संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 2793 of 4582

Abhanga 2793

Majurāñce pōṭa bharē — the majura (laborer)'s belly fills; dātā urē samchalā — the dātā (giver) remains samchalā (accumulated, stored-up).

The hand-to-hand-bhakti-economy analogy
Recognizing that the giver-accumulates while the laborer's-belly-fills
For the deep foundation, spend the body with effort

The verse

मजुराचें पोट भरे । दाता उरे संचला ॥१॥ या रे या रे हातोहातीं । काय माती सारावी ॥ध्रु.॥ रोजकीर्दी होतां झाडा । रोकडा चि पर्वत ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे खोल पाया । वेचों काया क्लेशेसीं ॥३॥

Literal translation

Majurāñce pōṭa bharēthe majura (laborer)'s belly fills; dātā urē samchalāthe dātā (giver) remains samchalā (accumulated, stored-up). Yā re yā re hātōhātīmcome, come — hand-to-hand; kāya mātī sārāvīwhat mātī (dirt) is to be sārāvī (cleared, removed)? Rōja-kīrdī hōtām jhāḍāthe rōja-kīrdī (daily-account, daily-tally) being made (jhāḍā = audit); rokaḍā chi parvatacash-down — a mountain. Tukā says: khōla pāyā — vechōm kāyā klēśesīmfor the khōla pāyā (deep foundation) — spend the body with klēśa (effort, hardship).

What it means

A short economic-bhakti-image verse. Majurāñce pōṭa bharē — dātā urē samchalāthe laborer's belly fills; the giver remains accumulated. The construction-site image: the laborer (majura) gets his daily-wage and his belly fills; the giver (dātā, the patron) — his wealth-stays-accumulated despite the daily-payments. The bhakti-economy parallel: bhakti-laborers get fed-daily; the bhakti-giver-Lord remains unfilled despite the giving.

The dhrūpada: yā re yā re hātōhātīm — kāya mātī sārāvīcome, come, hand-to-hand — what dirt is to be cleared? The cheerful-call: come do the work hand-to-hand. The image is of digging-a-foundationwhat mātī is to be cleared (out of the trench)? (Bhakti-equivalent: come do the work; let's clear the dirt-of-samsāra together.)

The second verse: rōja-kīrdī hōtām jhāḍā — rokaḍā chi parvatathe daily-tally being audited — a cash-down mountain. Rōja-kīrdī (daily-account) being settled produces a rokaḍā parvataa mountain of cash-down (settled, immediate) results. The bhakti-claim: daily-bhakti-accounts produce a cash-down result-mountain.

The close: khōla pāyā — vechōm kāyā klēśesīmfor the deep foundation, spend the body with effort. The image: for a deep-foundation (such as a tall-building requires), spend the body with klēśa. Bhakti-foundation requires body-spending-with-effort.

For someone today

A useful economic-image verse. The laborer's belly fills; the giver accumulates. Come, come, hand-to-hand — what dirt to clear? Daily-tally being made — a cash-down mountain. For the deep foundation, spend the body with effort. The structural-claim: bhakti is hand-to-hand labor-with-daily-payment; the result accumulates as cash-down-mountain; the deep-foundation requires body-spending-with-effort. The verse permits a working-image of bhakti — not as quietism but as daily-labor that pays.

Where this applies

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