संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 3355 of 4582

Abhanga 3355

Simdaḷīñce sōra chōrāñcī dayā — prostitute's fault, thief's mercy; tō hī jāṇā tayā samvasargī — know him too by samvasarga.

Tukārām's consequence-of-bad-company; nurturing-snake-with-milk warning

The verse

सिंदळीचे सोर चोराची दया । तो ही जाणा तया संवसर्गी ॥१॥ फुकासाटीं भोगे दुःखाचा वाटा । उभारोनी कांटा वाटेवरी ॥ध्रु.॥ सर्प पोसूनियां दुधाचा नास । केलें थीता विष अमृताचें ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे यासी न करितां दंडण । पुढिल खंडण नव्हे दोषा ॥३॥

Literal translation

Simdaḷīñce sōra chōrāñcī dayāprostitute's fault, thief's mercy; tō hī jāṇā tayā samvasargīknow him too by samvasarga. Phukāsāṭīm bhōge duḥkhāñcā vāṭāfor free, suffer the path of duḥkha; ubhārōnī kāṇṭā vāṭevarīraising thorn on road. Sarpa pōsūnīyām dudhāñcā nāsanurturing snake — milk's nāsa; kele thītā viṣa amrtāñceturned amrta into viṣa on the spot. Tukā mhaṇe yāsī na karitām daṇḍaṇaTukā says: without punishing these; puḍhila khaṇḍaṇa navhe dōṣāno khaṇḍana of dōṣa ahead.

What it means

A 3-verse bad-company warning. Misplaced-mercy turns-amrta-to-viṣa; nurturing-snake-with-milk wastes-the-milk. Without-daṇḍa, no-khaṇḍa of-the-dōṣa.

For someone today

Tukārām's discriminating-mercy: mercy-to-the-wicked turns-amrta-into-viṣa.

Where this applies