Abhanga 2916
Kāya lavaṇa kaḷike-viṇa — what (is) lavaṇa (salt) without the kaḷikā (grain, particle, spark)?; eke kṣīṇa sāgarā — by even one — the sāgara (ocean) is kṣīṇa (made-salty).
The verse
काय लवण कळिकेविण । एके क्षीण सागरा ॥१॥
मां हे येवढी अडचण । नारायणीं मजविण ॥ध्रु.॥
कुबेरा अटाहासे जोडी । काय कवडी कारणें ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे काचमणि । कोण गणी भांडारी ॥३॥
Literal translation
Kāya lavaṇa kaḷike-viṇa — what (is) lavaṇa (salt) without the kaḷikā (grain, particle, spark)?; eke kṣīṇa sāgarā — by even one — the sāgara (ocean) is kṣīṇa (made-salty). Mām he yevhaḍī aḍchaṇa — my only difficulty (is) this much; Nārāyaṇī majaviṇa — that Nārāyaṇa (is) without me. Kuberā aṭāhāse jōḍī — Kubera (god of wealth), with great effort, jōḍī (joins, gathers); kāya kavaḍī kāraṇe — (does he do it) for the sake of (just) a kavaḍī (cowrie-shell)? Tukā says: kācha-maṇi — (a) kācha-maṇi (glass-bead); kōṇa gaṇī bhāṇḍārī — who counts (it) in the bhāṇḍāra (treasury)?
What it means
A short striking I-am-the-essential-grain claim verse. Kāya lavaṇa kaḷike-viṇa — eke kṣīṇa sāgarā — what is salt without the spark — one transforms the ocean. The image: salt is made-of-grains; without-the-grains there is no-salt; and one-grain transforms the entire-ocean.
Mām he yevhaḍī aḍchaṇa — Nārāyaṇī majaviṇa — my only difficulty is this — Nārāyaṇa is without me. The radical self-claim: the only-problem in the universe is that Nārāyaṇa is without-me (= the bhakta is missing from-Nārāyaṇa's-side). The implication: I-the-bhakta am like-the-grain-of-salt; without-me, Nārāyaṇa is-incomplete.
Kuberā aṭāhāse jōḍī — kāya kavaḍī kāraṇe — Kubera strives much — but for a cowrie? The reasoning-image: Kubera (rich god) wouldn't-strive for a-mere-cowrie. So if-Nārāyaṇa is striving-to-find-(or-keep)-me, I must-be valuable-not-cowrie-low.
The close: Tukā mhaṇe kācha-maṇi — kōṇa gaṇī bhāṇḍārī — glass-bead — who counts (it) in the treasury? The opposite-image: if I were a worthless glass-bead, no-one would-count-me in the treasury. (But Nārāyaṇa does-count-me; therefore I'm not worthless.)
The combined-claim: the bhakta is the essential-grain-without-which the-Lord-is-incomplete. This is a playful-radical-self-valuing — usually-Tukārām self-deprecates; here he claims essential-ness.
For someone today
A useful playful I-am-the-small-but-essential claim. What (is) salt without the spark — one (grain) makes the ocean salty. My only difficulty (is) this — Nārāyaṇa (is) without me. Kubera strives much — for a cowrie? (No.) A glass-bead — who counts (it) in the treasury? The verse permits the playful self-valuing-claim: (1) salt requires-the-grain; (2) Nārāyaṇa-without-me is the only-difficulty; (3) Kubera-wouldn't-strive-for-cowrie; (4) glass-beads-aren't-counted-in-treasury. Therefore: I-the-bhakta am the salt-grain, the precious-item-counted-in-Nārāyaṇa's-treasury. The image of one-grain-of-salt-transforms-the-ocean is striking.
Where this applies
- The striking I-am-the-small-thing-without-which-treasure-is-incomplete self-claim
- Recognizing Nārāyaṇa-without-me is the bhakta's claim of essential-ness
- Kubera-doesn't-strive-for-cowrie — the value-question for the bhakta
- Pairs with 2891 (bhakta-as-progenitor-of-Deva) — bhakta-essentialness claims