Abhanga 4187
Notice where your real alertness and energy go, if you are wide awake for distraction but drowsy for what matters most, that pattern is worth questioning honestly.
The verse
दिवसा व्यापारचावटी । रात्री कुटुंबचिंता मोटी ॥१॥
काय करूं या मनासी । नाठवे हृषीकेशी ॥ध्रु.॥
वेश्येपाशीं रात्रीं जागे । हरिकीर्त्तनीं निद्रा लागे ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे काय जालासी । वृथा संसारा आलासी ॥३॥
Literal translation
Day-vyāpāra-chāvaṭī — night-kuṭumba-chintā-big. What-with-this-mana — Hrṣīkēśī-not-recalled. At-vēśyā-night-jāga — at-harikīrtana-nidrā-comes. Tukā: what-have-you-become — samsāra-came-in-vain.
What it means
A 3-verse mis-prioritization critique. Day: the gossip-shop of business. Night: a big family-worry. What can I do with this mind — it doesn't remember Hrṣīkēśī. At the courtesan's, at night, (you) stay awake; at the Harikīrtana, sleep comes. Tukā says: what have you become? — you have come into samsāra in vain. The diagnostic pair: vēśyā-stays-awake vs harikīrtana-nidrā-comes — sharp-edge of mis-allocated wakefulness. Pair with 4135 (anti-empty-kīrtana), 4087 (wasted-life family).
For someone today
Tukārām points out a pattern many people fall into: the day gets swallowed by business gossip and dealings, and the night gets swallowed by heavy family worry, so the mind never has room left to remember what actually matters. He gives a sharp example, a person can stay wide awake all night chasing pleasure, yet fall asleep the moment they sit for kirtana or prayer. Tukārām asks bluntly what such a person has really become, warning that a life spent that way has been wasted. The lesson is to notice where your real alertness and energy go, if you are fully awake for distraction but drowsy for what should matter most, it is worth asking honestly why.
मराठी: तुकाराम अनेकांच्या आयुष्यात दिसणारा एक नमुना दाखवतात, दिवस व्यापाराच्या गप्पांत आणि व्यवहारांत जातो, रात्र कुटुंबाच्या मोठ्या काळजीत जाते, आणि मनाला जे खरे महत्त्वाचे आहे ते आठवायलाही वेळ उरत नाही. ते एक टोकदार उदाहरण देतात, माणूस सुखासाठी रात्रभर जागा राहतो, पण कीर्तनात किंवा प्रार्थनेत बसताच त्याला झोप येते. तुकाराम स्पष्टपणे विचारतात, तू खरोखर काय झाला आहेस, आणि असे आयुष्य वाया गेले असा इशारा देतात. यातून हा धडा मिळतो की आपली खरी जागरूकता आणि ऊर्जा कुठे जाते हे पाहावे, जर विचलित करणाऱ्या गोष्टींसाठी पूर्ण जागे राहता पण जे खरोखर महत्त्वाचे आहे त्यासाठी झोप येते, तर याचे प्रामाणिक कारण शोधावे.
Where this applies
- When you notice you have plenty of energy for entertainment or gossip but feel drowsy the moment you sit for prayer or reflection
- When your days are consumed by business talk and your nights by anxious worry, leaving no space for what truly matters
- When you catch yourself staying alert for pleasure but tired for anything meaningful
- When you want an honest check on whether your daily attention is going where it actually should