Abhanga 2868
Life's pain is the fruit of your own past actions, not God's fault, so Tukārām says remember God's name instead of carrying anger or added strain over it.
The verse
जन्मा येणें घडे पातकाचे मूळें । संचिताचें फळ आपुलिया ॥१॥
मग वांयांविण दुःख वाहों नये । रुसोनियां काय देवावरी ॥ध्रु.॥
ठाउका चि आहे संसार दुःखाचा । चित्ती सीण याचा वाहों नये ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे नाम त्याचें आठवावें । तेणें विसरावें जन्मदुःख ॥३॥
Literal translation
Janmā yeṇe ghaḍe pātakāñce mūḷe — coming to (this) birth happens by the root ofpātaka(sin); samcitāñce phaḷa āpuliyā — (it is) the fruit of one's ownsamcita(accumulated-karma). Maga vāmyām-viṇa duḥkha vāhō nye — therefore, one should not vainlyvāhō(carry)duḥkha; rusōnīyām kāya Devāvarī — what (use is there in) being angry at Deva? Ṭhāukā chi āhe samsāra duḥkhāñcā — it is well-known — samsāra is ofduḥkha; chitti sīṇa yāñcā vāhō nye — one should not carry thesīṇa(strain) of this inchitti. Tukā says: nāma tyāñce āṭhavāve — remember his Name; teṇe visarāve janma-duḥkha — by that, forget thejanma-duḥkha(birth-pain).
What it means
A short equanimity-prayer verse — part of the Chinchwaḍa-visit 13-abhang collection (2858-2870, marked by the editorial-colophon at end of 2870). Janmā yeṇe ghaḍe pātakāñce mūḷe — samcitāñce phaḷa āpuliyā — coming-to-birth happens by pātaka's root — it's the fruit of one's-own samcita. The opening-diagnostic: the duḥkha-of-birth is one's-own-samcita-fruit, not Deva's-fault.
Maga vāmyām-viṇa duḥkha vāhō nye — rusōnīyām kāya Devāvarī — therefore don't carry vain-duḥkha — what use being angry at Deva? The discipline: don't-blame-Deva for one's-own-karma-fruit.
Ṭhāukā chi āhe samsāra duḥkhāñcā — chitti sīṇa yāñcā vāhō nye — it's known — samsāra is of duḥkha; don't carry the strain of this in chitta. Samsāra-is-of-duḥkha is the standard-knowledge; don't-add-sīṇa-to-it-in-chitta.
The close: Tukā mhaṇe nāma tyāñce āṭhavāve — teṇe visarāve janma-duḥkha — remember his Name — by that, forget the birth-duḥkha. The bhakti-recommendation: Name-remembrance is the way to forget birth-duḥkha.
For someone today
This is a short teaching on accepting your circumstances instead of blaming God for them. Tuka says that being born into this life comes from the root of your own past actions, it's simply the fruit of your own accumulated karma. So there's no point carrying pointless suffering on top of that, and no use being angry at God about it. Everyone already knows that worldly life comes with pain; there's no need to add extra strain to your mind by dwelling on it. Instead, Tuka's remedy is simple: remember God's Name, and through that remembrance, the pain of being born fades away.
मराठी: ही देवाला दोष न देता आपल्या परिस्थितीचा स्वीकार करण्याची छोटी शिकवण आहे. तुकाराम महाराज म्हणतात, या जन्माला येणे आपल्याच पूर्वकर्मांच्या मुळाशी असते — तो आपल्याच संचिताचा फळरूप परिणाम आहे. त्यामुळे त्यावर उगाच दुःख वाहण्यात अर्थ नाही, आणि देवावर रुसण्यातही काही उपयोग नाही. संसार दुःखमय आहे हे सर्वांनाच माहीत आहे; त्याचा ताण मनात वागवण्याची गरज नाही. त्याऐवजी तुकाराम महाराजांचा उपाय साधा आहे — देवाच्या नामाचे स्मरण करा, आणि त्या स्मरणानेच जन्माचे दुःख विसरले जाते.
Where this applies
- When you're tempted to blame God or fate for your hardships.
- When you keep dwelling on how much suffering life involves, adding worry to worry.
- When you're looking for a simple daily practice to lighten a heavy heart.
- When you feel resentful about difficult circumstances that trace back to your own past choices.