Abhanga 4524
Ālā yāñcā bhāva Devāciyā manā — antarīm kāraṇāmsāṭhīm hōtā — their bhāva came to Deva's mind; in antara was the kāraṇa.
The verse
आला यांचा भाव देवाचिया मना । अंतरीं कारणांसाठीं होता ॥१॥
होता भाव त्यांचा पाहोनि निराळा । नव्हता पाताळा गेला आधीं ॥२॥
आधीं पाठीमोरीं जालीं तीं सकळें । मग या गोपाळें बुडी दिली ॥३॥
दिली हाक त्याणें जाऊनि पाताळा । जागविलें काळा भुजंगासि ॥४॥
भुजंग हा होता निजला मंदिरीं । निर्भर अंतरीं गर्वनिधि ॥५॥
गर्व हरावया आला नारायण । मिस या करून चेंडुवाचें ॥६॥
चेंडुवाचे मिसें काळया नाथावा । तुका म्हणे देवा कारण हें ॥७॥
Literal translation
Ālā yāñcā bhāva Devāciyā manā — antarīm kāraṇāmsāṭhīm hōtā — their bhāva came to Deva's mind; in antara was the kāraṇa. Hōtā bhāva tyāñcā pāhōni niraḷā — navhatā pātāḷā gelā ādhīm — their bhāva, seeing as niraḷā, he had not gone to pātāḷa before. Ādhīm pāṭhīmōrī jālī tīm sakaḷe — maga yā gōpāḷe buḍī dilī — first all turned their backs; then this gopāḷa took the buḍī. Dilī hāka tyāṇe jāūni pātāḷā — jāgavile kāḷā bhujangāsi — he gave a hāka going to pātāḷa; he woke the Black Bhujanga. Bhujanga hā hōtā nijalā mandirīm — nirbhara antarīm gārva-nidhi — Bhujanga had slept in mandira; full inside — gārva-nidhi. Gārva harāvayā ālā Nārāyaṇa — misa yā karūn cheṇḍuvāce — to remove gārva Nārāyaṇa came — making the ball as pretext. Cheṇḍuvāce mise Kāḷayā nāthāvā — Tukā mhaṇe Devā kāraṇa he — under the ball's pretext — to bring-to-rein Kāḷiyā; Tukā says: this is Deva's kāraṇa.
What it means
The theological-reveal of the Kāḷiyā-mardana cluster. The ball was only a pretext (misa); the real kāraṇa was to remove the gārva-nidhi (treasure-of-pride) of Kāḷiyā. The Lord delayed-his-dive until-the-bhaktas-turned-their-backs in their feeble-bhāvanā — and then the Lord-alone took-the-plunge. Tukārām underscores: this is Deva's-own kāraṇa.
For someone today
Tukārām claims: the-Lord's-real-mission may-be-hidden-behind-an-everyday-pretext; his goal is-to-bring-down-prideful-power, not the surface-task.
Where this applies
- Tukārām's canonical Kāḷiyā-mardana theological-reveal
- Lord-uses-pretext to do-the-real-work template
- Kāḷiyā-mardana cluster