Revisiting Sohiroba’s Abhang

 

Revisiting Sohiroba’s Abhang

It’s been some time since I wrote my thoughts about this beautiful abhang. Yesterday on the occasion of Diwali I recalled a pertinent line from this poem and wrote about it. But today the entire abhang seems to be calling out for renewed attention.

हरि भजनाविण, काळ घालवू नको रे।। धृ ।।

Like every saint, here too, Sohiroba is pleading to spend the entire lifetime towards devotion to God. Don’t waste time in other things, he says. Keep one part of your attention constantly towards God while you attend to other duties. In other words transform your duties into an act of worship.

दोरीच्या सापा, भिऊनी भवा। भेटी नाही, जीवा शिवा।

Having himself discerned the unreality of the visible universe as perceived by a vision rooted in duality(Jeeva consciousness) and affirmed by experience that everything is in fact the single ultimate reality, he points out with the help of an analogy that as long as you believe that what you see is a snake, you cannot see the rope, even if rope is a fact and snake is a false belief or illusion. And thus the jeeva cannot meet its own divine self until it discards its baseless beliefs and fears. 

अंतरीचा ज्ञानदिवा, मालवू नको रे।। 1 ।। 

The only hope that remains within the jeeva is the part of its consciousness that is untouched by unsubstantiated ideas. The life principle that supports reasoning, logical thinking and ability to examine truth, gain first hand experience and fresh insights that can erase existing misconceptions is the only reliable thing a person has and the most valuable inheritance as well. Take care of this. Keep it alive,burning and shining because without it you can never see the truth. Let this lamp never go out, implores the saint.

विवेकाची ठरेल वोल, ऐसे बोलावे बोल। 

In this sentence lies the most practical advice for just about anyone, irrespective of whether you are inclined towards religion, spirituality or material subjects. Sohiroba is turning the focus on the art of speech. 

How should a man’s speech be?

It should be wise. 

By wise, he implies that when we speak we should pay attention to the substance in our words. Are they meaningful? Are they uttered with a good purpose? Is the time appropriate for these words? Are they coming from a place of compassion and friendship ? Are they going to be enriching a conversation?

This applies to speech in any form. Casual speech at home or in company of friends, speech in the course of work or personal business, speech during day to day activities in the community like while shopping groceries etc., conversations carried out on social media platforms including internet, radio and television, public speeches, written communications and literature. 

When speech adheres to this one rule of being careful about its substance it is a sign of being cultured.

 

आपुल्या मते उगीच चिखल, कालवू नको रे।। 2 ।। 

In contrast, what we see more commonly is people getting carried away when speaking under any circumstances. They tend to make loose conversations, often of things they have heard about but not verified,and still believed as facts and further propagating these as facts so their friends would believe and facilitate the chain of unverified information to continue. 

Or then they talk about things from their own vivid imagination. Their personal beliefs rooted in prejudice, sometimes prejudiced even towards their own family and friends, gets expressed through their speech. 

It is not much different from the “heard” information from an outside source. Both are unverified where facts are concerned.

Both these kinds of loose talks bring about harm, sooner or later. They propagate misinformation, misunderstandings, misinterpretations and often lead to misgivings. 

Misgivings are never conducive to peace, happiness and harmony. One can see how speech can directly impact happiness.

A thing to remember is that thoughts are the seeds that germinate into words. It is essential to weed out useless and destructive thoughts so speech automatically becomes meaningful and positive.

In a matter-of-factly way the saint is telling us, be responsible when you open your mouth or say anything in writing. Speak only of things that are likely to do good to everyone. Dont contribute to such reckless practices by inserting personal opinions which you have not re-examined , verified for their factual integrity and whether they are rooted in prejudice. 

As they say, if you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything.

Silence can sometimes be a better option as it can do lesser damage than thoughtless speech.

Saints often recommend making it a habit to chant the name of God and say nothing else when transactional talk is not called for.

संतसंगतीने उमज, आणुनी मनी पुरती समज। 

When you are in the company of the wise or reading good literature, don’t jump to the conclusion that whatever you heard or read has gone through you. Don’t be a parrot to recant everything you hear or read. Reflect on what you heard, learnt. Let it digest completely and transform into deep understanding and experience. 

This includes understanding why they prescribe chanting the name of God.

अनुभवाविण मान डोलवू नको रे।। 3 ।। 

Many of us begin to nod when listening to a lecture because at face value we agree with whatever we heard. But in the process of nodding we give an impression that we have understood whatever was said. By doing so we are deceiving the speaker, fellow audience and more importantly, ourselves with such premature response. This is as bad as participating in loose talk or reckless speech. Half baked knowledge is useless, even harmful.

सोहिरा म्हणे ज्ञानज्योती, तेथे कैची दिवस राती।

The last stanza is pure Bramha Vidya. Where the light of the divine self shines there is no concept of day and night. It is an eternal source which illuminates everything including our thoughts, intellect, emotions, sense organs, physical attributes and movements as well as everything we see outside. This includes even the light of the sun and stars. 

Incidentally this is the light in which we can examine truth or facts. And since this light is present at all times, even in solitude or darkness we can discern and reflect on things we have thought,heard or believed without evidence.

तयाविण नेत्रापाती, हालवू नको रे।। 4 ।।

This is the so called third eye within us. The eye of wisdom. Eye of intuitive knowledge. Don’t venture out to function in the world without staying aware of this watchful eye. When you see the world be sure that this eye is aiding your vision. Seeing the world without the light of wisdom is as good as being blind or walking in the dark. You will stumble sooner or later. 

In summary the saint is cautioning us in good faith to adhere to truth,facts and wisdom in our thoughts, speech and actions and stay in communion with divine consciousness at all times . 

Saree is an old printed silk bought in Mumbai by my dad when coming for a visit to the USA nearly 30 years back. The earthy colors are perfect for autumn.