Abhanga 4041
A self-serving teacher with no real spiritual substance cannot save you, and following one is like grabbing an exhausted swimmer who pulls you both under.
The verse
पिंडपोशकाच्या जळो ज्ञानगोष्टी । झणी दृष्टिभेटी न हो त्याची ॥१॥
नाहीं संतचिन्ह उमटलें अंगीं । उपदेशालागीं पात्र जाला ॥ध्रु.॥
पोहों सिणलें नये कासे लावितो आणिका । म्हणावें त्या मूर्खा काय आतां ॥२॥
सिणलें तें गेलें सिणलियापासीं । जाली त्या दोघांसी एक गति ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे अहो देवा दिनानाथा । दरुषण आतां नको त्याचें ॥४॥
Literal translation
Piṇḍapōṣakāñcyā jaḷō jñāna-gōṣṭī — let burn the jñāna-talks of body-fatteners; jhaṇī drṣṭi-bhēṭī na hō tyāñcī — let no sight-meeting happen with-them. Nāhī sant-chinha umaṭale angīm — no sant-sign has emerged on body; upadeśālāgīm pātra jālā — (yet) has become pātra for upadeśa. Pōhōm siṇale naye kāse lāvitō āṇikā — one tired from swimming brings others to (his) kāse; mhaṇāve tyā mūrkhā kāya ātām — what to say to that mūrkha now. Siṇale te gele siṇaliyāpāsīm — the tired one's (fate) goes to (those-already-tired); jālī tyā dōghāmsī eka gati — the gati of both becomes one. Tukā mhaṇe ahō Devā Dīnanāthā — Tukā says: O Deva, Dīnanātha; daruṣaṇa ātām nakō tyāñce — now, no darśana of him.
What it means
A striking 4-verse anti-fake-guru polemic by Tukārām.
The diagnostic: the piṇḍa-pōṣaka (body-fattener) uses-jñāna-gōṣṭi to-fatten-himself. Lacks sant-chinha. Yet-claims-to-be-pātra-for-upadeśa. The image: tired-swimmer trying-to-rescue-others — both-drown together.
Closing-petition: O Dīnanātha — don't-let-me-darśana of-such.
The pōhōm-siṇale naye kāse lāvitō āṇikā image is canonical-anti-fake-guru — one who-cannot-himself-swim cannot-rescue-others; trying-only-drowns-both.
Compare-Tukārām's 2962 (anti-fake-guru, Viṭhōbā-oath-naraka-bound), 3025 (Kānhōbā's Kali-prophecy with corrupt-paṇḍitas).
For someone today
Tukārām's anti-piṇḍa-pōṣaka polemic. Let burn the knowledge-talks of body-fatteners; let no sight-meeting happen with them. No sign of a sant has emerged on his body — yet he has become a vessel for instruction. One tired from swimming brings others to his waist-cloth — what is to be said to such a fool now? The tired one's fate becomes one with those similarly tired. O Deva, Dīnanātha — now, do not give me darśana of him. The verse permits this classic warning against the fake guru: through the image of a tired swimmer, someone with no real spiritual substance cannot save you, and following one is like grabbing an exhausted swimmer who pulls you both under.
मराठी: तुकारामांची ही स्वार्थी, ढोंगी गुरूविरुद्धची टीका. स्वतःचे पोट भरणाऱ्यांच्या ज्ञानगोष्टी जळून जावोत; त्यांची भेटही होऊ नये. ज्याच्या अंगावर संताचे कोणतेही चिन्ह उमटलेले नाही, तोच उपदेश करण्यास पात्र झाला आहे. पोहताना दमलेला माणूस दुसऱ्याला आपल्या कमरेच्या कापडाला धरायला सांगतो — अशा मूर्खाला आता काय म्हणावे? दमलेल्याचे नशीब दुसऱ्या दमलेल्याशी एकच होते. हे दीनानाथ देवा — आता मला त्याचे दर्शन नको. या ओवीत ढोंगी गुरूविरुद्धचा हा जुना इशारा दिला आहे — दमलेल्या पोहणाऱ्याच्या प्रतिमेतून, ज्याच्याकडे खरे अध्यात्मिक सामर्थ्य नाही तो तुम्हांला वाचवू शकत नाही, त्याच्या मागे जाणे म्हणजे दमलेल्या पोहणाऱ्याला धरण्यासारखे आहे, जो दोघांनाही बुडवतो.
Where this applies
- When you are evaluating whether a teacher or guide actually has the substance behind their words
- When someone with no real track record starts giving you advice as if they are an authority
- When you are tempted to follow someone who is struggling just as much as you are
- When you need to protect yourself from people who use spiritual talk for self-interest