Abhanga 1855
English: Why doesn't karuṇā come, for us, to you?
The verse
आमची कां नये तुम्हासी करुणा । किती नारायणा आळवावें ॥१॥ काय जाणां तुम्ही दुर्बळाचें जिणें । वैभवाच्या गुणें आपुलिया ॥ध्रु.॥ देती घेती करिती खटपटा आणिकें । निराळा कौतुकें पाहोनियां ॥२॥ दिवस बोटी आम्हीं धरियेलें माप । वाहातों संकल्प स्वहिताचा ॥३॥ तुका म्हणे मग देसी कोण्या काळें । चुकुर दुर्बळें होतों आम्ही ॥४॥
Literal translation
English: Why doesn't karuṇā come, for us, to you? — how much, Nārāyaṇa, should we cry? What do you know of the durbaḷa's life — with your own vaibhava qualities? Others give-take-do-struggles — (you) watch like a separated-spectator. We hold counting on fingers — days — (we) bear the sankalpa of svahita. Tuka says: if you'll give later — which time? — we are already weak and mistaken.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| आमची कां नये तुम्हासी करुणा | "for us — why doesn't karuṇā come — to you" |
| किती नारायणा आळवावें | "how much — Nārāyaṇa — should we cry" |
| काय जाणां तुम्ही दुर्बळाचें जिणें | "what do you know — of the durbaḷa's life" |
| वैभवाच्या गुणें आपुलिया | "by your own — vaibhava qualities" |
| देती घेती करिती खटपटा आणिकें | "others — give-take-do-struggles" |
| निराळा कौतुकें पाहोनियां | "(you) watch like a spectator — separated" |
| दिवस बोटी आम्हीं धरियेलें माप | "we hold counting on fingers — days" |
| वाहातों संकल्प स्वहिताचा | "(we) bear the sankalpa — of svahita" |
| तुका म्हणे मग देसी कोण्या काळें | "Tuka says — if you'll give later — which time" |
| चुकुर दुर्बळें होतों आम्ही | "we are weak — and mistaken-already" |
What it means
Cry-of-the-durbaḷa-needing-immediate-help abhang. Part of the 1848-1857 cluster.
The opening: āmacī kām nayē tumhāsī karuṇā — kitī Nārāyaṇā āḷavāvē — for us, why doesn't karuṇā come to you? — how much, Nārāyaṇa, should we cry?. Direct-cry: how-long must-the-bhakta-keep-crying?.
The class-line: kāya jāṇām tumhī durbaḷācē jiṇē — vaibhavācyā guṇē āpuliyā — what do you know of the durbaḷa's life — with your vaibhava?. Vaibhava = splendor, opulence. Sharp class-criticism: you, with-your-vaibhava, can't-understand the durbaḷa's-life. (= the prosperous can't-empathize-with-the-poor. Tuka applies this to-the-Lord — you, in-your-cosmic-vaibhava, don't-know-the-durbaḷa-bhakta's-daily-struggle.)
The detached-spectator line: dētī ghētī karitī khaṭapaṭā āṇikē — nirāḷā kautukē pāhōniyām — others give-take-do-struggles — (you) watch like a spectator, separated. The Lord-as-detached-spectator while the world-engages-in-struggle.
The day-counting: divasa bōṭī āmhī dhariyēlē māpa — vāhātōm sankalpa svahitācā — we hold counting on fingers — days — bear the sankalpa of svahita. The bhakta is counting-the-days-on-fingers, bearing the sankalpa-of-svahita — the wait is becoming intolerable.
The closing: Tukā mhaṇē maga dēsī kōṇyā kāḷē — cukura durbaḷē hōtōm āmhī — Tuka says: if you'll give later — which time? — we are already weak and mistaken. Cukura durbaḷē = mistaken-and-weak. If-you-give-later, then-when? — we-are-already-faltering.
The implicit-message: don't-postpone the help; the durbaḷa needs-it-now, not in-some-future-time. The class-conscious bhakta-cry.
[T]
For someone today
For today: for us, why doesn't karuṇā come to you? — how much, Nārāyaṇa, should we cry?; what do you know of the durbaḷa's life — with your own vaibhava qualities?; others give-take-do-struggles — (you) watch like a separated spectator; we hold counting on fingers — days — bear the sankalpa of svahita; Tuka says — if you'll give later — which time? — we are already weak and mistaken.
Where this applies
- Why-no-karuṇā-how-much-cry.* Karuṇā-na-yē-āḷavāvē.
- You-don't-know-durbaḷa's-life.* Durbaḷa-jiṇē-vaibhava.
- Others-struggle-you-watch-detached.* Dētī-ghētī-nirāḷā-kautukē.
- Counting-days-bearing-svahita-sankalpa.* Divasa-bōṭī-sankalpa-svahita.
- Don't-give-later-already-weak.* Dēsī-kōṇyā-kāḷē-durbaḷa.