Abhanga 2137
For today: for the future sukha, giving nimba is good — much duḥkha is averted; this varma is in the mother's hand — strikes and beats out of love, for hita's sake; while playing, forgets hunger-thirst-home — taking by hand, brings forcibly; Tuka says — feeds bite-by-bite into mouth — generous with everything, all the time.
The verse
पुढिलिया सुखें निंब देतां भले । बहुत वारलें होय दुःख ॥१॥ हें तों वर्म असे माउलीचे हातीं । हाणी मारी प्रीती हितासाठीं ॥ध्रु.॥ खेळतां विसरे भूक तान घर । धरूनियां कर आणी बळें ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे पाळी तोंडीचिया घांसें । उदार सर्वस्वें सर्वकाळ ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: For the future sukha, giving nimba is good — much duḥkha is averted. This varma is in the mother's hand — strikes-and-beats out of love, for hita's sake. While playing, forgets hunger-thirst-home — taking by hand, brings forcibly. Tuka says: feeds bite-by-bite into mouth — generous with everything, all the time.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| पुढिलिया सुखें निंब देतां भले | "for the future sukha, giving nimba is good" |
| बहुत वारलें होय दुःख | "much duḥkha is averted" |
| हें तों वर्म असे माउलीचे हातीं | "this varma is in the mother's hand" |
| हाणी मारी प्रीती हितासाठीं | "strikes-and-beats out of love, for hita's sake" |
| खेळतां विसरे भूक तान घर | "while playing, forgets hunger-thirst-home" |
| धरूनियां कर आणी बळें | "taking by hand, brings forcibly" |
| तुका म्हणे पाळी तोंडीचिया घांसें | "Tuka says — feeds bite-by-bite into mouth" |
| उदार सर्वस्वें सर्वकाळ | "generous with everything, all the time" |
What it means
Bitter-nimba-for-future-sukha + mother-hits-out-of-love + feeds-bite-by-bite abhang.
The opening — nimba-bitter: puḍhiliyā sukhē nimba dētām bhalē — bahuta vāralē hōya duḥkha — for the future sukha, giving nimba is good — much duḥkha is averted. Nimba = bitter neem-medicine (given to children to ward-off disease). Give-bitter-nimba for-the-future-sukha; much-duḥkha is-averted. The bitter-medicine-of-discipline saves later-suffering.
The mother-hits-out-of-love line: hē tōm varma asē mā'ulīchē hātīm — hāṇī mārī prītī hitā-sāṭhīm — this varma is in the mother's hand — strikes-and-beats out of love, for hita's sake. The secret is-in-the-mother's-hand: she-strikes and-hits out-of-love, for-the-child's-good. The Lord-as-mother's pedagogy of-love-through-discipline.
The playing-and-forgetting: khēḷatām visarē bhūka tāna ghara — dharūniyām kara āṇī baḷē — while playing, forgets hunger-thirst-home — taking by hand, brings forcibly. The playing-child forgets-hunger-and-home; the mother takes-by-hand and-brings-(him)-forcibly.
The closing — feeds bite-by-bite: Tukā mhaṇē pāḷī tōṇḍīchiyā ghāmsē — udāra sarva-svē sarva-kāḷa — feeds bite-by-bite into mouth — generous with everything, all the time. Feeds the-child bite-by-bite; generous with-everything, always.
[T]
For someone today
For today: for the future sukha, giving nimba is good — much duḥkha is averted; this varma is in the mother's hand — strikes and beats out of love, for hita's sake; while playing, forgets hunger-thirst-home — taking by hand, brings forcibly; Tuka says — feeds bite-by-bite into mouth — generous with everything, all the time.
Where this applies
- Bitter-nimba-for-future-sukha.* Puḍhiliyā-sukhē-nimba-bahuta-vāralē-duḥkha.
- Mother-hits-out-of-love-for-hita.* Varma-mā'ulīchē-hātīm-hāṇī-mārī-prītī-hita.
- Forgets-hunger-mother-brings-by-hand.* Khēḷatām-visarē-bhūka-tāna-ghara-baḷē.
- Feeds-bite-by-bite-generous-always.* Pāḷī-tōṇḍīchiyā-ghāmsē-udāra.