Abhanga 3960
Tukaram warns that evasion never actually escapes conflict, and that accepting firm correction with humility is what restores real peace.
The verse
हें तों टाळाटाळीं । परि भोवताहे कळी ॥१॥
बरें नव्हेल शेवटीं । भय असों द्यावें पोटीं ॥ध्रु.॥
मुरगाळिला कान । समांडिलें समाधान ॥२॥
धन्य म्हणे आतां । येथें नुधवा माथां ॥३॥
अबोलणा तुका । ऐसें कांहीं लेखूं नका ॥४॥
Literal translation
Hem tōm ṭāḷāṭāḷīm — pari bhōvatāhe kaḷī — this is evasion — but strife encircles. Barem navhel śevaṭīm — bhaya asōm dyāve pōṭīm — (it) won't be well at the end — let fear be in belly. Muragāḷilā kāna — samāṇḍilēm samādhāna — (someone) twisted ear — brought back contentment. Dhanya mhaṇe ātām — yethēm nudhavā māthām — says: blessed now — don't raise head here. Abōlaṇā Tukā — aisēm kāmhī lekhūm nakā — mute Tukā — don't write (him) off as such.
What it means
A 4-verse discipline-rebuke. Evasion-is-strife-encircling; keep-fear-in-belly; ear-twisted-restored-peace; don't-raise-head-here; don't-mistake-Tukā-for-silent — he-speaks-when-needed.
For someone today
Tukārām warns that dodging a hard truth does not actually make the trouble go away — the strife just keeps circling around you. It is better to keep a healthy fear in your heart than to pretend nothing is wrong. When someone gives you a sharp correction, like twisting your ear, it can actually restore your peace of mind, so there is no need to hold your head up in stubborn defiance. And do not mistake Tukārām's quietness for having nothing to say — he speaks up plainly when it truly matters.
मराठी: तुकाराम इशारा देतात की कठीण गोष्ट टाळल्याने भांडण संपत नाही, ते फक्त तुमच्याभोवती घोटाळत राहते. सर्व काही ठीक आहे असे भासवण्यापेक्षा मनात योग्य ती भीती बाळगणे चांगले. कोणी कान पिळून कठोर सुधारणा केली, तर त्यातूनही मन:शांती परत मिळू शकते, त्यामुळे हट्टाने मान उंचावण्याची गरज नाही. आणि तुकारामांचे मौन म्हणजे त्यांच्याकडे बोलण्यासारखे काही नाही असे समजू नका — गरज पडली की ते स्पष्ट बोलतात.
Where this applies
- Tukārām's discipline-rebuke corpus
- Anti-evasion warning text