Abhanga 2616
Grace is never used up and excludes no one; it fits inside even the smallest part of you, so approach it without fear of scarcity.
The verse
बहुतां जातीचा केला अंगीकार । बहुत ही फार सवाौत्तमें ॥१॥
सरला चि नाहीं कोणांचिये वेचें । अक्षोभ ठायींचें ठायीं आहे ॥ध्रु.॥
लागत चि नाहीं घेतां अंतपार । वसवी अंतर अणुचें ही ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे केला होय टाकीऐसा । पुरवावी इच्छा धरिली ते ॥३॥
Literal translation
He has taken-on (angīkāra) of many kinds; many, indeed many of the choicest. He has never been depleted by anyone's expending; the akṣōbha (unperturbable) is in its-own-place. When the anta-pāra (end-shore, the limit) is taken — it is not reached; he settles inside even an atom's interior. Tukā says: he has become like a chisel — let the desire that has been held be fulfilled.
What it means
The verse names four properties of the divine economy. First — bahutām jātīcā kelā angīkāra — he has taken on (responsibility-for) many kinds (jāti = kind, caste, type). Angīkāra — taking-as-one's-own — is the Vārkarī inclusivity-foundation. Bahuta hī phāra savāuttamēm — many, many, of the choicest. The Lord's hospitality is not limited to one jāti.
Second — saralā chi nāhīm kōṇāñchiyē vēchēm — akṣōbha ṭhā'īñchēm ṭhā'īm āhē — he has never been used up by anyone's expense; the unperturbable is in its own place. Saralā (used up, depleted, exhausted) — the Lord is not depleted by being drawn upon. Akṣōbha (un-perturbable, un-agitated) names the steady-state. Ṭhā'īñchē ṭhā'īm (in its-own-place) emphasizes the locative — exactly where it is, it remains.
Third — lāgata chi nāhī ghētām anta-pāra — vasavī antara aṇuchē hī — when one takes the limit-shore (anta-pāra = extreme-end), it is not reached; he settles (vasavī = causes-to-dwell) inside even an aṇu (atom). Both directions — the cosmic edge (no limit) and the smallest interior (he fits inside an atom). The Lord is both unreachable-at-the-edge and present-inside-the-tiniest-particle.
Fourth — the close: kēlā hōya ṭākī-aiśā — puravāvī icchā dharilī tē — he has become like a chisel; fulfill the desire that has been held. Ṭākī — a chisel, specifically a stone-mason's or carver's chisel. The Lord-as-chisel — shaping, releasing, cutting through — and the petition is to fulfill the desire one has been holding.
For someone today
The bhakti-theology is generous in four directions: anyone qualifies (bahu-jāti); no one's draw depletes the source (na saralā); the limit is unreachable (anta-pāra na lāgē); he fits inside the smallest interior of you (vasavī antara aṇuchē hī). Do not approach grace with the scarcity-frame — there is no scarcity in this economy. Your draw will not run it dry; someone else's gain does not subtract from yours. He fits inside an atom's interior — meaning your most private inwardness is not too small a residence. Hold the desire you have been holding; ask the chisel to do its work.
Where this applies
- The bhakti foundation for caste-inclusive practice (bahu-jātīcā angīkāra)
- Releasing scarcity-thinking about access to grace
- The atom-interior intimacy claim — bhakti's specific contribution
- Asking the Lord-as-chisel to release a long-held desire