Abhanga 2106
At Pandharpur even liberation is offered for free, yet devotees would rather have the sweetness of loving devotion than take it.
The verse
तिन्ही लोक ॠणें बांधिले जयानें । सर्वसिद्धि केणें तये घरीं ॥१॥ पंढरीचोहोटां घातला दुकान । मांडियेले वान आवडीचे ॥ध्रु.॥ आषाढी कार्तिकी भरियेले हाट । इनाम हे पेंठ घेतां देतां ॥२॥ मुक्ति कोणी तेथें हातीं नेघे फुका । लुटितील सुखा प्रेमाचिया ॥३॥ तुका म्हणे संतसज्जन भाग्याचें । अनंतां जन्मींचे सांटेकरी ॥४॥
Literal translation
The three worlds bound by debt — by whom — all-siddhi-stock in his home. Opened a shop in Paṇḍharī-crossroads — spread out the goods of favorites. Āṣāḍhī-kārtikī — the bazaar filled — this is the gift-bazaar, give-and-take. Mukti — no one takes it for free there — they plunder sukha of prema. Tuka says: the santa-sajjana are fortunate — bargainers from countless births.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| तिन्ही लोक ॠणें बांधिले जयानें | "the three worlds bound by debt — by whom" |
| सर्वसिद्धि केणें तये घरीं | "all-siddhi-stock in his home" |
| पंढरीचोहोटां घातला दुकान | "opened a shop in Paṇḍharī-crossroads" |
| मांडियेले वान आवडीचे | "spread out the goods of favorites" |
| आषाढी कार्तिकी भरियेले हाट | "āṣāḍhī-kārtikī — the bazaar filled" |
| इनाम हे पेंठ घेतां देतां | "this is the gift-bazaar — give and take" |
| मुक्ति कोणी तेथें हातीं नेघे फुका | "mukti — no one takes it for free there" |
| लुटितील सुखा प्रेमाचिया | "they plunder sukha of prema" |
| तुका म्हणे संतसज्जन भाग्याचें | "Tuka says — the santa-sajjana are fortunate" |
| अनंतां जन्मींचे सांटेकरी | "bargainers from countless births" |
What it means
Pandhari-as-bazaar + mukti-ignored-prema-plundered abhang.
The opening — three-worlds-bound: tinhī lōka ṛṇē bāndhilē jayānē — sarva-siddhi kēṇē tayē gharī — the three worlds bound by debt — by whom — all-siddhi-stock in his home. The three-worlds are-in-his-debt; all-siddhis are-stocked-in-his-home.
THE PAṆḌHARĪ-BAZAAR: Paṇḍhari-chōhōṭām ghātalā dukāna — māṇḍiyēlē vāna āvaḍīchē — opened a shop in Paṇḍharī-crossroads — spread out the goods of favorites. Chōhōṭām = cross-roads-junction (a marketplace). At Paṇḍharī's-crossroads, the shop is-set; the favorite-goods spread-out.
The Vārī-fairs: āṣāḍhī kārtikī bhariyēlē hāṭa — ināma hē pēṇṭha ghētām dētām — āṣāḍhī-kārtikī — the bazaar filled — this is the gift-bazaar, give-and-take. In āṣāḍhī (Jul) and kārtikī (Nov) — the two-major-Vārī-fairs — the bazaar-is-full; gift-exchange-bazaar (give-and-take is-the-currency).
THE MUKTI-IGNORED LINE: mukti kōṇī tēthē hātīm nēghē phukā — luṭatīla sukhā prēmāchiyā — mukti — no one takes it for free there — they plunder sukha of prema. At-Paṇḍharī, no-one-bothers to-take mukti even-for-free; instead they-plunder the-sukha-of-prema. Famous-line on bhakti-over-mukti: prema is so-much-better than mukti that mukti is given-away-free and no-one-takes-it.
The closing — saints-as-bargainers: Tukā mhaṇē santa-sajjana bhāgyāchē — anantām janmīñchē sāṇṭē-karī — Tuka says: the santa-sajjana are fortunate — bargainers from countless births. The fortunate santa-sajjana are-bargainers-with-the-Lord from-countless-births.
[T]
For someone today
For today: the three worlds bound by debt — all-siddhi-stock in his home; opened a shop in Paṇḍharī-crossroads — spread out the goods of favorites; āṣāḍhī-kārtikī — bazaar filled — gift-bazaar, give-and-take; mukti — no one takes it for free there — they plunder sukha of prema; Tuka says — santa-sajjana are fortunate — bargainers from countless births.
Where this applies
- When you assume that ultimate freedom or release must be the highest thing anyone could want
- When you visit a place of pilgrimage during a big festival and feel the crowd's shared devotion
- When you're tempted to think of your relationship with God in terms of what you get out of it
- When you wonder why some people seem to keep returning to the same devotional practice, year after year, life after life