संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 2825 of 4582

Abhanga 2825

Pāpā nāhī pāra duḥkhāñce ḍōngara — no end to pāpa — ḍōngara (mountains) of duḥkha; jālōm ye bhūmīsī ojhe — I have become this earth's ojhe (burden).

The canonical I-am-a-mountain-of-sin-let-me-be-saratā extreme-confession
Recognizing the bhūmīsī-ojhe (earth's-burden) self-naming
The full-list-of-shameful-acts as part-of-the-honest-petition

The verse

पापा नाहीं पार दुःखाचे डोंगर । जालों ये भूमीसी ओझें ॥१॥ नर नारी सकळ उत्तम चांडाळ । न पाहाती माझें मुख ॥ध्रु.॥ निंदा द्वेष घात विश्वासीं व्यभिचार । आणीक सांगों किती काय ॥२॥ पितृवचन घडली अवज्ञा अविचार। कुटिल कचर वादी निंद्य ॥३॥ भुतदया उपकार नाहीं शब्दा धीर । विषयीं लंपट हीन ॥४॥ तुका म्हणे सरतें करा पांडुरंगीं । शरण आलों मायबापा ॥५॥

Literal translation

Pāpā nāhī pāra duḥkhāñce ḍōngarano end to pāpaḍōngara (mountains) of duḥkha; jālōm ye bhūmīsī ojheI have become this earth's ojhe (burden). Nara nārī sakaḷa uttama chāṇḍāḷamen, women — all, the uttama (best) and chāṇḍāḷa (worst, untouchable); na pāhāti mājhe mukhado not look at my face. Nindā dveṣa ghāta viśvāsīm vyabhichāraslander, hatred, ghāta (betrayal, murder), viśvāsīm vyabhichāra (adultery-with-the-trusted); āṇika sāngō kitī kāyaand how much else shall I say? Pitr-vachana ghaḍalī avajñā avichārafather's-word — I committed avajñā (disobedience, contempt) by avichāra (un-thinking); kuṭila kachara vādī nindya(I am) kuṭila (crooked), kachara (refuse, useless-waste), vādī (disputatious), nindya (condemnable). Bhūta-dayā upakāra nāhī śabdā dhīrano bhūta-dayā (creature-compassion), no upakāra (favor-doing), no śabdā dhīra (firm-control-of-speech); viṣayīm lampaṭa hīna(I am) lampaṭa (greedy) for sense-objects, hīna (lowly). Tukā says: saratē karā Pāṇḍurangīmake me saratē (qualified, having-standing) at Pāṇḍurangī; śaraṇa ālōm māyabāpāI have come for refuge, mother-father.

What it means

A 5-verse extreme-pāpī-confession verse. Pāpā nāhī pāra duḥkhāñce ḍōngara — jālōm ye bhūmīsī ojheno end to pāpa — mountains of duḥkha — I have become this earth's burden. The opening: I am the earth's burden. The self-naming is total.

The dhrūpada: nara nārī sakaḷa uttama chāṇḍāḷa — na pāhāti mājhe mukhaall men, women, both best and worst — don't look at my face. Even the chāṇḍāḷa (untouchable-rank) won't-look-at-my-face. The social-isolation is total.

The second verse lists shameful-acts: nindā (slander), dveṣa (hatred), ghāta (betrayal, perhaps murder), viśvāsīm vyabhichāra (adultery-with-the-trusted). And āṇika sāngō kitī kāyaand how much more shall I say? The list is not exhaustive.

The third verse: pitr-vachana ghaḍalī avajñā avichāra — kuṭila kachara vādī nindyafather's-word — I committed disobedience un-thinkingly — I am crooked, refuse, disputatious, condemnable. The four-fold self-naming: crooked, refuse, disputatious, condemnable.

The fourth verse: bhūta-dayā upakāra nāhī śabdā dhīra — viṣayīm lampaṭa hīnano creature-compassion, no upakāra (helpful-action), no firm-control-of-speech; greedy of sense-objects, lowly. The list of what's-not-present: bhūta-dayā, upakāra, śabdā-dhīra. And what's-present: viṣaya-lampaṭa, hīna.

The close: saratē karā Pāṇḍurangī — śaraṇa ālōm māyabāpāmake me saratē (qualified, valid) at Pāṇḍurangī — I have come for refuge, mother-father. The petition: despite all-of-the-above, make-me-saratē (give-me-standing) at Pāṇḍurangī. The bhakta-claim: the Lord can make even this earth's-burden saratē at his feet.

For someone today

A useful extreme-confession-petition prayer. No end to pāpa — mountains of duḥkha — I have become this earth's burden. All men and women, best and worst, won't look at my face. Slander, hatred, betrayal, adultery with the trusted — and how much else shall I say? I disobeyed my father's word; I am crooked, refuse, disputatious, condemnable. No creature-compassion, no upakāra, no firm-speech; greedy of sense-objects, lowly. Make me saratē at Pāṇḍurangī — I have come for refuge, mother-father. The verse permits total honest-confession — none of the self-naming is softened. And the petition asks for saratē (standing-validity) at Pāṇḍurangī — the bhakti-claim that even this is possible. (Compare 2787's Ajāmīḷa-Bhillī-Kuṇṭanī-Vālmīka — the same democratization-by-redemption.)

Where this applies