Abhanga 2944
Outer poverty can go hand in hand with a mind that is genuinely at peace, free of fear and craving, when your real wealth is your devotion rather than possessions.
The verse
इहलोकीं आम्हां भूषण अवकळा । भोपळा वाकळा आणि भिक्षा ॥१॥
निमोली संपदा भयविरहित । सर्वकाळ चत्ति समाधान ॥ध्रु.॥
छिद्राचा आश्रम उंदीरकुळवाडी । धन नाम जोडी देवाचें तें ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे एक सेवटीं राहाणें । वर्ततों या जना विरहित ॥३॥
Literal translation
Ihalōkī āmhām bhūṣaṇa avakaḷā — in this world, ourbhūṣaṇa(ornament) (is)avakaḷā(sorry-state, dishevelled-appearance); bhōpaḷā vākaḷā āṇi bhikṣā — thebhōpaḷā(gourd-bowl),vākaḷā(patched-blanket), andbhikṣā(begging). Nimōlī sampadā bhaya-virahita — detached-fromsampadā(wealth-status), free-from-bhaya(fear); sarva-kāḷa chitti samādhāna — at all times, the chitta (is) atsamādhāna(peace). Chhidrāñcā āśrama undīra-kuḷa-vāḍī — (our)āśrama(shelter) is full-ofchhidra(holes) — anundīra-kuḷa-vāḍī(mouse-dwelling); dhana nāma jōḍī Devāñce te — (our)dhana(wealth) — joined-with thenāmaof Deva. Tukā says: eka sevaṭī rāhāṇe — at the end, one-staying; vart-tōm yā janā virahita — I conduct (my-life) (engagement-)virahita(without) thisjana(people).
What it means
A striking 4-verse biographical-Tukārām simple-life declaration. The verse-content reads like autobiographical-portrait — what-Tukārām's-life-looks-like in concrete-physical-detail.
Verse 1: Ihalōkī āmhām bhūṣaṇa avakaḷā — bhōpaḷā vākaḷā āṇi bhikṣā — our ornament (in this world) is sorry-state — gourd-bowl, patched-blanket, begging. The bhakta's outer-ornaments: avakaḷā (dishevelled-state), bhōpaḷā (gourd-water-bowl), vākaḷā (patched-blanket), and bhikṣā (begging-for-food).
Dhrūpada: Nimōlī sampadā bhaya-virahita — sarva-kāḷa chitti samādhāna — detached-from-wealth-status, fear-free — all-time chitta-samādhāna. The inner-state: detachment + fearlessness + samādhāna at-all-times.
Verse 2: Chhidrāñcā āśrama undīra-kuḷa-vāḍī — dhana nāma jōḍī Devāñce te — the shelter is full-of-holes — a mouse-dwelling — wealth is Deva's-Name. The shelter-description: chhidra-āśrama (hole-filled-hut), undīra-kuḷa-vāḍī (a mouse-family-dwelling — a hut where the mice-have-their-clan). The only-wealth: Deva's-Name.
Close: Tukā mhaṇe eka sevaṭī rāhāṇe — vart-tōm yā janā virahita — at the end, one-staying — I conduct (myself) without (engagement with) people. The conduct-claim: withdrawn-from-people-engagement; one-staying alone.
This is one of THE most-detailed autobiographical-pictures of Tukārām's chosen-simplicity. Pairs with 2945 (the matched companion-verse) for the full-biographical-portrait.
For someone today
Tukaram paints an honest, unglamorous picture of his own life: his only ornaments are a shabby appearance, a gourd bowl, a patched blanket, and going out to beg for food. Yet having let go of wealth and status, he lives free of fear, his mind at peace at every moment. His shelter is riddled with holes, more a home for mice than for himself — and the only real wealth he holds is the Lord's Name. In the end, he says, he lives apart, keeping his distance from ordinary social life and its concerns.
मराठी: तुकाराम आपल्या आयुष्याचे एक प्रामाणिक व साधे चित्र रेखाटतात — त्यांचे दागिने म्हणजे विसकटलेला अवतार, एक भोपळ्याचे भांडे, एक ठिगळ लावलेली गोधडी आणि भिक्षा मागणे. तरीही धन व प्रतिष्ठेचा त्याग केल्यामुळे ते भयमुक्त आहेत आणि त्यांचे मन सतत शांत व समाधानी असते. त्यांचे निवासस्थान छिद्रांनी भरलेले आहे, जणू उंदरांचेच घर — आणि त्यांची खरी संपत्ती फक्त देवाचे नाम आहे. शेवटी ते म्हणतात, आपण एकांतात राहतो, सामान्य समाजजीवनापासून व त्याच्या व्यवधानांपासून दूर राहून.
Where this applies
- When you feel embarrassed by your lack of material possessions compared to others
- When you want reassurance that peace of mind doesn't depend on having wealth or status
- When you're drawn to simplify your life and wonder if less really can be enough