संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 2433 of 4582

Abhanga 2433

True speech can become silence, and a person close to truth can dispel darkness around them while staying untouched by the world's affairs, the way sunlight does.

When you find that trying to put something sacred into words only cheapens it.

When you help clear up someone's confusion but stay uninvolved in their ongoing troubles.

When you sense you've said everything worth saying and choose to stop rather than keep talking.

The verse

सहज लीळा मी साक्षी याचा । नये वंचूं वाचा ऐसें जालें ॥१॥ उपक्रमें वदे निशब्दाची वाणी । जे कोठें बंधनीं गुंपों नेणें ॥ध्रु.॥ तम नासी परि वेव्हारा वेगळा । रविप्रभाकळा वर्ते जन ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे येथें गेला अतिशय । आतां पुन्हा नये तोंड दावूं ॥३॥

Literal translation

I am the witness of this natural-līlā — speech doesn't deceive. Opening, speech of-silence speaks — which knows no bondage. Destroys darkness but separate from affairs — sun's-radiance-art operates. Tuka says: here it has gone to excess — now I won't show face again.

What it means

THE SPEECH-OF-SILENCE ABHANG.

THE SPEECH-OF-SILENCE: upakramē vadē niśabdāchī vāṇī — jē kōṭhē bandhanīm gumpōm nēṇē — opening, speech of-silence speaks — which knows no bondage. At-the-opening, niśabda-vāṇī (speech-of-silence) speaks; which-knows-no-bondage. Paradox: real-bhakti-speech is-silence; words-without-words.

The sun-image: tama nāsī parī vēvhārā vēgaḷā — ravi-prabhā-kaḷā vartē jana — destroys darkness but separate from affairs — sun's-radiance operates. The sun-destroys-darkness but-remains-separate-from-worldly-affairs; the saint similarly.

[T]

For someone today

For today: witness of natural-līlā; speech-of-silence speaks ; sun destroys darkness but separate.

Where this applies

Speech-of-silence. Niśabdāchī-vāṇī.

Bhakti