी | "why — have you — made-my speech-speak" |
| नेदा हे निवडूनि पांडुरंगा | "don't sort-it-out (= don't disengage from it) — Pāṇḍurangā" |
| आणीक म्यां कोणां पुसावा विचार | "to whom else — should I ask — for vicāra?" |
| मुळीं संवसार दुराविला | "at the root — samsāra — I have distanced" |
| स्वामिसेवा म्हुण घेतली पदरीं | "svāmi-sevā — therefore — I have taken — into my padara (cloth-fold)" |
| सांगितलें करीं कारण तें | "do the work — that you have told me" |
| तुका म्हणें नाहीं शिकविलें जेणें | "Tuka says — the one who hasn't taught it" |
| तो याच्या वचनें उगा राहे | "let-him — stay-quiet — at his words" |
What it means
You-made-me-speak-don't-disengage-now abhang. A direct continuation of 1768's Viṭhṭhal-speaks-through-Tuka teaching, now demanding-that Viṭhṭhal-not-disengage from the speech-he-set-going.
The opening: kām hō tumhī mājhī vadavilī vāṇī — nēdā hē nivaḍūni Pāṇḍurangā — why have you made my speech speak — don't sort-it-out, Pāṇḍurangā?. Vadavilī vāṇī = (you have) made-the-speech-speak (causative — you made me utter); nivaḍūni = separating-out, disengaging; nēdā = don't give (= don't allow). You-yourself made me speak — now don't disengage from-the-speech-and-leave-me-alone-with-the-words. (Tuka holds Viṭhṭhal accountable for the speech-he-induced.)
The vicāra-line: āṇīka myām kōṇām pusāvā vicāra — muḷīm samvasāra durāvilā — to whom else should I ask for vicāra — at the root, I have distanced samsāra. Vicāra = deliberation, discrimination; durāvilā = distanced, set-aside. I have nobody else to ask — I have already broken-with-samsāra-at-the-root. (Tuka has burned-his-bridges with the world — Viṭhṭhal can't leave him stranded.)
The svāmi-sevā line: svāmi-sēvā mhuṇa ghētalī padarīm — sāngitalēm karīm kāraṇa tēm — I took svāmi-sevā into my padara — do the work you have told me. Padara = the end-fold of the cloth (= into one's keeping); kāraṇa = cause, work, business. I took your-service into-my-keeping; I do the work you told me. The svāmi (= you) instructed; the dāsa (= I) executes.
The closing: Tukā mhaṇē nāhīm śikavilēm jēṇēm — tō yācyā vacanēm ugā rāhē — Tuka says: the one who hasn't taught it — let him stay quiet at these words. The one who didn't teach Tuka this speech (= a critic, a non-bhakta, anyone not authorized) should stay quiet — these are not their words to interpret. (Defends the authorial-authenticity of his speech against outsider-judgment.)
This abhang is part of the 1768-1769 Viṭhṭhal-as-speaker-through-Tuka pair — Tuka's self-understanding as bardic-instrument of the Lord. (Foundational for the gatha-as-divine-vāṇī claim.)
[T]
For someone today
For today: why have you made my speech speak — don't disengage from it now, Pāṇḍurangā; to whom else should I ask for vicāra — at the root, I have already distanced samsāra; I have taken svāmi-sevā into my keeping — do the work you have told me; Tuka says — the one who hasn't taught it — let him stay quiet at these words.
Where this applies
- You-made-my-speech-speak-don't-disengage.* Vadavilī-vāṇī-nivaḍūni-na.
- To-whom-else-samsāra-distanced-at-root.* Vicāra-pusāvā-samvasāra-durāvilā.
- Svāmi-sevā-into-my-keeping-do-the-work.* Svāmi-sevā-padara-kāraṇa.
- The-one-who-didn't-teach-stay-quiet.* Nāhīm-śikavilē-ugā-rāhē.