Abhanga 2248
Caught in a net of death, desire, and illusion he cannot see his way out of, the poet begs pilgrims to remind God of the promise to protect the helpless, since there is nowhere else left to look.
The verse
पंढरीस जाते निरोप आइका । वैकुंठनायका क्षम सांगा ॥१॥ अनाथांचा नाथ हें तुझें वचन । धांवें नको दीन गांजों देऊं ॥ध्रु.॥ ग्रासिलें भुजंगें सर्पें महाकाळें । न दिसे हें जाळें उगवतां ॥२॥ कामक्रोधसुनीं श्वापदीं बहुतीं । वेढलों आवर्ती मायेचिये ॥३॥ मृदजलनदी बुडविना तरी । आणूनियां वरी तळा नेते ॥४॥ तुका म्हणे तुवां धरिलें उदास । तरि पाहों वास कवणाची ॥५॥
Literal translation
You who go to Paṇḍharī, listen to my message — tell the Vaikuṇṭha-nāyaka, [ask for] forgiveness. 'Lord of the helpless' is your vow — come running, don't let the dīna be tormented. The great serpent of mahā-kāḷa has swallowed [me] — I can't see this net unraveling. By many beasts, kāma-krōdha dogs — I'm encircled in māyā's whirlpool. The soft-water-river doesn't drown but — bringing up, takes to the bottom. Tuka says: if you've held udāsa — whose direction shall I look?
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| पंढरीस जाते निरोप आइका | "you who go to Paṇḍharī, listen to my message" |
| वैकुंठनायका क्षम सांगा | "tell the Vaikuṇṭha-nāyaka — [ask for] forgiveness" |
| अनाथांचा नाथ हें तुझें वचन | "'lord of the helpless' is your vow" |
| धांवें नको दीन गांजों देऊं | "come running — don't let the dīna be tormented" |
| ग्रासिलें भुजंगें सर्पें महाकाळें | "the great serpent of mahā-kāḷa has swallowed [me]" |
| न दिसे हें जाळें उगवतां | "I can't see this net unraveling" |
| कामक्रोधसुनीं श्वापदीं बहुतीं | "by many beasts — kāma-krōdha dogs" |
| वेढलों आवर्ती मायेचिये | "I'm encircled in māyā's whirlpool" |
| मृदजलनदी बुडविना तरी | "the soft-water-river doesn't drown but" |
| आणूनियां वरी तळा नेते | "bringing up, takes to the bottom" |
| तुका म्हणे तुवां धरिलें उदास | "Tuka says — if you've held udāsa" |
| तरि पाहों वास कवणाची | "whose direction shall I look" |
What it means
Message-via-Pandharī-pilgrims + the-mahā-kāḷa-serpent-swallowed-me + Tuvām-dharilē-udāsa abhang. A 5+1-verse petition.
The opening — the message-via-pilgrims: Paṇḍharīsa jātē niropa ā'ikā — Vaikuṇṭha-nāyakā kṣama sāngā — you who go to Paṇḍharī, listen to my message — tell the Vaikuṇṭha-nāyaka — [ask for] forgiveness. The classic go-to-Paṇḍharī-take-my-message format — the bhakta-asks-other-pilgrims to-be-his-messengers-to-Viṭhṭhal.
The biruda-invocation: anāthāñchā nātha hē tujhē vachana — dhāmvē nakō dīna gāñjōm dē'ūm — 'lord of the helpless' is your vow — come running, don't let the dīna be tormented. Anāthāñchā nātha = lord of the helpless — Viṭhṭhal's-distinctive-biruda. 'Lord-of-the-helpless' is-your-vow; come-running, don't-let the-dīna be-tormented.
The mahā-kāḷa-serpent image: grāsilē bhujangē sarpē mahā-kāḷē — na disē hē jāḷē ugavatām — the great serpent of mahā-kāḷa has swallowed [me] — I can't see this net unraveling. Bhujanga-sarpa = the great-serpent. Mahā-kāḷa = the great Time/Death. The mahā-kāḷa great-serpent has-swallowed-me; I-can't-see-the-net unraveling.
The dogs-and-beasts: kāma-krōdha-sunīm śvāpadīm bahutīm — vēḍhalōm āvartī māyēchiyē — by many beasts — kāma-krōdha dogs — I'm encircled in māyā's whirlpool. Sunīm = dogs (in compound). Āvarta = whirlpool, vortex. Many-beasts, kāma-krōdha-dogs; I-am-encircled in-the-whirlpool-of-māyā.
The deceptive-river: mṛda-jala-nadī buḍavinā tarī — āṇūniyām vari taḷā nētē — the soft-water-river doesn't drown but — bringing up, takes to the bottom. The soft-water-river (= mild-samsāra) doesn't-immediately-drown; but bringing-(swimmers)-to-the-surface, takes-them-to-the-bottom. The treacherous-current image.
The closing — whose-direction-if-you-are-udāsa: Tukā mhaṇē tuvām dharilē udāsa — tari pāhōm vāsa kavaṇāchī — Tuka says: if you've held udāsa — whose direction shall I look. If-you-have-held-udāsa (disengagement), whose-direction shall-I-look-towards? The classic petition-cry.
[T]
For someone today
For today: Pandharī-going pilgrims, take my message — anāthāñchā-nātha is your vow — don't let the dīna be tormented; mahā-kāḷa serpent swallowed me — can't see net unraveling; kāma-krōdha dogs, māyā's whirlpool; soft-water-river takes to the bottom; if you've held udāsa — whose direction shall I look.
Where this applies
- When you feel so overwhelmed that you ask someone else to speak up for you to whoever can help.
- When desire and anger keep coming at you like dogs you can't shake off.
- When something that looked safe and gentle turns out to be pulling you under instead of holding you up.
- When you feel completely alone and wonder where to turn if even your last hope seems to have given up on you.