Abhanga 1884

Once craving and false hope fall away, an ant and a king, gold and dirt, look the same, and heaven turns out to already be at home.

The verse

Literal translation

What it means

Ant-and-king-equal + gold-and-dirt-equal + Vaikuṇṭha-at-home abhang. One of the Śivājī-cluster's foundational direct-response abhangs.

The opening — direct-response to royal-context: mungī āṇi rāva — āmhām sārikhā chi jīva — ant and king — to us, the same jīva. Mungī = ant; rāva = king (= specifically the Marāṭhī term for a king or chieftain). Ant-and-king are the-same-jīva to-the-bhakta. (= Śivājī as rāva is no-different from-an-ant in-the-bhakta's-eyes. Foundational equalizing-statement.)

The freed-line: gēlā mōha āṇi āśā — kaḷikāḷācā hā phāmsā — moha and āśā are gone — (this was) kalikāla's noose. Phāmsā = the noose. Moha-and-āśā are-gone — this-was-kalikāla's-noose, now-released.

The gold-and-dirt line: sōnē āṇi mātī — āmhām samāna hē chittī — gold and dirt — to us, same in chitta. Pure equalization of-gold (= Śivājī's-royal-wealth) and-dirt (= ordinary-mud). The bhakta's-chitta sees-them-the-same.

The Vaikuṇṭha-line: Tukā mhaṇē ālē — gharā Vaikuṇṭha sagaḷē — Tuka says: Vaikuṇṭha has come to (our) home, entirely. Vaikuṇṭha is-already-at-the-bhakta's-home — no-need-to-go-to-Śivājī's-court for-rewards; the-cosmic-paradise has-arrived-at-the-poor-bhakta's-house.

This abhang is a key text in the Śivājī-cluster — directly equalizing royal-wealth with ordinary-dirt and the king with an ant; declaring Vaikuṇṭha is already-at-home, so no court-visit is needed.

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For someone today

For today: ant and king — to us, the same jīva; moha and āśā are gone — this was kalikāla's noose; gold and dirt — to us, same in chitta; Tuka says — Vaikuṇṭha has come to (our) home, entirely.

Where this applies

• When you find yourself impressed by someone's status or intimidated by someone's power
• When you're chasing gold, promotions, or possessions as if they were more real than the person seeking them
• When craving and false hope keep pulling you back into worry about what you don't have
• When you assume you must travel somewhere special or achieve something big before you can feel at peace

Related verses

• Abhanga 2448 — The easiest path to God is repeating divine names with love at home, right where you are,
• Abhanga 2464 — For today: Pāṇḍuranga is sukha-rūpa ; no wandering, no shaving, no sādhana-pressure ; Chan
• Abhanga 2477 — Like a child too absorbed in play to notice how tired he is, let go and trust the parent c
• Abhanga 2481 — Pandharpur surpasses even the greatest pilgrimage cities because people there set aside pr