Abhanga 4540
As your faith is, so is what you seek near or far, and pride or self-created doubt is what keeps it hidden from you.
The verse
देव त्यां फावला गोपाळां । नाहीं तेथें कळा अभिमान ॥१॥
नाडलीं आपल्या आपण चि एकें । संदेहदायकें बहुफारें ॥२॥
फारें चाळविलीं नेदी कळों माव । देवआदिदेव विश्वंभर ॥३॥
विश्वासावांचुनि कळों नये खरा । अभक्तां अधीरा जैसा तैसा ॥४॥
जैसा भाव तैसा जवळि त्या दुरि । तुका म्हणे हरि देतो घेतो ॥५॥
Literal translation
Deva-found-Gopāḷas — no-kaḷā-of-abhimāna. Others-deceived-themselves — samdēha-dāyaka-bahu-phārē. Many-chāḷavilī — māv-not-let-known — Deva-ādi-Deva-Viśvambhara. Without-viśvāsa-not-known-real — abhakta-adhīra-jaisā-taisā. As-bhāva-near-or-far — Tukā: Hari-takes-gives.
What it means
A 5-verse yamak-bandha — diagnostic-pivot. Why Indra-can't-find-Lord while-Gopāḷas-have-him: (a) no-abhimāna-in-Gopāḷas, (b) others-deceive-themselves by-their-own-selves, (c) without-viśvāsa-Lord-doesn't-become-real, (d) as-the-bhāva-so-the-Lord-near-or-far — Hari-gives-takes-accordingly. The reciprocal-bhakti formula. Pair with 4539 (preceding Indra-rage), 4541 (continuing chain).
For someone today
God was found by the simple cowherds precisely because there was no pride in them, while others deceive themselves through their own doubt and never see him clearly. Without real faith, the divine simply will not become vivid or true to you, it stays as ordinary and unremarkable as anything else. Tukaram's closing line names the mechanism plainly: as your faith is, so is he near or far, and he responds in kind. What you actually find in life often mirrors the trust you bring to it, not because reality bends to wishing, but because doubt and pride blind you to what is already there.
मराठी: साध्या गोपाळांना देव सापडला कारण त्यांच्यात कोणताही अभिमान नव्हता, तर इतर स्वतःच्याच शंकेने स्वतःला फसवतात आणि त्यांना तो कधीच स्पष्ट दिसत नाही. खऱ्या श्रद्धेशिवाय देव तुम्हाला जिवंत किंवा खरा वाटतच नाही, तो इतर कोणत्याही सामान्य गोष्टीसारखाच उरतो. तुकाराम शेवटच्या ओळीत हे सरळ सांगतात, जशी तुमची श्रद्धा तसाच तो जवळ किंवा दूर असतो, आणि तो त्याच प्रमाणात प्रतिसाद देतो. तुम्हाला आयुष्यात जे सापडते ते बरेचदा तुम्ही आणलेल्या विश्वासाचेच प्रतिबिंब असते, कारण वास्तव इच्छेनुसार बदलत नाही, पण शंका आणि अभिमान तुम्हाला आधीच समोर असलेल्या गोष्टीपासून आंधळे करतात.
Where this applies
- When a humble, unassuming person notices something meaningful that others miss
- When your own doubt keeps you from recognizing good that is already present
- When pride keeps you from seeing what a simpler, more trusting person can see clearly
- When you wonder why the same situation feels different to you depending on how much you trust it