Abhanga 1810
A vow spoken with God as witness, staking yourself to cut free of worldly ties, becomes as fixed and unmovable as a stake driven into the ground.
The verse
जीवें व्हावें साटी । पडे संवसारें तुटी ॥१॥ ऐशीं बोलिलों वचनें । सवें घेउनि नारायण ॥ध्रु.॥ नाहीं जन्मा आलों । करील ऐसें नेदीं बोलों ॥२॥ ठाव पुसी सेणें । तुका म्हणे खुंटी येणें ॥३॥
Literal translation
The jīva should be made a barter — the cut from samsāra should fall. Such words I have spoken — taking Nārāyaṇa with me. I have not come into birth to do thus — I won't say it again. The place is asked by sēṇa — Tuka says — the stake comes by it.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| जीवें व्हावें साटी | "the jīva — should be made — a barter / pawn (sāṭī)" |
| पडे संवसारें तुटी | "the cut — from samsāra — should fall" |
| ऐशीं बोलिलों वचनें | "such words — (I) have spoken" |
| सवें घेउनि नारायण | "taking with me — Nārāyaṇa (as witness)" |
| नाहीं जन्मा आलों | "not — come into birth — (I) have" |
| करील ऐसें नेदीं बोलों | "to do thus — (I) won't say it again" |
| ठाव पुसी सेणें | "the place — is asked — by sēṇa (= a sign / token of resolve)" |
| तुका म्हणे खुंटी येणें | "Tuka says — the stake — comes by it" |
What it means
Vow-of-jīva-bartered + Nārāyaṇa-as-witness abhang.
The opening: jīvē hō'āvē sāṭī — paḍē samvasārē tuṭī — the jīva should be made a barter — the cut from samsāra should fall. Sāṭī = barter / pawn / collateral; tuṭī = cut, severance. The bhakta's vow: I will pawn-the-jīva-as-collateral if-that-is-what-it-takes for-the-samsāra-cut to-fall.
The witness-line: aiśīm bōlilōm vacanē — savē ghē'ūni Nārāyaṇa — such words I have spoken — taking Nārāyaṇa with me. Savē = along with. The vow is sealed-with-Nārāyaṇa-as-witness — the deva-himself stands as the legal-witness to the bhakta's-vow.
The renunciation: nāhīm janmā ālōm — karīla aisē nēdīm bōlōm — I have not come into birth to do thus — I won't say it again. The bhakta declares: I-was-not-born-to-do-samsāra; I-won't-claim-otherwise-anymore. (= correcting any past-claim-of-samsāra-as-purpose.)
The closing: ṭhāva pusī sēṇē — Tukā mhaṇē khuṇṭī yēṇē — the place is asked by sēṇa — Tuka says — the stake comes by it. Sēṇa = a sign / token / mark of resolve (= the small-mark or signal-stone placed-at-a-spot to claim it); khuṇṭī = the wooden-stake driven-in for-secure-tying. Once-the-resolve-marker is placed, the firm-stake follows — the vow becomes immovable-once-marked.
The image: the bhakta places-a-marker (sēṇa) at his-resolved-place; the stake-(khuṇṭī) follows-it, fixing-the-resolve permanently. (= the moment-of-decision becomes the unbreakable-anchor of the bhakta's-life.)
This abhang is one of Tuka's vow-abhangs — a formal-declaration of life-purpose with Nārāyaṇa-as-legal-witness, ending with the immovable-stake metaphor.
[T]
For someone today
For today: the jīva should be made a barter — the cut from samsāra should fall; such words I have spoken — taking Nārāyaṇa with me as witness; I have not come into birth to do (samsāra) thus — I won't say it again; the place is asked by sēṇa — Tuka says — the stake comes by it.
Where this applies
- When you make a serious promise to yourself and need it to actually hold instead of quietly fading
- When you realize you have been living as if worldly comfort were your whole purpose and want to say otherwise
- When you need to state a resolve out loud, to God or to someone else, so it becomes harder to abandon
- When you are tempted to walk back a commitment you made in a moment of clarity