Taatiche Abhang: Introduction

 

#TaaticheAbhang

Taatiche Abhang : Introduction 

India has a rich tradition of poet saints who lived through various periods in history and different parts of the country. These individuals were masters in the essence of India’s spiritual heritage and helped the transfer of this wealth through generations. Their role however was not limited to scholarly work on spirituality or spiritual literature. Through their message and power they skillfully applied the knowledge towards social awareness, social justice and reform. Amongst these poet saints were many women. Meerabai is perhaps the most famous of these or better known pan India. In the state of Maharashtra there have been a number of women saints who have left behind a legacy of rich spiritual literature. There was Soyrabai ( the wife of Chokha Mela), Nirmala( sister of Chokha Mela ), Janabai( a maid in the home of Sant Namdev), sant Bahinabai( a disciple of Sant Tukaram), Muktabai ( Dnyaaneshwar’s sister), Kanhopatra(a courtesan)and Bahinabai Chaudhary (an illiterate widow) to name a few. 

Muktabai was the youngest of Dnyaaneshwar’s siblings. She is estimated to have lived from 1279 to 1297. In that short life span of only 18 years she left her own mark in the world of spirituality despite living in the shadow of her stellar sibling, Sant Dnyaaneshwar. She has been credited with barely 42 abhangas, a very small number when compared to the enormous body of work by Dnyaaneshwar. Yet the density of wisdom contained in those few poems is immense and gives a good idea of her spiritual maturity and depth.

Muktabai had a unique personality amongst the four siblings. Nivrittinath was ascetic and a highly learned person who was initiated into Brahma Vidya by Gahininath from the sect of Navnaths. Dnyaaneshwar was sensitive, scholarly and brilliant, the softest of them all. Sopandev was contemplative. Muktabai had several traits from her brothers plus more. She was perky, occasionally pesky and not afraid of calling a spade a spade.The Taatiche abhanga reveal a maternal instinct in her towards her elder brother, hence she is also referred to as Muktai. There are legends where she tamed the arrogance of spiritual giants like Sant Namdev and Changdev. If Dnyaaneshwar was sweetness personified, Nivrittinath was rock salt, and Sopandev the oil that kept the ingredients together. Muktabai was the spice that balanced the recipe in this quadruple equation. She took turns to be a child, mother, student, teacher, and supporter of her siblings at different times.

Historically and traditionally spiritual wisdom has been passed down from teacher to student since Vedic times. Most of the Upanishads comprise of a dialogue between the two. In the Bhagwad Gita the conversation is between Krishna and Arjun, cousins who are also best friends. Sometimes the dialogue is between a spiritually evolved husband and similarly mature wife, like Yajnavalkya and Maitreyi in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. In the Kathopanishad the student is a young boy Nachiket and the teacher is the Lord of Death, Yama. These spiritual discourses between two highly evolved individuals served a larger audience and extended for several generations to learn from. The setting was simply a pretext. The Sanskrit word is Leela which denotes divine play. These were enactments staged by the Almighty to deliver a message to the masses. A means to pass on the light of knowledge from one lamp (mind) to another.

One such divine play was in the lives of the four siblings, Nivrittinath, Dnyaaneshwar, Sopandev and Muktabai. These kids were orphaned at a very young age. A miscalculated move on the part of their father led to social isolation and a death sentence. Parents readily submitted to the terms of the punishment. The kids however remained unwelcome even after the high price their parents paid. Not only were these kids orphaned but now they had to go find food for themselves. Sometimes they found a kind soul who offered them food, other times they went hungry. They were treated with much contempt and regarded as outlaws. Kids of sinners are sinners for life, declared the priest leaders. 

The hardships that these kids endured are difficult to imagine. There were orders from higher authorities to not offer them food or fuel for cooking. Harsh words from every corner had become an everyday thing. Harassment, humiliation and hunger had become habitual. 

On one such day Dnyaaneshwar was subjected to a barrage of insults by a priest just because he happened to be by the roadside while the latter was passing by. The extremely sensitive young mind, though used to such humiliation from time to time, was very much affected by the incident. He could take it no more and he couldn’t retaliate either. He took off from there and hurried to their humble home to seek solitude and vent his emotions, closing the door behind him. 

His siblings returned one by one from their individual rounds of seeking food for the day. They realized their brother had locked himself inside. They called out to him yet he would not relent and open the door. 

The older brothers called out trying to console him. No success. Then little Muktabai called out saying “ Dnyaana dada, please open the door( taati)“. Despite her sweet pleas when there was no movement from inside, this young girl began to address her brother in a language she knew he would understand. The language of Brahma Vidya, knowledge of the Universal Spirit. Her monologue, in the form of verses spontaneously recited on that occasion, to console her older brother and awaken him from the slumber of ignorance, is famously and collectively known as Taatiche Abhang. 

She was all of nine years old at the time!! A girl orphaned at a very tender age, raised without her parents, in the loving care of three older brothers, who were themselves young when they lost their parents. All four of them were highly evolved souls who had come to earth with a divine purpose. Each one was already equipped with spiritual knowledge of high order. Many scholars therefore believe that Dnyaaneshwar, being a highly evolved soul himself, did not need pointers to rise above insults and harassment. The particular incident, in their view, was a divine act created for little Muktabai to reveal her inherent wisdom. She is believed to be the incarnation of Adi Shakti, the Primordial Energy. In twelve short poems she has expounded exquisite spiritual wisdom in the form of a monologue purportedly aimed at her brother but potentially practical for just about anyone. 

One particular commentator believes that Dnyaaneshwar sat in a deep meditative state inside the hut and the wisdom that pervaded his paraa vaani or inner most thoughts was perceived by Muktabai through intuitive powers and she uttered it through Vaikhari ( expressed speech) for others to hear. So she was the channel for the Divine Wisdom to be revealed to the masses.

Each individual abhang out of the 12 in the series of Taatiche Abhang ends with the line Taati ughada Dnyaaneshwara!

ताटी उघडा ज्ञानेश्वरा ॥

Open the door oh (my dear brother) Dnyaaneshwar!! 

There are literal and figurative meanings implied here. Taati is the door that separates inner dwelling from the outer world. Whether physical or mental, that door is important and necessary for each of us. Within us there is also a door that is spiritual, one that separates the jeevatma( individual soul) from the Parmatma ( universal soul) or mind from the spirit.

From time to time we need to turn our attention inside and introspect. We need to withdraw our focus from the exterior and investigate the internal affairs of our existence. But it is not healthy to stay shut out from the world for extended or indefinite periods. After some cleansing and rebooting of our apparatus we need to step out to shoulder our social responsibilities. 

Some wisdom or knowledge is innate while some is acquired through interaction with the world. All the knowledge that is assimilated must be shared and put to use for the greater good. 

Ordinarily the mind and intellect are not aware of the inner door that connects them with the spirit. Once found, this door must also be opened in order to recognize the light that illuminates the thoughts and knowledge. 

In the final stage of enlightenment this door would open irreversibly. After that the concept of inside and outside in relation to the mind, the world and the spirit will be permanently dissolved. 

In the present scenario, Dnyaaneshwar had not closed the door with a healthy intention for introspection. Overwhelmed with the negativity in the outside world Dnyaaneshwar had retreated to solitude. There was a grudge against the person or people who were hurtful. There was a wounded mind inside.This emotional crisis had overshadowed his awareness of the bigger purpose in life. Muktabai simply reminded him of that and boosted his spirits to rise and return to the task which awaited him.

It is worth noting that here the same little sister who normally addressed her brother in singular terms is referring to him respectfully with ughada instead of ughad and Dnyaaneshwara instead of Dnyaan dada. There was respect even in just Dnyaan dada. But the context was more casual. There was love in the former situation and this love remains intact even in the formal setting. Here she is the teacher and he is her disciple. She is at a higher position than him. But the knowledge that she is conferring is not ordinary knowledge. It is knowledge of the Divine Self, Bramha Vidya. The recipient of the knowledge is equally virtuous and hence worthy of equal respect as the teacher of the Vidya. She has not let that slip from her mind.Therefore in the present context he is no longer Dnyaan dada to her. He is the honorable Dnyaaneshwara. 

It is only at the end of her entire discourse that she resigns to the usual scheme of things where she is a younger sister. At that moment she appears slightly apologetic for crossing boundaries and acknowledges that she cannot take credit for instructing the accomplished brother because the knowledge that came out of her mouth was not new to him. He had it within himself always. 

 At the end of her soulful plea Dnyaaneshwar is said to have opened the taati (door) and come outside to meet his anxious siblings, thus ending the standoff. The temporary roadblock created by the fog of ignorance(avidya) was removed and the journey of a visionary and enlightened soul resumed.

Taatiche Abhang are a prelude to the literary works of Dnyaaneshwar. They are also the earliest works defining the characteristics and role of saints. History stands witness to the fact that all the great works including Dnyaaneshwari( Bhavartha Deepika), Amrutanubhav, Chaangdev Paasashti etc were created out of the genius of Dnyaaneshwar post this enlightenment from Muktabai. Such was the enigma of Muktabai, the little sister of a spiritual giant. Her role is often compared with Krishna’s role in Mahabharat where HE convinced Arjun to fight the war. 

All these divine souls took leave once their purpose on earth was fulfilled. Dnyaaneshwar was the first of the four to attain samadhi in Alandi followed by Sopandev in Saswad. Muktabai’s earthly life was concluded when she disappeared into a flash of lightning in the presence of Nivrittinath, the last surviving sibling who took samadhi after her. Muktabai’s samadhi Mandir is located in Mehun, a small town on the banks of the Tapi river near Jalgaon. Nivrittinath’s samadhi place is in Triambakeshwar near Nashik. They all remain immortalized through their works. 

The flame of the Divine Knowledge or Bramha Vidya keeps alive eternally in the universe through many lamps. Collectively, the Taatiche Abhang are one such lamp that burns with this flame. The term Abhang means that which is indestructible, hence eternal. The ultimate mystery of the oneness of the flame and the lamp as well as the flame and its seer will be revealed to the one who studies the Taatiche Abhang with sincere devotion and has the blessings of the Guru.

With all love in the heart, the author surrenders this at the unfathomable feet of the one and only Guru, who is the support of this universe, who is beyond imagination and description. The most benevolent. The ultimate savior. The very and only presence in restlessness and peace. The bestower of lasting happiness. The ultimate resting place. The everything. And still uncontainable. The one for who finite and infinite both mean nothing. To who I finally plead to have mercy and give closure to my thoughts, my speech, my actions, indeed my entire being. Indeed a closure to the untruth of all these. To the audacity and offense of referring to them as mine. And to the untruth that is me . 🙏🏼🙏🏼