Abhanga 2830
The divine sees through disguise and returns exactly what was truly intended, not what was merely performed, so a false heart behind a kind act brings its own undoing.
The verse
विटंबिलें भट । दिला पाठीवरी पाट ॥१॥
खोटें जाणोनि अंतर । न साहे चि विश्वंभर ॥ध्रु.॥
तें चि करी दान । जैसें आइके वचन ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे देवें । पूतना शोषियेली जीवें ॥३॥
॥५॥
Literal translation
Viṭambilē bhaṭa — thebhaṭa(priest, perhaps the fake-priestess-disguise) wasviṭambita(disrespected, mocked); dilā pāṭhīvarī pāṭa — apāṭa(plank, board) was placed on (his) back. Khōṭē jāṇōnī antara — knowing (the heart's)antara(inside, motive) false; na sāhe chi Viśvambhara — Viśvambhara cannot-bear (it). Tē chi karī dāna — that very (false-intent), (the Lord) gives back as dāna; jaiśe āike vachana — as he hears the word (false-intent). Tukā says: Devē — Pūtanā śōṣiyelī jīve — by Deva — Pūtanā wasśōṣiyelī jīve(drained-of-life).
What it means
The 5th and closing-stanza of the 5-abhang Krṣṇa-janma-līlā cluster (2826-2830). The colophon ॥५॥ at the end confirms the 5-abhang cluster. The narrative-content shifts to Pūtanā-vadha — the first-demon-victory of infant-Krṣṇa (Bhāgavata 10.6).
The canonical Pūtanā story: Kamsa, hearing of Krṣṇa's birth, sends the demoness Pūtanā disguised as a beautiful young-woman, with poisoned-breast-milk, to-kill-the-infant. She arrives at Nanda-Yaśodā's house under-pretense-of-being-a-wet-nurse and offers her breast to baby-Krṣṇa. Krṣṇa suckles her life-out instead — Pūtanā śōṣiyelī jīve — Pūtanā was drained-of-life. The reciprocity-reversal is the bhakti-theme.
Viṭambilē bhaṭa — dilā pāṭhīvarī pāṭa — the bhaṭa was disrespected — a plank was placed on (his) back. The bhaṭa (literally a priest) is here a fake-pretender — likely Pūtanā disguised. Pāṭhīvarī pāṭa — a plank-on-the-back — perhaps a humiliation-image, or perhaps the posture of suckling (sitting-with-plank-on-back). The image is cryptic; in the context of the Pūtanā-narrative it points to the disguise being-exposed.
Khōṭē jāṇōnī antara — na sāhe chi Viśvambhara — knowing the heart's false inside — Viśvambhara doesn't-bear. The bhakti-claim: the Lord knows the false-inner-intent; he-does-not-tolerate (na-sāhe) it.
Tē chi karī dāna — jaiśe āike vachana — that very (false-intent), (he) gives back as dāna — as he hears the word. The reciprocity-claim: the Lord gives back exactly what was offered. Pūtanā offered poisoned-breast-milk; she received life-being-drained in return. The same-currency-back.
Tukā mhaṇe Devē — Pūtanā śōṣiyelī jīve — Tukā: by Deva — Pūtanā was drained-of-life. The narrative-close: Pūtanā-vadha by infant-Krṣṇa.
The closing ॥५॥ confirms that 2826-2830 is a 5-abhang Krṣṇa-janma-and-first-līlā cluster.
For someone today
This closing verse of Tukaram's five-part cycle on Krishna's birth tells the well-known story of the demoness Putana, who disguised herself as a loving wet-nurse and offered baby Krishna her poisoned breast, intending to kill him. God, Tukaram says, sees straight through any false intent hidden behind an act, and he does not simply let it pass. What Putana truly offered came back to her exactly in kind, she who came to feed death instead had her own life drained away by the infant Krishna. The lesson is that a false heart behind a seemingly kind act ultimately brings its own undoing, since what you truly intend, not merely what you perform, is what comes back to you.
मराठी: तुकारामांच्या कृष्णजन्माच्या पाच अभंगांच्या मालिकेतील हा शेवटचा अभंग पुतना राक्षसीची प्रसिद्ध कथा सांगतो — जिने प्रेमळ धाईचे सोंग घेऊन बाळकृष्णाला विषारी स्तनपान दिले, त्याला मारण्याच्या हेतूने. देव कोणत्याही कृतीमागचा खोटा हेतू स्पष्टपणे ओळखतो, आणि तो सहजासहजी सोडून देत नाही, असे तुकाराम सांगतात. पुतनेने जे खरे अर्पण केले, तेच तिला जशाच्या तसे परत मिळाले — जिने मृत्यू खाऊ घालायला आणले होते, तिचाच जीव बाळकृष्णाने शोषून घेतला. यातून हेच शिकायला मिळते की दिसायला चांगल्या कृतीमागे खोटे मन असेल, तर ते शेवटी स्वतःच्याच नाशाचे कारण बनते, कारण तुम्ही जे प्रत्यक्ष करता तेच नव्हे, तर तुमचा खरा हेतू काय आहे, तेच तुमच्याकडे परत येते.
Where this applies
- The canonical Pūtanā-vadha narrative reference (Bhāgavata 10.6)
- The Janmāṣṭamī cluster close (2826-2830 ॥५॥)
- The fake-good-intent-given-back-as-dāna karmic-reciprocity image
- The Lord knows false-inner-intent; doesn't-bear-it warning