Abhanga 3481
Genuine remorse purifies a person from the inside immediately, regardless of birth or past, and deserves real forgiveness and respect.
The verse
अनुतापयुक्त गेलिया अभिमान । विसरूं वचन मागिलांचा ॥१॥
त्याचे पाय माझे लागोत कपाळीं । भोग उष्टावळी धन्यकाळ ॥ध्रु.॥
षड उर्मी जिंहीं हाणितल्या लाता । शरण या संता आल्या वेगीं ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे जाती वोळे लवकरी । ठायीं चि अंतरीं शुद्ध होती ॥३॥
Literal translation
Anutāpa-yukta-abhimāna-gone — forget-past-words. His-feet-on-kapāḷa — uṣṭāvaḷī-blessed-time-bhōga. Six-ūrmīs-kicked — quickly-to-sant-śaraṇa. Tukā: jāti-inclines-quickly — shuddha-in-antara-at-the-place.
What it means
A 3-verse anutāpa-forgiveness text. When abhimāna has gone with anutāpa, we forget the past; his feet on our forehead, his leftovers our blessed-time-bhōga; one's very jāti changes-quickly-and-becomes-shuddha-in-place when one comes to sant-śaraṇa. Connects with Tukārām's anti-caste/inner-quality framework (2755, 2973, 3034).
For someone today
Tukaram says that once genuine remorse dissolves someone's pride, we should let go of whatever they said or did in the past and simply forget it. He speaks of honoring such a person deeply, touching their feet, treating even what is left of their meal as a blessing. Anyone who has kicked aside the great disturbances of the body, hunger, thirst, sorrow, delusion, old age, and fear of death, and has quickly taken refuge with the saints deserves this kind of respect. Tuka insists that a person's very nature changes quickly this way too, becoming pure from the inside the moment true surrender happens, regardless of where they came from.
मराठी: तुकाराम सांगतात की जेव्हा खरा पश्चात्ताप एखाद्याचा अभिमान विरघळवतो, तेव्हा त्याने आधी काय बोलले किंवा केले हे विसरून जावे. अशा व्यक्तीचा मनापासून सन्मान करावा, त्याचे पाय स्पर्श करावेत, त्याची उष्टावळसुद्धा धन्यकाळाचा भोग मानावी, असे ते म्हणतात. भूक, तहान, दुःख, मोह, म्हातारपण आणि मृत्यूचे भय या सहा ऊर्मींना ज्याने लाथाडले आहे आणि जो लवकर संतांना शरण आला आहे, त्याला हा सन्मान मिळायला हवा. अशा प्रकारे माणसाची जातसुद्धा लवकर पालटते आणि खऱ्या शरणागतीच्या क्षणीच तो आतून शुद्ध होतो, तो कुठून आला याची पर्वा न करता, असा तुका आग्रह धरतात.
Where this applies
- When someone shows genuine remorse and you must decide whether to hold their past against them
- When you judge someone by their background instead of by their sincere inner change
- When a person has clearly overcome old struggles and deserves real respect, not old suspicion
- When you are tempted to keep score of someone's past mistakes instead of forgiving them