Abhanga 4524
What looks like an ordinary task can carry a much bigger hidden purpose, aimed at humbling pride and setting something right that only becomes visible once the real work is finished.
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
Tukaram reveals the hidden truth behind the whole episode: the ball game at the riverbank was never really about a ball, it was a pretext Krishna used to reach the proud serpent Kaliya sleeping in his underwater palace, full of his own arrogance, and bring him to heel. Krishna waited until everyone else had turned away in fear before he alone went down and called the serpent awake. What looks like an ordinary task on the surface can actually be carrying a much bigger purpose underneath, one aimed at humbling pride and setting something right that only becomes visible once the deeper work is done. God's true agenda is often disguised in the small errands of daily life.
मराठी: तुकाराम या संपूर्ण प्रसंगामागचे रहस्य उलगडतात: नदीकाठचा चेंडूचा खेळ खरे तर चेंडूविषयी नव्हताच, तो केवळ एक निमित्त होते ज्याद्वारे कृष्णाला पाण्याखालील राजवाड्यात गर्वाने झोपलेल्या काळिया नागापर्यंत पोहोचायचे होते आणि त्याचा अहंकार मोडायचा होता. सगळे भीतीने मागे सरल्यानंतरच कृष्ण एकटा खाली गेला आणि त्या नागाला जागे केले. जे वरवर एक साधे काम दिसते त्यामागे खरेतर खूप मोठा हेतू लपलेला असू शकतो, अहंकार मोडून एखादी गोष्ट सुधारण्याचा हेतू, जो खरे काम पूर्ण झाल्यावरच स्पष्ट होतो. देवाचा खरा हेतू बरेचदा रोजच्या साध्या कामांच्या वेशात लपलेला असतो.
Where this applies
- Tukārām's canonical Kāḷiyā-mardana theological-reveal
- Lord-uses-pretext to do-the-real-work template
- Kāḷiyā-mardana cluster