Abhanga 4224
Some value is only borrowed light from outside, but real worth, like a diamond's shine or a sandalwood's fragrance, comes from within and marks those who carry the divine stamp as truly worthy of reverence.
The verse
उजळितां उजळे दीपकाची वाती । स्वयंभ ते ज्योति हिर्या अंगीं ॥१॥
एकीं महाकष्टें मेळविलें धन । एकासी जतन दैवयोगें ॥ध्रु.॥
परिमळें केलें चंदनाचे चिन्ह । निवडी ते भिन्न गाढव तो ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे जया अंगीं हरिठसा । तो तरे सहसा वंद्य होय ॥३॥
Literal translation
Lamp-wick-illuminated — diamond-jyoti-svayambhū. One-amasses-by-effort — another-keeps-by-luck. Perfume-marks-chandana — only-donkey-doesn't-distinguish. Tukā: he-with-Hari-ṭhasā — crosses-over — becomes-vandya.
What it means
A 3-verse inner-value-over-outer text. A lamp's wick glows only when illuminated; the diamond has self-existing light in its body. One amasses wealth with great labor; another preserves it by luck. Fragrance marks the chandana — only a donkey doesn't see it separately. Tukā says: he who has the Hari-stamp in his body crosses over surely and becomes worship-worthy. The 3 contrast-pairs: (1) lamp-wick (extrinsic-illumination) vs diamond (svayambhū-jyoti); (2) labor-amassed dhana vs daiva-yōga-kept dhana; (3) fragrance-of-chandana (intrinsic) vs donkey-can't-distinguish. The closing: Hari-ṭhasā-in-body = self-illumination + intrinsic-value + worship-worthiness. Pair with 4197 (diamond-price-stable-santas-mistreated).
For someone today
Tukaram draws three quiet comparisons: a lamp's wick only glows because it is lit from outside, but a diamond shines with its own light; one person piles up wealth through hard labor, another simply inherits it through luck; and fragrance is what marks sandalwood as special, though a donkey cannot tell the difference. The point is that some value is borrowed and some is intrinsic, and only a discerning eye can tell them apart. Someone who carries the mark of the divine within becomes truly worthy of reverence, not because of outward show but because of what is real inside them.
मराठी: तुकाराम तीन शांत तुलना करतात - दिव्याची वात बाहेरून पेटवली तरच उजळते, पण हिरा स्वतःच्या प्रकाशाने चमकतो; एक माणूस कष्टाने संपत्ती मिळवतो, तर दुसऱ्याला ती नशिबाने आपोआप मिळते; आणि चंदनाला खास बनवणारा त्याचा सुगंध असतो, पण गाढवाला त्यातला फरक कळत नाही. मुद्दा हा आहे की काही मूल्य उसने असते आणि काही मूल्य आंतरिक असते, आणि हा फरक फक्त जाणकार दृष्टीलाच कळतो. ज्याच्या अंतरंगात हरीचा ठसा असतो तोच खऱ्या अर्थाने वंदनीय होतो - बाह्य देखाव्यामुळे नव्हे, तर आतल्या खरेपणामुळे.
Where this applies
- When you judge people or things only by outward shine instead of what is real underneath
- When you compare your hard-earned success to someone else's easy luck
- When you cannot tell the difference between genuine quality and a good imitation
- When you wonder what actually makes a person worthy of respect