संत साहित्य · Guru Charitra · Chapters
Chapter 44 — Nandi Brahmin Relieved of Leprosy; He Became a Poet
Literal. Nandi, a leprous Brahmin, has worshipped Tuljapur Bhavani for 3 years and Bhilavadi Bhuvaneshwari for 7 months. Goddess directs him in dream to Shri Guru. He goes; Shri Guru sends him to Sangam, Audumbar, returns him; the leprosy disappears except patches on the thigh. He asks why; Shri Guru says: you came with doubt; the doubt remained; stay here. Nandi composes a long autobiographical poem (compressed narration of his life from previous-birth animal-births through human birth to the present). Shri Guru places bhasma on his tongue; the patches disappear. Nandi is renamed Kavishwar (Lord of Poets).
Symbolic. Doubt is the residue that remains after surface-cleansing; only direct address to the doubt itself produces full healing.
Verse by verse
श्रीगणेशाय नमः ॥ श्रीसरस्वत्यै नमः ॥ श्रीगुरुभ्यो नमः ॥
śrīgaṇeśāya namaḥ || śrīsarasvatyai namaḥ || śrīgurubhyo namaḥ ||
Salutations to Śrī Gaṇeśa; salutations to Śrī Sarasvatī; salutations to the Śrī Gurus.
The chapter opens, as always, with the triple invocation — namaḥ (salutation) to the remover of obstacles, to wisdom, and to the lineage of teachers — before the story itself begins.
Begin any undertaking by first acknowledging what makes it possible, rather than rushing straight to the task.
नामधारक म्हणे सिद्धमुनि । श्रीगुरुचरित्र तुम्ही देखिलें नयनीं । तुमचें भाग्य काय वानूं वदनीं । परब्रह्म देखिलें असे ॥१॥
nāmadhāraka mhaṇe siddhamuni | śrīgurucaritra tumhī dekhilem nayanīm | tumacem bhāgya kāya vānūm vadanīm | parabrahma dekhilem ase ||1||
Namdharak, the prince of disciples, says to Siddhamuni: you have shown me the Śrī Guru-charitra with my own eyes; how shall I praise your fortune — you have seen the supreme Brahman.
The listener reminds the teacher what has already been given — direct sight of parabrahma (the supreme reality) through the telling itself; gratitude opens the next round of listening.
When someone has taught you something valuable, say so plainly before asking for more.
तुमचेनि प्रसादेंसीं । अमृतपान झालें आम्हांसी । आतां कष्ट आम्हां कायसी । सकळाभीष्ट लाधलों ॥२॥
tumaceni prasādemsīm | amṛtapāna jhālem āmhāmsī | ātām kaṣṭa āmhām kāyasī | sakaḷābhīṣṭa lādhalom ||2||
By your grace we have drunk nectar; now what hardship remains for us — we have obtained all we desired.
Prasāda (grace received through the teacher) is described as nectar — the sense that a well-told teaching quenches an old thirst completely, not partially.
Notice when you have already been given enough, and rest in that instead of chasing more.
तुम्ही भेटलेति मज तारका । दैन्य गेलें सकळ दुःख । सर्वाभीष्ट लाधलों सुख । गुरुचरित्र ऐकतां ॥३॥
tumhī bheṭaleti maja tārakā | dainya gelem sakaḷa duḥkha | sarvābhīṣṭa lādhalom sukha | gurucaritra aikatām ||3||
You have met me as a savior; all my misery and sorrow are gone; I have found every wish and happiness by listening to the Guru-charitra.
The disciple names what listening to sacred story actually does — it does not just inform, it relieves — the ovī equates śravaṇa (hearing) with liberation from grief.
Let a good teaching actually change your mood, not just pass through your ears.
मागें कथानक सांगितलें । श्रीगुरु संगमीं राहिले । पुढें काय अपूर्व वर्तलें । निरोपावें दातारा ॥४॥
māgem kathānaka sāmgitalem | śrīguru samgamīm rāhile | puḍhem kāya apūrva vartalem | niropāvem dātārā ||4||
The earlier story was told — Śrī Guru remained at the Saṅgama (river confluence); what wonder happened next? Please tell it, O giver.
A simple narrative bridge: the saṅgama (confluence, here of the Bhīmā and Amarajā rivers at Gāṇagāpur) is where Śrī Guru is staying, and the disciple asks for the next episode.
Stay curious enough to keep asking what comes next in a story worth following.
सिद्ध सांगे नामधारकासी । ऐक वत्सा विस्तारेंसीं । विचित्र झालें येरे दिवसीं । एकचित्तें परियेसा ॥५॥
siddha sāmge nāmadhārakāsī | aika vatsā vistāremsīm | vicitra jhālem yere divasīm | ekacittem pariyesā ||5||
Siddha says to Namdharak: listen, child, in full detail; something strange happened one day — listen with one-pointed attention.
The narrator flags that this episode deserves ekacitta (single-pointed attention) — a cue that a real teaching, not just plot, is coming.
When someone signals that what follows matters, give it your full attention rather than half-listening.
'नंदी' नाम एक ब्राह्मण । सर्वांगीं कुष्ट श्वेतवर्ण । तुळजापुरा जाऊन । वर्षें तीन आराधिलें ॥६॥
'namdī' nāma eka brāhmaṇa | sarvāmgīm kuṣṭa śvetavarṇa | tuḷajāpurā jāūna | varṣem tīna ārādhilem ||6||
There was a brahmin named 'Nandi,' white-skinned with leprosy over his whole body; he went to Tuljāpura and worshipped there for three years.
The chapter's central figure is introduced through his affliction and his long effort — kuṣṭha (leprosy) was read in that era as karmic and also as visibly, socially isolating.
When facing a long-standing affliction, be willing to commit years, not days, to seeking relief.
तीन संवत्सर उपवास । द्विज कष्टला बहुवस । निरोप झाला सायासें । चंदलापरमेश्वरीजवळी जाणें ॥७॥
tīna samvatsara upavāsa | dvija kaṣṭalā bahuvasa | niropa jhālā sāyāsem | camdalāparameśvarījavaḷī jāṇem ||7||
Three years of fasting — the brahmin suffered greatly; with great effort, instruction came: go to Caṇḍalāparameśvarī.
Even after three years of austerity at one shrine, the answer is 'go elsewhere' — the story shows that devotion is redirected, not always immediately rewarded at its first destination.
If years of effort in one place have not resolved your problem, be willing to follow a new lead rather than dig in stubbornly.
जगदंबेचा निरोप घेऊनि । आला चंदलापरमेश्वरीस्थानीं । मास सात पुरश्चरणीं । पुनरपि केले उपवास ॥८॥
jagadambecā niropa gheūni | ālā camdalāparameśvarīsthānīm | māsa sāta puraścaraṇīm | punarapi kele upavāsa ||8||
Taking leave of Jagadambā (the World-Mother), he came to the place of Caṇḍalāparameśvarī; for seven months of puraścaraṇa (repeated recitation-worship) he fasted again.
The brahmin's search intensifies rather than eases — seven more months of disciplined fasting at a second shrine, showing the length real seeking can demand.
Renew your effort fully at each new stage rather than treating it as a lesser repeat of the last.
नानापरी कष्टतां । स्वप्न जाहलें अवचिता । तुवां जावें त्वरिता । गाणगग्रामस्थानासी ॥९॥
nānāparī kaṣṭatām | svapna jāhalem avacitā | tuvām jāvem tvaritā | gāṇagagrāmasthānāsī ||9||
Suffering in many ways, suddenly a dream came to him: go quickly to the place of Gāṇagāpur.
The guidance finally arrives — not through further austerity but through a svapna (dream), the traditional vehicle by which the divine redirects a seeker toward the living guru.
Stay alert to guidance that arrives unexpectedly, even after long, deliberate effort has not produced it.
तेथें असती श्रीगुरु । त्रयमूर्तीचा अवतारु । वेष धरिला असे नरु । तेथें होसील उत्तमांगी ॥१०॥
tethem asatī śrīguru | trayamūrtīcā avatāru | veṣa dharilā ase naru | tethem hosīla uttamāmgī ||10||
There Śrī Guru resides, the incarnation of the three deities, having taken the form of a man; there you will become whole-bodied.
The dream identifies Śrī Guru as trimūrti (the three gods in one), present in ordinary human form — the theology of the whole text compressed into one line: God is reachable as a living teacher.
Look for wisdom in the people actually in front of you, not only in distant or abstract sources.
ऐसे निरोप त्यासी जाहले । विप्र म्हणे भलें केलें । मास सात कां चुकर केलें । जरी तुझे हातीं नोहेचि ॥११॥
aise niropa tyāsī jāhale | vipra mhaṇe bhalem kelem | māsa sāta kām cukara kelem | jarī tujhe hātīm noheci ||11||
Such instruction came to him; the brahmin said, well done — but asked why then he had been made to waste seven months, if it was not in her power.
A flash of resentment surfaces even amid relief — a very human moment where gratitude and grievance sit side by side.
Allow yourself to feel frustration honestly, but let it pass rather than letting it block the next right step.
जगन्माता तुळजा भवानी । तिचा निरोप घेऊनि । आलों तुजपाशीं ठाकोनि । तूं दैवत म्हणोनियां ॥१२॥
jaganmātā tuḷajā bhavānī | ticā niropa gheūni | ālom tujapāśīm ṭhākoni | tūm daivata mhaṇoniyām ||12||
World-mother Tuljā Bhavānī, taking your leave, I came and stood before you, thinking you alone to be my deity.
He recounts his devotion to the goddess directly to her, establishing how completely he had trusted that first path before being redirected.
Honor the sincerity of your past efforts even when they turn out not to be the final answer.
दैवतपण ठाउकें जाहलें । आम्हांसी निरोप दिधलें । मनुष्यापाशीं जा म्हणितलें । तुझे हातीं नोहेचि कांहीं ॥१३॥
daivatapaṇa ṭhāukem jāhalem | āmhāmsī niropa didhalem | manuṣyāpāśīm jā mhaṇitalem | tujhe hātīm noheci kāmhīm ||13||
My divine status became known to me — you were sent word: go to a human, it is not within my power at all, the goddess says.
Even the goddess admits a boundary to her own direct intervention in this matter, deferring instead to the human guru — a reminder that different forms of the divine have different roles.
Accept that some help must come through people, not shortcuts, even from sources you trust deeply.
तूं जगद्दैवत जगदंबा म्हणविसी । आम्हां मनुष्यापाशीं पाठविसी । नांव जाहलें दैवतपणासी । भाग्य माझें म्हणतसे ॥१४॥
tūm jagaddaivata jagadambā mhaṇavisī | āmhām manuṣyāpāśīm pāṭhavisī | nāmva jāhalem daivatapaṇāsī | bhāgya mājhem mhaṇatase ||14||
You call yourself the World-deity, Jagadambā, yet you send me to a mere human — my divine reputation has become known, he says, such is my fortune.
The brahmin's sarcasm shows his exhaustion — a moment of doubt voiced honestly rather than suppressed, which the story does not condemn.
It is all right to voice doubt honestly when you are exhausted, rather than pretending patience you don't feel.
मनुष्यापाशीं जा म्हणावयासी । लाज नये कैसी तुम्हांसी । ओळख जाहली दैवतपणासी । उपवासी सात महिने ॥१५॥
manuṣyāpāśīm jā mhaṇāvayāsī | lāja naye kaisī tumhāmsī | oḷakha jāhalī daivatapaṇāsī | upavāsī sāta mahine ||15||
To say go to a human — are you not ashamed? My divinity was only recognized after seven months of fasting, he says.
He presses the point further, naming the gap between the goddess's claimed power and the length of his suffering.
Name a grievance clearly instead of letting it fester silently.
पहिलेंचि जरी निरोप देत । इतुके कष्ट आम्हां न होत । दुराशा केली मी परदैवत । म्हणोनि, दुःख करी नानापरी ॥१६॥
pahilemci jarī niropa deta | ituke kaṣṭa āmhām na hota | durāśā kelī mī paradaivata | mhaṇoni, duḥkha karī nānāparī ||16||
If you had told me this from the very start, I would not have had to suffer so much; I hoped in vain for another deity, saying this, he grieved in many ways.
Durāśā (false or misplaced hope) is named as the root of his extra suffering — chasing the wrong door delays, but does not cancel, the true one.
When a long effort turns out to have been misdirected, grieve it honestly instead of pretending it cost nothing.
ऐसें अनेकपरीनें । दुःख करीतसे तो ब्राह्मण । पुन्हा मागुती पुरश्चरण । करीन म्हणे तो द्विजवर ॥१७॥
aisem anekaparīnem | duḥkha karītase to brāhmaṇa | punhā māgutī puraścaraṇa | karīna mhaṇe to dvijavara ||17||
Grieving thus in many ways, that brahmin said, I will again undertake puraścaraṇa, said that best of the twice-born.
Despite his complaint, he chooses renewed discipline over despair — grumbling does not stop him from acting.
Let frustration coexist with continued effort; don't let complaining replace doing.
म्हणे मज बरवें होणें । अथवा आपुला प्राण देणें । ऐसें बोलोनि निर्वाणें । विप्र धरणें बैसला ॥१८॥
mhaṇe maja baravem hoṇem | athavā āpulā prāṇa deṇem | aisem boloni nirvāṇem | vipra dharaṇem baisalā ||18||
He says, either let me be made well, or let me give up my life; saying this with finality, the brahmin sat down in dharṇā (a fast-in-protest).
Dharṇā is a determined sit-in vow — refusing to move until the deity responds — dramatizing total, uncompromising commitment.
When something truly matters, commit to it without a built-in exit, rather than half-heartedly.
पुनरपि स्वप्न तयासी । तैसेंचि होय परियेसीं । आणिक समस्त भोपियांसी । तेणेंचिपरी स्वप्न होय ॥१९॥
punarapi svapna tayāsī | taisemci hoya pariyesīm | āṇika samasta bhopiyāmsī | teṇemciparī svapna hoya ||19||
Again a dream came to him, the same as before, listen; and to all the temple oracles as well, in the very same way a dream came.
The message is confirmed independently to others — the bhope (temple oracles) — so the brahmin cannot dismiss it as his own imagination.
Trust guidance more when it is confirmed by more than one independent source.
सकळ भोपे म्हणती तयासी । आजि स्वप्न झालें आम्हांसी । छळण न करीं गा देवीसी । निरोपासरसा जाईं वेगीं ॥२०॥
sakaḷa bhope mhaṇatī tayāsī | āji svapna jhālem āmhāmsī | chaḷaṇa na karīm gā devīsī | niropāsarasā jāīm vegīm ||20||
All the oracles say to him: today a dream came to us too; do not trouble the goddess — go quickly according to the instruction.
The community itself now urges him onward, showing guidance arriving through people around him, not only through his private vision.
When several people around you independently point you the same direction, take the hint seriously.
तूं तरी आतां नव जासी । आम्हां निरोप झाला ऐसी । बाहेर घालूं तुम्हांसी । देवळांत येऊं नेदूं ॥२१॥
tūm tarī ātām nava jāsī | āmhām niropa jhālā aisī | bāhera ghālūm tumhāmsī | devaḷāmta yeūm nedūm ||21||
You must not stay here any longer now; we have received the order — we will throw you out, we will not let you into the temple.
The push becomes firm, even harsh — sometimes the divine closes a door plainly so a seeker will finally walk through the open one.
When a path clearly closes, stop pushing against it and turn toward the one that is opening.
इतुकें जाहलियावरी । पारणें केलें द्विजवरीं । पूजा करी नानापरी । निरोप घेऊनि निघाला ॥२२॥
itukem jāhaliyāvarī | pāraṇem kelem dvijavarīm | pūjā karī nānāparī | niropa gheūni nighālā ||22||
When this had happened, the brahmin broke his fast, performed worship in many ways, and took his leave and departed.
He completes his devotions properly before leaving — even a redirected path is honored on the way out, not abandoned in a huff.
Close out one chapter with proper gratitude before moving fully into the next.
गाणगाग्रामासी आला । मठीं जाऊनि पुसों लागला । भक्तजन सांगती त्याला । संगमीं आहेत गुरुमूर्ति ॥२३॥
gāṇagāgrāmāsī ālā | maṭhīm jāūni pusom lāgalā | bhaktajana sāmgatī tyālā | samgamīm āheta gurumūrti ||23||
He came to Gāṇagāpur, went to the matha and began asking; the devotees told him: at the Saṅgam are the Guru's feet.
He arrives at the actual place of the living teacher, and the local devotees direct him — the ordinary sangha becomes his guide.
Ask the people already established somewhere for directions rather than wandering alone.
भक्त म्हणती तयासी । श्रीगुरु येतील पारणेसी । काल शिवरात्री-उपवासी । आतां येतील परियेसीं ॥२४॥
bhakta mhaṇatī tayāsī | śrīguru yetīla pāraṇesī | kāla śivarātrī-upavāsī | ātām yetīla pariyesīm ||24||
The devotees say to him: Śrī Guru will come to break his fast; yesterday was the fast of Śivarātri; he will come now, listen.
A detail of ritual timing — Śivarātrī (the night of Śiva) fast followed by pāraṇā (fast-breaking) — situates the story precisely and builds anticipation.
Learn the rhythms of the place and people you are approaching, so your timing meets them well.
इतुकिया अवसरीं । श्रीगुरु आले साक्षात्कारी । ग्रामलोक द्विजातें वारी । राहें दूरी नको सन्मुख ॥२५॥
itukiyā avasarīm | śrīguru āle sākṣātkārī | grāmaloka dvijātem vārī | rāhem dūrī nako sanmukha ||25||
At that very moment, Śrī Guru arrived in person; the village people restrained the brahmin: stay far off, do not come in front.
The crowd's instinct to keep the visibly diseased man at a distance shows the ordinary human reflex the guru will soon overturn.
Notice your own instinct to keep the unwell or unwanted at a distance, and question it.
श्रीगुरु आले मठांत । द्विज उभा होता चिंतीत । भक्तजन सांगती मात । विप्र एक आला असे ॥२६॥
śrīguru āle maṭhāmta | dvija ubhā hotā cimtīta | bhaktajana sāmgatī māta | vipra eka ālā ase ||26||
Śrī Guru came into the matha; the brahmin stood there anxious; the devotees reported the news: a brahmin has come.
The brahmin's anxiety is given its own beat — arrival at the goal does not instantly dissolve fear.
Expect some fear even at the threshold of what you have long sought, and keep going anyway.
सर्वांगीं असे श्वेत । स्वामिदर्शना आलों म्हणत । श्रीगुरु म्हणती आपण जाणत । संदेहरुपें आला असे ॥२७॥
sarvāmgīm ase śveta | svāmidarśanā ālom mhaṇata | śrīguru mhaṇatī āpaṇa jāṇata | samdeharupem ālā ase ||27||
He was white all over; he said, I have come for darshan of the master; Śrī Guru said, he himself knows — he has come in a state of doubt.
Śrī Guru names the man's inner state before he speaks it — saṃdeharupem (in the form of doubt) — showing the guru's insight reaching past outward words.
Be honest that unspoken doubt is often visible to others anyway, so speak it rather than hide it.
म्हणती बोलावा मठांत । भक्त गेले धांवत । तया द्विजातें पाचारीत । आला विप्र आंगणा ॥२८॥
mhaṇatī bolāvā maṭhāmta | bhakta gele dhāmvata | tayā dvijātem pācārīta | ālā vipra āmgaṇā ||28||
They said, call him into the matha; the devotees ran; they summoned that brahmin; the brahmin came into the courtyard.
A small logistical verse — the summons and the approach — building the scene before the meeting.
Respond promptly when you are finally called toward the thing you sought.
दुरोनि देखिलें श्रीगुरुसी । नमन करीत लोळे भूमीसी । श्रीगुरु म्हणती तयासी । संदेहरुपें आलासि कां ॥२९॥
duroni dekhilem śrīgurusī | namana karīta loḷe bhūmīsī | śrīguru mhaṇatī tayāsī | samdeharupem ālāsi kām ||29||
Seeing Śrī Guru from a distance, he prostrated himself on the ground in salutation; Śrī Guru said to him: why have you come in a state of doubt?
Namana (prostration) is offered even before words — the body's devotion arrives ahead of the mind's certainty, which the Guru immediately names.
Let your actions show respect even before your doubts are fully resolved.
देवीपासूनि मनुष्यापाशीं । येणें झालें काय कार्येंसी । संदेह करोनि मानसीं । कैसा आलासि द्विजवरा ॥३०॥
devīpāsūni manuṣyāpāśīm | yeṇem jhālem kāya kāryemsī | samdeha karoni mānasīm | kaisā ālāsi dvijavarā ||30||
From the goddess to a mere human — what business brought you here? Harboring doubt in your mind, how have you come, best of brahmins?
The Guru presses the same tension the brahmin voiced to the goddess — testing whether the doubt still governs him.
Be ready to have your private doubts named directly by someone you've come to for help.
ऐसें वचन ऐकोनि । आपुले मनींचें जाणिलें म्हणोनि । क्षमा करीं गा स्वामी म्हणोनि । लोटांगणीं येतसे ॥३१॥
aisem vacana aikoni | āpule manīmcem jāṇilem mhaṇoni | kṣamā karīm gā svāmī mhaṇoni | loṭāmgaṇīm yetase ||31||
Hearing these words, realizing his inner mind had been read, he said, forgive me, O master, and fell prostrate.
Being truly seen dissolves his defensiveness — recognition itself becomes the turning point toward surrender.
When you feel truly understood, let that understanding soften you rather than trigger more resistance.
म्हणे स्वामी आपण तमांध । तुझे दर्शनें झालों सुबुद्ध । अज्ञानें वेष्टिलों होतों मंद । नेणें सोय परब्रह्मा ॥३२॥
mhaṇe svāmī āpaṇa tamāmdha | tujhe darśanem jhālom subuddha | ajñānem veṣṭilom hotom mamda | neṇem soya parabrahmā ||32||
He says: Master, I was blind in darkness; your darshan has made me wise; wrapped in ignorance I was dull, not knowing the way to the supreme Brahman.
Tamāndha (blind in darkness) names ignorance as a kind of blindness that mere sight of the teacher — darśana — begins to cure.
Let a moment of clarity be the start of genuinely reconsidering your assumptions, not just a passing feeling.
तूं साक्षात् वस्तु म्हणोनि । नेणों आपण तमोगुणी । आजि माझा सुदिन । दर्शनें झालों पुनीत ॥३३॥
tūm sākṣāt vastu mhaṇoni | neṇom āpaṇa tamoguṇī | āji mājhā sudina | darśanem jhālom punīta ||33||
You are the very substance itself; not knowing, I was full of the quality of darkness; today is my good day — by your darshan I have become purified.
He names Śrī Guru as sākṣāt vastu — the reality itself, not a symbol of it — the strongest possible claim the text makes about a living teacher.
Mark the good days when insight arrives, and let gratitude for them be plain and unhesitating.
पापकर्मी पापी आपण । पापात्मा नेणें निज खूण । पापें संभवलों पूर्ण । आलों शरण तुजपाशीं ॥३४॥
pāpakarmī pāpī āpaṇa | pāpātmā neṇem nija khūṇa | pāpem sambhavalom pūrṇa | ālom śaraṇa tujapāśīm ||34||
I am a sinner by deed, a sinful soul not knowing my own true nature; I was born entirely out of sin; I have come to you seeking refuge.
Śaraṇa (refuge, surrender) is the technical term here — the confession is not self-hatred but the recognized precondition for grace.
Own your faults plainly when seeking help, rather than minimizing them to protect your pride.
तूं भक्तजनां आधार । शरणागता वज्रपंजर । ब्रीद वानिती सचराचर । श्रीगुरु नृसिंहसरस्वतीचें ॥३५॥
tūm bhaktajanām ādhāra | śaraṇāgatā vajrapamjara | brīda vānitī sacarācara | śrīguru nṛsimhasarasvatīcem ||35||
You are the support of devoted people, a diamond fortress for those who take refuge; all moving and unmoving beings praise the reputation of Śrī Guru Nṛsiṃha Sarasvatī.
Vajrapaṃjara (diamond cage or fortress) is a classic image of unbreakable protection extended to anyone who surrenders.
Offer real protection and steadiness to anyone who comes to you for refuge.
आजि माझें कुकर्म गेलें । परब्रह्मचरण देखिलें । मनोरथ माझे पुरले । कृपासागरा यतिराया ॥३६॥
āji mājhem kukarma gelem | parabrahmacaraṇa dekhilem | manoratha mājhe purale | kṛpāsāgarā yatirāyā ||36||
Today my bad karma has left me; I have seen the feet of the supreme Brahman; my heart's desires are fulfilled, O ocean of compassion, king of ascetics.
The verse marks the emotional peak of his confession — grief converts fully into gratitude in a single breath.
Let relief, when it finally comes, be felt fully rather than rushed past.
तूं भक्तजनाची कामधेनु । मनुष्यवेषीं आलासि अवतरोनु । तुझा पार जाणे कवणु । त्रैमूर्ति तूंचि होसी ॥३७॥
tūm bhaktajanācī kāmadhenu | manuṣyaveṣīm ālāsi avataronu | tujhā pāra jāṇe kavaṇu | traimūrti tūmci hosī ||37||
You are the wish-cow of your devotees; you have descended in human form; who can know your limit? You alone are the trimūrti.
Kāmadhenu (the wish-fulfilling cow of myth) becomes shorthand throughout this chapter for total, generous providence.
Be as generously available to those who depend on you as the image of the wish-cow suggests.
जैसी सगरांवरी गंगा । पावन करावया आली जगा । तैसा तूं भक्तसेवकवर्गा । तारावया अवतरलासी ॥३८॥
jaisī sagarāmvarī gamgā | pāvana karāvayā ālī jagā | taisā tūm bhaktasevakavargā | tārāvayā avataralāsī ||38||
Just as the Gaṅgā came down for Sagara's sons to purify them, so you have descended to save the community of your devoted servants.
The Gaṅgā-descent myth, bringing purification to cursed ancestors, is used as a precedent for the guru's saving descent among ordinary people.
Remember that help offered to a whole community, not just one person, is the deeper form of service.
का अहिल्या झाली पाषाण । दिव्यदेही झाली लागतां चरण । तैसें मज आजि निर्गुण । झालें स्वामी गुरुनाथा ॥३९॥
kā ahilyā jhālī pāṣāṇa | divyadehī jhālī lāgatām caraṇa | taisem maja āji nirguṇa | jhālem svāmī gurunāthā ||39||
As Ahalyā, turned to stone, became divine-bodied again upon Rāma's feet touching her, so today I too, though fallen, have become renewed, O master, lord of gurus.
The Ahalyā story, a stone-cursed woman restored by contact with the divine, becomes the mythic mirror for the brahmin's own healing.
Believe that even a long-standing, seemingly permanent condition can be renewed by the right touch of grace.
व्रतबंध विवाह झालियावरी । व्याधि उद्भवली आपुले शरीरीं । स्त्री राहिली माहेरीं । स्पर्शों नये शरीर म्हणे ॥४०॥
vratabamdha vivāha jhāliyāvarī | vyādhi udbhavalī āpule śarīrīm | strī rāhilī māherīm | sparśom naye śarīra mhaṇe ||40||
After his sacred-thread ceremony and marriage, disease arose in his own body; his wife stayed at her parents' home, saying, do not touch my body.
The narrative now backtracks to his personal history — disease costing him his marriage, a very ordinary and painful social consequence.
Recognize how illness can fracture even close relationships, and respond to such rejection with patience rather than bitterness.
आपुले असती मातापिता । सकळ म्हणती जाईं परता । दुःख जाहलें अपरिमिता । संसार त्यजूनि निघालों ॥४१॥
āpule asatī mātāpitā | sakaḷa mhaṇatī jāīm paratā | duḥkha jāhalem aparimitā | samsāra tyajūni nighālom ||41||
His own parents, and everyone, told him to go away; boundless grief occurred; he left his household and departed.
Abandonment by family, not just illness itself, drives him into wandering — the story's compassion is really for social exile as much as physical suffering.
Show up for family members whom illness has made others turn away from.
गेलों होतों तुळजापुरा । उपवास केले अपारा । मज म्हणती तूं पापभारा । नव्हे तुज बरवें आतां ॥४२॥
gelom hotom tuḷajāpurā | upavāsa kele apārā | maja mhaṇatī tūm pāpabhārā | navhe tuja baravem ātām ||42||
He had gone to Tuljāpura, done unlimited fasts; they told him: you are a burden of sin — it will not be well for you now.
Even those meant to help had, at first, only pronounced judgment on him rather than offering a path forward.
Offer a path forward to someone in trouble rather than only naming what is wrong with them.
निरोप दे जा सन्नतीं । जेथें चंदलापरमेश्वरी वसती । तेथें होईल निवृत्ति । पाप जाईल म्हणोनि ॥४३॥
niropa de jā sannatīm | jethem camdalāparameśvarī vasatī | tethem hoīla nivṛtti | pāpa jāīla mhaṇoni ||43||
The instruction came: go to the place where Caṇḍalāparameśvarī dwells; there you will find relief; your sin will depart, it was said.
This repeats, in his own retelling, the redirection already narrated — the epic style often recaps events from within a character's speech.
Follow through completely on guidance you have been given, even when it means more travel and effort.
तेथेंही कष्ट केले बहुत । नव्हेचि कांहीं, देवी उबगत । निरोप झाला जा म्हणत । कृपामूर्ति तुजपाशीं ॥४४॥
tethemhī kaṣṭa kele bahuta | navheci kāmhīm, devī ubagata | niropa jhālā jā mhaṇata | kṛpāmūrti tujapāśīm ||44||
There too I made great effort, nothing happened; the goddess grew weary; the instruction came, go, said the merciful one, and I came to you.
He completes the retelling of his long, repeatedly redirected search, arriving finally at Śrī Guru's feet.
Persevere through multiple redirections rather than giving up after the first one fails.
ऐसें माझें दैव हीन । उबगताति देव आपण । मज देखोनि निर्वाण । बाहेर घाला म्हणताति ॥४५॥
aisem mājhem daiva hīna | ubagatāti deva āpaṇa | maja dekhoni nirvāṇa | bāhera ghālā mhaṇatāti ||45||
Such is my poor fortune — even deities grow weary of me; seeing my extremity, they say, throw him out.
His self-description reaches its lowest point — total social and even divine rejection, as he perceives it.
Don't let a season of rejection convince you that you are permanently unworthy of help.
देवता आपण उबगताति । मनुष्य कैसे मज देखती । निर्वाणीं आलों तुम्हांप्रती । निर्धार केला मरणाचा ॥४६॥
devatā āpaṇa ubagatāti | manuṣya kaise maja dekhatī | nirvāṇīm ālom tumhāmpratī | nirdhāra kelā maraṇācā ||46||
If deities themselves grow weary of me, how would mere humans regard me? I have come to you in extremity — I had resolved on death.
He names suicidal despair plainly, which the story treats with gravity rather than dismissal, setting up the mercy that follows.
Take despair seriously when someone voices it to you, and respond with real attention, not platitudes.
ऐसा पापी असोनि आपण । काय करावें अंग हीन । तोंड न पाहती कुष्ठी म्हणोन । मरण बरवें यापरतें ॥४७॥
aisā pāpī asoni āpaṇa | kāya karāvem amga hīna | tomḍa na pāhatī kuṣṭhī mhaṇona | maraṇa baravem yāparatem ||47||
Being such a sinner, what can I do, my body ruined? People will not even look at a leper's face — death is better than this.
The social stigma of kuṣṭhī (leprosy) is named directly — being unseen, avoided, is as painful as the disease itself.
Look directly and kindly at people whom others avoid because of visible illness or difference.
आतां असे एक विनंति । होय अथवा नव्हे निश्चितीं । शीघ्र निरोपावें यति । दैवतें चाळवितीं आशाबद्धें ॥४८॥
ātām ase eka vinamti | hoya athavā navhe niścitīm | śīghra niropāvem yati | daivatem cāḷavitīm āśābaddhem ||48||
Now I have one request: whether it is yes or no, tell me quickly and definitely, O ascetic; deities keep me dangling with false hope.
He asks for clarity over comfort — a demand that resonates with anyone exhausted by being strung along.
Give people a clear answer rather than leaving them hanging in false hope.
मज चाड नाहीं शरीराची । प्राण देईन सुखेंचि । तूं रक्षक माउली शरणागताची । निरोपावें दातारा ॥४९॥
maja cāḍa nāhīm śarīrācī | prāṇa deīna sukhemci | tūm rakṣaka māulī śaraṇāgatācī | niropāvem dātārā ||49||
I have no care for this body; I will gladly give up my life; you are the protecting mother of those who take refuge — please instruct me, O giver.
He surrenders even attachment to his own life, placing total trust in the guru's word — the deepest form of śaraṇāgati (surrender).
Place your trust fully in someone proven reliable, instead of hedging every commitment.
ऐसें करुणावचन ऐकोन । श्रीगुरु बोलती हांसोन । सोमनाथ ब्राह्मण बोलावून । निरोप देती न्याया संगमासी ॥५०॥
aisem karuṇāvacana aikona | śrīguru bolatī hāmsona | somanātha brāhmaṇa bolāvūna | niropa detī nyāyā samgamāsī ||50||
Hearing such pitiful words, Śrī Guru spoke, smiling; calling the brahmin Somanātha, he gave the order to take him to the Saṅgam.
The Guru's smile amid the man's despair signals that relief, not further ordeal, is coming — compassion expressed through calm, practical action.
Meet someone's desperation with calm, practical help rather than matching their anxiety.
बरवा संकल्प सांगोनि । स्नान करवा षट्कूळभुवनीं । अश्वत्थप्रदक्षिणा करवूनि । वस्त्रें टाका दूर त्याचीं ॥५१॥
baravā samkalpa sāmgoni | snāna karavā ṣaṭkūḷabhuvanīm | aśvatthapradakṣiṇā karavūni | vastrem ṭākā dūra tyācīm ||51||
Giving him a good resolve to state, Śrī Guru said: have him bathe at the six-well shrine, have him circle the sacred fig tree, and throw his old clothes far away.
A precise ritual prescription — bathing, circumambulating the aśvattha (sacred fig) tree, discarding old clothes — enacting a symbolic shedding of the old, afflicted self.
When starting fresh, deliberately let go of the old things, objects or habits, that carried your former condition.
नवीं वस्त्रें द्या यासी । शीघ्र आणा पारणेसी । ऐसा निरोप देती त्यांसी । दोघे गेले झडकरी ॥५२॥
navīm vastrem dyā yāsī | śīghra āṇā pāraṇesī | aisā niropa detī tyāmsī | doghe gele jhaḍakarī ||52||
Give him new clothes, bring him quickly for the fast-breaking meal; giving this instruction to them, the two went swiftly.
New clothes mark the new identity about to be revealed — practical detail carrying symbolic weight.
Mark a genuine change of state with a visible, deliberate change, not just an inward feeling.
स्नान करुनि बाहेर आला । शरीरवर्ण पालटला । अश्वत्थप्रदक्षिणा करूं लागला । सु-वर्ण जाहलें सर्वांग ॥५३॥
snāna karuni bāhera ālā | śarīravarṇa pālaṭalā | aśvatthapradakṣiṇā karūm lāgalā | su-varṇa jāhalem sarvāmga ||53||
Having bathed, he came out; his body's color had changed; as he began to circle the sacred fig tree, his whole body became golden.
The healing happens progressively through the prescribed ritual, not instantaneously at the first word — showing grace working through disciplined action.
Trust that following through on a good instruction, step by step, can complete a change that a single moment cannot.
वस्त्रें देती ब्राह्मणासी । जीर्ण वस्त्रें टाकिती दूरेंसी । जेथें टाकिती ते भूमीसी । क्षार भूमि होय त्वरित ॥५४॥
vastrem detī brāhmaṇāsī | jīrṇa vastrem ṭākitī dūremsī | jethem ṭākitī te bhūmīsī | kṣāra bhūmi hoya tvarita ||54||
They gave clothes to the brahmin, threw the worn-out clothes far away; wherever they threw them on the ground, that ground quickly became barren.
The old clothes carry the disease's residue so completely that even the earth is marked by them — underscoring how thorough the affliction, and thus the cleansing, truly was.
Dispose properly of what carried your old trouble, rather than keeping it around as a reminder.
सांगातें घेऊनि द्विजासी । सोमनाथ आला मठासी । चरणीं घातलें तयासी । लोक सर्व विस्मित ॥५५॥
sāmgātem gheūni dvijāsī | somanātha ālā maṭhāsī | caraṇīm ghātalem tayāsī | loka sarva vismita ||55||
Bringing the brahmin along, Somanātha came to the matha; he was made to fall at Śrī Guru's feet; all the people were astonished.
The community that once kept him at a distance now watches his transformation in open wonder.
Let a genuine change in someone update your view of them, rather than holding onto your old judgment.
नंदीनामें केला नमस्कार । संतोषें स्तोत्र करी अपार । हर्षें जाहला निर्भर । लोळतसे पादुकावरी ॥५६॥
namdīnāmem kelā namaskāra | samtoṣem stotra karī apāra | harṣem jāhalā nirbhara | loḷatase pādukāvarī ||56||
Named Nandi, he made his salutation, joyfully offered unlimited hymns of praise; overflowing with joy, he rolled upon the Guru's sandals.
Pādukā (the guru's sandals) receive the same devotion as the guru's feet themselves — a common gesture of total humility and joy.
Let genuine gratitude show physically, not just in polite words.
श्रीगुरु म्हणती तयासी । तुझी कामना झाली परियेसीं । सर्वांग आहे कैसी । अवलोकोनि पाहें म्हणती ॥५७॥
śrīguru mhaṇatī tayāsī | tujhī kāmanā jhālī pariyesīm | sarvāmga āhe kaisī | avalokoni pāhem mhaṇatī ||57||
Śrī Guru said to him: your wish has been granted, listen; how is your whole body now? Look and see, he said.
The Guru invites the man to verify the healing himself rather than simply asserting it — respecting his own perception.
Let people confirm good news for themselves rather than only taking your word for it.
पाहतां सर्वांग बरवें जाहलें । तावन्मात्र जंघेसी राहिलें । पाहतां मन त्याचें भ्यालें । म्हणे स्वामी असे थोडें ॥५८॥
pāhatām sarvāmga baravem jāhalem | tāvanmātra jamghesī rāhilem | pāhatām mana tyācem bhyālem | mhaṇe svāmī ase thoḍem ||58||
Looking, his whole body had become well; only up to his shins something remained; seeing this his mind grew afraid, he said, Master, a little remains.
Even near-complete grace can leave a residue, and the man's fear at that remainder is treated honestly, not brushed aside.
Voice a lingering concern honestly even when most of the problem has already been resolved.
तुझी कृपादृष्टि झाली असतां । थोडें राहिलें म्हणे केवीं आतां । करीतसे दंडवता । कृपा करीं गा परमात्मा ॥५९॥
tujhī kṛpādṛṣṭi jhālī asatām | thoḍem rāhilem mhaṇe kevīm ātām | karītase damḍavatā | kṛpā karīm gā paramātmā ||59||
Your merciful gaze has already fallen on me — how could a little still remain? he said, prostrating: have mercy, O supreme soul.
His own reasoning, that if already blessed nothing should remain, reveals a subtle bargaining even within surrender.
Notice when you are quietly negotiating with grace rather than simply trusting it, and let go of the negotiating.
श्रीगुरुमूर्ति निरोपिती तयासी । तूं संशय करोनि आलासी । मनुष्य काय करील म्हणोनि मानसीं । तेणें गुणें राहिलेंथोडें॥६०॥
śrīgurumūrti niropitī tayāsī | tūm samśaya karoni ālāsī | manuṣya kāya karīla mhaṇoni mānasīm | teṇem guṇem rāhilemthoḍem||60||
Śrī Guru-mūrti told him: you came harboring doubt — thinking in your mind, what can a mere man do — because of that quality, a little remained.
The residual affliction is explained as the direct trace of his earlier doubt — inner disposition shown to have real, visible consequence.
Recognize that lingering doubt can leave its own mark even after outward problems are largely resolved.
त्यासी असे एक प्रतीकार । तुवां कवित्व सांगावें अपार । आमुची स्तुति करावी निरंतर । बरवें होईल तुज मग ॥६१॥
tyāsī ase eka pratīkāra | tuvām kavitva sāmgāvem apāra | āmucī stuti karāvī niramtara | baravem hoīla tuja maga ||61||
For this there is one remedy: you should compose poetry unceasingly; always sing our praise; then it will be well for you.
The prescribed cure for residual doubt is not more ritual but sustained stuti (praise) — devotion expressed continuously through speech and art.
Turn a lingering doubt into a discipline of regular, sincere praise or gratitude rather than trying to argue it away.
नंदीनामा म्हणे स्वामीसी । लिखित नेणें वाचायासी । कैसें करुं मी कवित्वासी । मंदमति असे आपण ॥६२॥
namdīnāmā mhaṇe svāmīsī | likhita neṇem vācāyāsī | kaisem karum mī kavitvāsī | mamdamati ase āpaṇa ||62||
Nandinama said to the master: I do not know how to read writing; how shall I compose poetry? I am dull of mind.
He protests his own unfitness — illiteracy and self-doubt about his capacity for such a task.
Voice your own sense of inadequacy honestly when given a task that feels beyond you.
काय जाणें कवित्वस्थिति । मज नाहीं काव्यव्युत्पत्ति । स्वामी ऐसा निरोप देती । म्हणोनि चरणीं लागला ॥६३॥
kāya jāṇem kavitvasthiti | maja nāhīm kāvyavyutpatti | svāmī aisā niropa detī | mhaṇoni caraṇīm lāgalā ||63||
What do I know of the craft of poetry? I have no training in verse; the master gave such an instruction; so saying, he clung to his feet.
Even while protesting, he submits physically — his body's devotion outrunning his mind's objection.
Follow an instruction in good faith even while still doubting your own ability to fulfill it.
श्रीगुरु म्हणती द्विजासी । मुख उघडीं काढीं जिव्हेसी । विभूति शिंपिती तयासी । ज्ञान उपजलें ब्राह्मणा ॥६४॥
śrīguru mhaṇatī dvijāsī | mukha ughaḍīm kāḍhīm jivhesī | vibhūti śimpitī tayāsī | jñāna upajalem brāhmaṇā ||64||
Śrī Guru said to the brahmin: open your mouth, put out your tongue; he sprinkled sacred ash on him; knowledge arose in the brahmin.
Vibhūti (sacred ash) touching the tongue becomes the vehicle for sudden, granted knowledge — a classic motif of grace transmitted directly, bypassing ordinary learning.
Believe that real capacity can sometimes be given, not only earned by years of prior training.
चरणांवरी ठेविला माथा । उभा ठेला स्तोत्र करितां । म्हणे स्वामी मी नेणता । सेवेसी नव्हे अराणुक ॥६५॥
caraṇāmvarī ṭhevilā māthā | ubhā ṭhelā stotra karitām | mhaṇe svāmī mī neṇatā | sevesī navhe arāṇuka ||65||
He placed his head upon the Guru's feet, stood offering hymns of praise; he said, Master, I am ignorant, unfit for service.
Even after being granted the gift of poetry, his self-description remains humble rather than proud.
Stay humble even immediately after receiving a real gift or ability.
मायापाशीं वेष्टोनि । बुडत होतों संसारगहनीं । आठवण न करीं कधीं मनीं । तुझे चरणा विसरलों ॥६६॥
māyāpāśīm veṣṭoni | buḍata hotom samsāragahanīm | āṭhavaṇa na karīm kadhīm manīm | tujhe caraṇā visaralom ||66||
Wrapped up in illusion, I was drowning in the deep well of worldly life; I never once thought of you in my mind; I forgot your feet.
Saṃsāra-gahana (the dense thicket or well of worldly existence) is the classic image for how ordinary distraction drowns out the memory of the divine.
Notice how daily busyness quietly crowds out remembrance of what matters most, and correct for it deliberately.
संसार-सागर मायाजाळ । योनीं जन्मोनि चौर्यांशीं लक्षकुळ । आठवण नव्हे तुझें नाम केवळ । मंदमति जाहली मज ॥६७॥
samsāra-sāgara māyājāḷa | yonīm janmoni cauryāmśīm lakṣakuḷa | āṭhavaṇa navhe tujhem nāma kevaḷa | mamdamati jāhalī maja ||67||
The ocean of worldly existence is a web of illusion; born through eighty-four lakh species and wombs, I never once recalled even your name; I became dull-witted.
The traditional count of 8.4 million possible rebirths (caurāśī lakh yonī) frames how rare and precious it is finally to remember the divine at all.
Treat this present life, whatever form it takes, as a rare chance not to be wasted on forgetfulness.
स्वेदज अंडज उद्भिज्जेंसी । जन्मा आलों पशुयोनीसी । तव ज्ञान कैंचें आम्हांसी । स्थावर जंगम जैं होतों ॥६८॥
svedaja amḍaja udbhijjemsī | janmā ālom paśuyonīsī | tava jñāna kaimcem āmhāmsī | sthāvara jamgama jaim hotom ||68||
Born of sweat, egg, and plant-origin, born into animal wombs — what knowledge of you could I have had, when I was a stationary or moving being?
The traditional fourfold classification of birth-types, sweat-born, egg-born, plant-born, womb-born, underscores how much of existence passes without any capacity for conscious devotion.
Be grateful for whatever capacity for awareness and choice you currently have.
नानायोनींत मनुष्य विशेष । शूद्रादि याती बहुवस । जधीं होतों त्या जन्मास । काय जाणें तुझी सोय ॥६९॥
nānāyonīmta manuṣya viśeṣa | śūdrādi yātī bahuvasa | jadhīm hotom tyā janmāsa | kāya jāṇem tujhī soya ||69||
Among the many kinds of births, human birth is especially rare; even so, when I was of the śūdra and other lower castes, whatever birth I had, what did I know of your way?
Even human birth alone is not enough — social and circumstantial limits on access to teaching are acknowledged within the text's own worldview.
Recognize that not everyone has equal access to teaching or opportunity, and be patient with those still finding their way.
समस्त जन्मांत एक । ब्राह्मनजन्म विशेख । काय करावें होऊनि मूर्ख । गुरुसोय नेणे नर ॥७०॥
samasta janmāmta eka | brāhmanajanma viśekha | kāya karāvem hoūni mūrkha | gurusoya neṇe nara ||70||
Among all births, one — brahmin birth — is especially excellent; what is there to do, having become a fool, not knowing the guru's way, O man?
The verse reflects the text's own social framework, prizing brahmin birth as an especial opportunity that can still be squandered by folly.
However privileged your starting position, don't assume it alone will save you from your own carelessness.
मातेचें शोणित पित्याचें रेत । संपर्क जहाला जननीगर्भांत । जैसें सुवर्ण मुशीं असे कढत । दिवस पांच बुद्बुदाकार ॥७१॥
mātecem śoṇita pityācem reta | samparka jahālā jananīgarbhāmta | jaisem suvarṇa muśīm ase kaḍhata | divasa pāmca budbudākāra ||71||
Mother's blood and father's seed joined in the mother's womb; like gold heating in a crucible, for five days it was a bubble-like form.
A detailed embryology begins here — traditional stages of gestation used to illustrate how utterly unaware early life is.
Have compassion for the earliest, most helpless stage of any new beginning, human or otherwise.
पंधरा दिवसा होय स्थिर । एक रस होऊनि निर्धार । तधीं मी काय जाणें गुरु । नाहीं पंचतत्त्वें मज ॥७२॥
pamdharā divasā hoya sthira | eka rasa hoūni nirdhāra | tadhīm mī kāya jāṇem guru | nāhīm pamcatattvem maja ||72||
At fifteen days it becomes stable, definitely becoming one fluid mass; then how could I have known the guru? I had no five elements yet.
The pañcatattva (five elements — earth, water, fire, air, ether) have not yet coalesced into the body, so no faculty for remembrance yet exists.
Accept that some stages of growth genuinely precede the capacity for understanding — don't expect awareness before its time.
मासें एक पिंड होय । द्वय मासीं शिर पाय । तिसरे मासीं सर्व अवयव । नवद्वारें झालीं मग ॥७३॥
māsem eka pimḍa hoya | dvaya māsīm śira pāya | tisare māsīm sarva avayava | navadvārem jhālīm maga ||73||
At one month it becomes a lump; at two months, head and feet form; at the third month all limbs and the nine bodily openings had formed.
The gestational timeline continues, cataloguing physical development month by month.
Respect the natural order in which capacities develop, rather than forcing a later stage too early.
पंचतत्त्वे होतीं एक । वायु-आप-पृथ्वी-तेज-ख । प्राण आला तात्काळिक । तधीं स्मरण कैंचें मज ॥७४॥
pamcatattve hotīm eka | vāyu-āpa-pṛthvī-teja-kha | prāṇa ālā tātkāḷika | tadhīm smaraṇa kaimcem maja ||74||
The five elements came together as one — air, water, earth, fire, space; the life-breath arrived suddenly; then what remembrance could I have had?
Prāṇa (the life-breath) itself arrives before any capacity for conscious memory — bare aliveness precedes awareness.
Be patient with anyone, a child or a beginner, who is alive and functioning before they can yet reflect or remember.
पांचवे मासीं त्वचा रोम । सहावे मासीं उच्छ्वास आम्हां । सातवे मासीं श्रोत्र जिव्हा । मेद मज्जा दृढ जाहली ॥७५॥
pāmcave māsīm tvacā roma | sahāve māsīm ucchvāsa āmhām | sātave māsīm śrotra jivhā | meda majjā dṛḍha jāhalī ||75||
At the fifth month, skin and body-hair; at the sixth month, breathing; at the seventh month, hearing and tongue formed; fat and marrow grew firm.
The senses of hearing and taste, later channels for devotion through śravaṇa (hearing scripture) and chanting, are shown forming even in the womb.
Value the senses you now have fully formed by using them for something worthwhile, like listening well.
ऐसे नव मास कष्टत । होतों जननिये-गर्भांत । रुधिर-विष्ठा-मूत्रांत । कष्टलों भारी स्वामिया ॥७६॥
aise nava māsa kaṣṭata | hotom jananiye-garbhāmta | rudhira-viṣṭhā-mūtrāmta | kaṣṭalom bhārī svāmiyā ||76||
Thus for nine months I suffered, being in my mother's womb, amid blood, feces and urine; I suffered greatly, O master.
The gestation account closes on the physical difficulty of the womb itself, reframing birth as an ordeal already survived before any conscious sin was possible.
Remember that everyone begins life through genuine hardship, which deserves basic compassion regardless of what follows.
माता भक्षी उष्ण क्षार । तेणें तीक्ष्णें कष्टलों अपार । पडे लोळे अनेक प्रकार । दुःख तेव्हां सांगूं कोणा ॥७७॥
mātā bhakṣī uṣṇa kṣāra | teṇem tīkṣṇem kaṣṭalom apāra | paḍe loḷe aneka prakāra | duḥkha tevhām sāmgūm koṇā ||77||
Mother ate hot and pungent food; by its sharpness I suffered greatly; I fell and rolled about in many ways — to whom could I tell that suffering then?
The unborn child's total helplessness and voicelessness is emphasized — suffering with no possible complaint.
Consider how the most dependent among us cannot voice their needs, and attend to them proactively.
मना आलें भक्षण करीं । दुःख होय मज अपारी । ऐसें नवमासवरी । मातागर्भीं कष्टलों ॥७८॥
manā ālem bhakṣaṇa karīm | duḥkha hoya maja apārī | aisem navamāsavarī | mātāgarbhīm kaṣṭalom ||78||
Whatever came to her mind, she would eat; it caused me boundless suffering; thus for nine months I suffered in my mother's womb.
The verse repeats and closes the gestation theme, underscoring the length and helplessness of that early suffering.
Be mindful of how your choices affect those who depend on you but cannot yet object.
तधीं कैचें तुझें स्मरण । वेष्टिलों होतों मायावरणें । स्मरलों नाहीं तुझे चरण । मग योनिमुखीं जन्मलों ॥७९॥
tadhīm kaicem tujhem smaraṇa | veṣṭilom hotom māyāvaraṇem | smaralom nāhīm tujhe caraṇa | maga yonimukhīm janmalom ||79||
Then how could I remember you? I was wrapped in the covering of illusion; I did not remember your feet; then I was born through the birth-passage.
Birth itself is described as an emergence still wrapped in māyā (illusion) — no clean slate of remembrance, just more forgetting.
Don't assume a fresh start automatically clears away old patterns; renewal takes deliberate remembering.
उपजतांचि आपणासी । आयुष्य लिहिलें लल्लाटेसी । अर्घ गेलें वृथा निशीं । रात्रीं निद्रा मानवा ॥८०॥
upajatāmci āpaṇāsī | āyuṣya lihilem lallāṭesī | argha gelem vṛthā niśīm | rātrīm nidrā mānavā ||80||
As soon as I was born, my lifespan was written on my forehead; half of it was wasted at night, for sleep claims a man each night.
Lalāṭa-lekha (writing on the forehead) is the folk image of predestined lifespan; the verse notes how much of it is simply lost to sleep.
Be conscious of how much of a limited life passes in unexamined routine, and use your waking hours well.
उरले आयुष्यांत देखा । तीन भाग केले विशेखा । बाल यौवन वृद्धाप्य ऐका । निर्माण झाले तये वेळीं ॥८१॥
urale āyuṣyāmta dekhā | tīna bhāga kele viśekhā | bāla yauvana vṛddhāpya aikā | nirmāṇa jhāle taye veḷīm ||81||
Of the remaining lifespan, see, three portions were made specially: childhood, youth, and old age — these were fixed at that time.
The traditional three-stage life scheme frames what follows as an inventory of each stage's particular suffering.
Recognize that each life-stage brings its own distinct challenges, and prepare for the one ahead of you.
बाळपणीं आपणासी । कष्ट झाले असमसाहसी । मज घालिती पाळणेसी । मूळमूत्रांत लोळतसें ॥८२॥
bāḷapaṇīm āpaṇāsī | kaṣṭa jhāle asamasāhasī | maja ghālitī pāḷaṇesī | mūḷamūtrāmta loḷatasem ||82||
In childhood, unbearable hardship came upon me; they put me in a cradle; I lay rolling in urine and stool.
The infancy account begins with total physical helplessness, again used to explain why no memory of the guru was possible then.
Extend patience to infants and young children whose helplessness is not a failing but simply their nature.
बाळपणींचें दुःख आठवितां । शोक होय मज अपरिमिता । काय सांगूं गुरुनाथा । नाना आपदा भोगिल्या ॥८३॥
bāḷapaṇīmcem duḥkha āṭhavitām | śoka hoya maja aparimitā | kāya sāmgūm gurunāthā | nānā āpadā bhogilyā ||83||
Remembering the sorrows of childhood, grief arises in me beyond measure; what can I say, O guru-lord — I have suffered many calamities.
The narrator pauses to name his own grief at recollecting this — the telling itself becomes cathartic.
Allow yourself to grieve old childhood hardships honestly when they resurface in memory.
शयनस्थानीं मलमूत्रांत । निरंतर असें लोळत । आपली विष्ठा आपण खात । अज्ञानतिमिरें वेष्टिलों ॥८४॥
śayanasthānīm malamūtrāmta | niramtara asem loḷata | āpalī viṣṭhā āpaṇa khāta | ajñānatimirem veṣṭilom ||84||
In the place where I slept, amid feces and urine, I continually lay rolling; I ate my own excrement, wrapped in the darkness of ignorance.
A stark image of infantile helplessness used metaphorically for spiritual ignorance — ajñāna-timira (the darkness of not-knowing) as literal and figurative blindness.
Recognize how ignorance, like infancy, can make a person do harmful things without malice, and respond with correction rather than contempt.
एकादे समयीं आपणासी । पोटशूळ उठे बहुवसीं । रोदन करितां परियेसीं । स्तनपान मला करविती ॥८५॥
ekāde samayīm āpaṇāsī | poṭaśūḷa uṭhe bahuvasīm | rodana karitām pariyesīm | stanapāna malā karavitī ||85||
At times a stomach-ache would seize me greatly; when I cried out, listen, they would make me nurse.
The account of infant care continues, showing well-meaning but sometimes mismatched responses to a baby's distress.
Try to understand the real cause of someone's distress before applying the usual remedy.
क्षुधाक्रांत होय बहुत । मज म्हणती पोट दुखत । अंगुली घालूनि मुखांत । वोखद मज पाजविती ॥८६॥
kṣudhākrāmta hoya bahuta | maja mhaṇatī poṭa dukhata | amgulī ghālūni mukhāmta | vokhada maja pājavitī ||86||
Overcome greatly by hunger, they would say, his stomach hurts; putting a finger in my mouth, they would feed me medicine.
A gentle irony: the caregivers misdiagnose hunger as illness — a reminder that even loving care can misread real need.
Question your first assumption about someone's problem before treating it.
ऐसें क्षुधेनें पीडितां बहुत । मज घालिती पाळण्यांत । हालविती पर्यंदें गात । क्षुधाक्रांत रुदन करीं ॥८७॥
aisem kṣudhenem pīḍitām bahuta | maja ghālitī pāḷaṇyāmta | hālavitī paryamdem gāta | kṣudhākrāmta rudana karīm ||87||
Thus afflicted greatly by hunger, they would put me in the cradle; rocking it, they sang lullabies; afflicted by hunger, I would cry.
The mismatch between soothing gestures and the actual unmet need, hunger, continues, deepening the image of well-intentioned but incomplete care.
Match your comfort to the real need, not just the familiar gesture of comfort.
म्हणती रुदन करितो बाळ । मुखीं शिंपिती कांजीतेल । रक्षा बांधिती मंत्रें केवळ । नेणे माता भूक माझी ॥८८॥
mhaṇatī rudana karito bāḷa | mukhīm śimpitī kāmjītela | rakṣā bāmdhitī mamtrem kevaḷa | neṇe mātā bhūka mājhī ||88||
They would say the child is crying; they sprinkled rice-gruel oil in my mouth, tied protective charms with mantras only — my mother did not know my hunger.
Ritual remedies substitute for recognizing the plain, physical cause — a subtle critique of relying on ritual alone.
Don't let ritual or formula substitute for actually addressing someone's basic need.
पाळण्यांत घालिती कौतुकें । प्रावरणांत असतां वृश्चिकें । मारीतसे पाठीं डंक । प्रलाप मी करीतसें ॥८९॥
pāḷaṇyāmta ghālitī kautukem | prāvaraṇāmta asatām vṛścikem | mārītase pāṭhīm ḍamka | pralāpa mī karītasem ||89||
They playfully put me in the cradle; while I lay wrapped in the covering, a scorpion stung my back with its sting — I wailed in distress.
A sudden, unforeseeable danger, the scorpion, shows how much of early life is simply beyond anyone's control or blame.
Accept that some harms are accidents no one could have prevented, and respond with care rather than blame.
आणिक पाळणा हालविती । राहें राहें उगा म्हणती । स्तनपान मागुती करविती । वृश्चिकविष नेणतां ॥९०॥
āṇika pāḷaṇā hālavitī | rāhem rāhem ugā mhaṇatī | stanapāna māgutī karavitī | vṛścikaviṣa neṇatām ||90||
Again they rocked the cradle, saying hush, hush, be still; again they tried to nurse me, not knowing about the scorpion's venom.
The caregivers' continued misreading of his distress, soothing instead of treating the sting, heightens the pathos.
Keep investigating when your usual comfort fails to work, rather than repeating it harder.
तेणें दुःखें स्तनपान न करीं । मागुती घालिती पाळण्याभीतरीं । वृश्चिक मज डंक मारी । प्राणांतिक मज होय ॥९१॥
teṇem duḥkhem stanapāna na karīm | māgutī ghālitī pāḷaṇyābhītarīm | vṛścika maja ḍamka mārī | prāṇāmtika maja hoya ||91||
From that pain I would not nurse; again they put me inside the cradle; the scorpion stung me again — it became life-threatening for me.
The danger recurs and intensifies, dramatizing how vulnerable and voiceless the infant remains throughout.
When a problem recurs despite good intentions, change the approach rather than repeating it.
माता खाय अंबट तिखट । स्तनपानें मज अपार वोखट । अति मधुर क्षीर अंबट । तेणें खोकतसें सर्वकाळीं ॥९२॥
mātā khāya ambaṭa tikhaṭa | stanapānem maja apāra vokhaṭa | ati madhura kṣīra ambaṭa | teṇem khokatasem sarvakāḷīm ||92||
Mother ate sour and pungent food; by her nursing it was extremely bad for me; whether too sweet or too sour, her milk made me cough constantly.
The account returns to diet's effect on the nursing infant, continuing the theme of unwitting harm from those who love us most.
Be mindful of how your own habits can affect those who depend on you, even without intending harm.
नाना औषधें मज देती । तेणें माझे डोळे दुखती । कुंकुम लवणक्षार भरिती । डोळे आले म्हणोनियां ॥९३॥
nānā auṣadhem maja detī | teṇem mājhe ḍoḷe dukhatī | kumkuma lavaṇakṣāra bharitī | ḍoḷe āle mhaṇoniyām ||93||
They gave me various medicines, which hurt my eyes; they filled them with vermilion and salt-ash, saying, his eyes have become infected.
Another instance of well-meant but harmful treatment — folk remedies applied without real diagnosis.
Seek proper understanding before applying a remedy, especially to someone who cannot object.
ऐसे कष्ट धुरंधर । बाळपणीं जाहले अपार । वाढलों कष्ट भोगीत फार । वर्षें बारा लोटलीं ॥९४॥
aise kaṣṭa dhuramdhara | bāḷapaṇīm jāhale apāra | vāḍhalom kaṣṭa bhogīta phāra | varṣem bārā loṭalīm ||94||
Such were the heavy hardships, unlimited, that occurred in childhood; I grew up enduring great suffering; twelve years passed.
The childhood section closes with a summary tally — twelve years entirely spent before the next life-stage begins.
Take stock periodically of a whole life-stage rather than only dwelling on single incidents.
तधीं तुझे चरणस्मरणा । मज कैंचें गा देवराणा । कष्टलों मी याचिगुणा । पूर्वजन्म नाठवेचि ॥९५॥
tadhīm tujhe caraṇasmaraṇā | maja kaimcem gā devarāṇā | kaṣṭalom mī yāciguṇā | pūrvajanma nāṭhaveci ||95||
Then what remembrance of your feet could I have had, O lord of gods? I suffered for this very reason; I do not recall my past births.
He explains his forgetfulness of past lives as itself a consequence of the overwhelming difficulty of this one — suffering as amnesia-inducing.
Recognize that ongoing hardship can crowd out even the capacity for deeper reflection, and be gentle with yourself when it happens.
दोन भाग उरले आपणासी । मदनें व्यापिलें शरीरासी । जैसा पतंग दीपासी । भ्रमिजेत उन्मत्त ॥९६॥
dona bhāga urale āpaṇāsī | madanem vyāpilem śarīrāsī | jaisā patamga dīpāsī | bhramijeta unmatta ||96||
Two portions of life remained for me; desire took hold of my body; like a moth to a lamp, I became deluded and intoxicated.
The youth (yauvana) section begins, framed by the classic image of the moth drawn helplessly to flame — desire as a compulsion, not a simple choice.
Recognize compulsive desire for what it is, and build in safeguards rather than trusting willpower alone.
नेणें मी गुरु माता पिता । समस्तांतें करी निंदा वार्ता । परस्त्रीवरी करीं चिंता । कुळाकुळ न विचारीं ॥९७॥
neṇem mī guru mātā pitā | samastāmtem karī nimdā vārtā | parastrīvarī karīm cimtā | kuḷākuḷa na vicārīm ||97||
I did not recognize guru, mother, or father; I slandered everyone in gossip; I lusted after other men's wives; I did not consider good family or bad.
A frank catalogue of moral failure driven by desire, lust, disrespect, gossip, presented without excuse, as the direct cost of unchecked madana (desire).
Take stock honestly of relationships and respect you've damaged through unchecked desire, and begin repairing them.
ब्राह्मणातें निंदा करी । वृद्धाच्या चेष्टा करी अपारी । मदें व्यापिलें असे भारी । नाठवती तुझे चरण मज ॥९८॥
brāhmaṇātem nimdā karī | vṛddhācyā ceṣṭā karī apārī | madem vyāpilem ase bhārī | nāṭhavatī tujhe caraṇa maja ||98||
I slandered brahmins, mocked elders greatly; overcome heavily by pride and intoxication, I did not remember your feet.
Pride (mada) is named as the specific mechanism blocking remembrance — arrogance, not just desire, crowding out devotion.
Watch for pride quietly displacing gratitude and respect in your daily conduct.
मांसाचे कवळाकारणें । मत्स्य जाय जेवीं प्राणें । तैसा आपण मदनबाणें । वश्य जाहलों इंद्रियांसी ॥९९॥
māmsāce kavaḷākāraṇem | matsya jāya jevīm prāṇem | taisā āpaṇa madanabāṇem | vaśya jāhalom imdriyāmsī ||99||
Like a fish going to its death for a mouthful of flesh, so I, struck by desire's arrow, became enslaved to my senses.
A second animal image, the fish taking the baited hook, reinforces the same point — small pleasures leading to real self-destruction.
Recognize a tempting shortcut as possibly a hook, and weigh the real cost before taking the bait.
नानावर्ण स्त्रियां भोगिलें । परद्रव्य अपहारिलें । सिद्धमहंतांतें निंदिलें । दृष्टीं न दिसे माझे कांहीं ॥१००॥
nānāvarṇa striyām bhogilem | paradravya apahārilem | siddhamahamtāmtem nimdilem | dṛṣṭīm na dise mājhe kāmhīm ||100||
I enjoyed women of every kind, misappropriated others' wealth, slandered saints and great souls — nothing good could be seen in me.
The confession reaches its most severe self-assessment, a complete catalogue meant to show how far grace can reach even from such a starting point.
Believe that a genuinely thorough confession, however severe, is the honest first step toward real change.
ऐसा मदनें व्यापूनि । मागें पुढें न पाहें नयनीं । पतंग जाय धांवोनि । दीपावरी पडे जैसा ॥१॥
aisā madanem vyāpūni | māgem puḍhem na pāhem nayanīm | patamga jāya dhāmvoni | dīpāvarī paḍe jaisā ||1||
Thus overtaken by desire, I never looked ahead or behind with my own eyes; like a moth rushing headlong, falling upon the lamp.
The moth image returns, closing the loop on unchecked desire's blindness to consequence.
Pause to look ahead and behind before acting on a strong impulse.
ऐसा वेष्टोनि मदनबाणीं । न ऐके सुबुद्धि कधीं श्रवणीं । सोय न धरीं तुझे चरणीं । यौवनपण गेलें ऐसें ॥२॥
aisā veṣṭoni madanabāṇīm | na aike subuddhi kadhīm śravaṇīm | soya na dharīm tujhe caraṇīm | yauvanapaṇa gelem aisem ||2||
Thus wrapped in desire's arrows, good sense never listened even once; I never held to your feet's way — thus my youth passed away.
The youth section closes, summarizing an entire life-stage lost to unchecked desire, mirroring the earlier close of the childhood section.
Take stock of a whole period of life honestly, and let that honest reckoning inform how you spend the next one.
मग वृद्धाप्य आले शरीरासी । उबग होय स्त्रीपुत्रांसी । श्वासोच्छ्वास कफेसीं । सदा खोकला होय मज ॥३॥
maga vṛddhāpya āle śarīrāsī | ubaga hoya strīputrāmsī | śvāsocchvāsa kaphesīm | sadā khokalā hoya maja ||3||
Then old age came upon my body; I became a burden to wife and children; breathing with phlegm, I coughed constantly.
The old-age (vṛddhāpya) section opens with physical decline and the pain of becoming a perceived burden to family.
Treat the elderly people around you as valued, not merely as burdens, whatever their physical decline.
अवयव सर्वही गलित होती । केश पांढरे होती त्वरिती । दंतहीन, श्रवणें न ऐकिजेति । दृष्टीं न दिसे, नासिक गळतें ॥४॥
avayava sarvahī galita hotī | keśa pāmḍhare hotī tvaritī | damtahīna, śravaṇem na aikijeti | dṛṣṭīm na dise, nāsika gaḷatem ||4||
All my limbs grew weak; my hair quickly turned white; toothless, my ears could not hear, my eyes could not see, my nose ran.
A frank inventory of the body's decline in old age, continuing the unsparing honesty of the whole confession.
Face the realities of aging honestly, in yourself or those you love, rather than avoiding the subject.
ऐसा नाना रोगें कष्टतां । तुमची सेवा कधीं घडणें आतां । स्वामी तारका श्रीगुरुनाथा । संसारसागरा कडे करीं ॥५॥
aisā nānā rogem kaṣṭatām | tumacī sevā kadhīm ghaḍaṇem ātām | svāmī tārakā śrīgurunāthā | samsārasāgarā kaḍe karīm ||5||
Thus afflicted by various illnesses, when would I ever manage to serve you now? O savior, guru-lord, carry me across the ocean of worldly existence.
The autobiographical confession turns, at last, into direct petition — samsāra-sāgara (the ocean of worldly existence) as the thing to be crossed.
Ask directly for the help you need instead of only recounting your troubles.
ऐसा मंदमति आपण । न ओळखेचि तुझे चरण । तूंचि केवळ नारायण । अवतार तूं श्रीगुरुमूर्ति ॥६॥
aisā mamdamati āpaṇa | na oḷakheci tujhe caraṇa | tūmci kevaḷa nārāyaṇa | avatāra tūm śrīgurumūrti ||6||
Being so dull-witted, I never recognized your feet; you alone are truly Nārāyaṇa, you are the incarnation, Śrī Guru-mūrti.
The long autobiography now resolves into renewed recognition of who stands before him — the whole confession was preparation for this affirmation.
Let a long, honest self-review end in renewed clarity about what, or who, actually matters, not just in guilt.
तूंचि विश्वाचा तारक । धरोनियां नरवेष । त्रयमूर्ति तूंचि एक । परब्रह्म श्रीगुरुनाथा ॥७॥
tūmci viśvācā tāraka | dharoniyām naraveṣa | trayamūrti tūmci eka | parabrahma śrīgurunāthā ||7||
You alone are the savior of the universe, having taken on human form; you alone are the trimūrti, the supreme Brahman, O Śrī Gurunātha.
The praise intensifies, restating the chapter's central theological claim about the guru's identity.
Keep restating, in your own words, what you genuinely believe matters most, so it stays clear to you.
दिवांध नेणती तुज लोक । तूंचि विश्वाचा पाळक । मी किंकर तुझा सेवक । संसार-धुरंधरीं तारीं मज ॥८॥
divāmdha neṇatī tuja loka | tūmci viśvācā pāḷaka | mī kimkara tujhā sevaka | samsāra-dhuramdharīm tārīm maja ||8||
Blind people do not know you; you alone are the protector of the universe; I am your servant — save me amid the burden of worldly life.
Divāndha (day-blind, spiritually blind even in daylight) describes those who miss what is plainly available — a warning against complacent ignorance.
Look carefully for what may be plainly available to you but easy to overlook through habit or distraction.
ऐसें नानापरी स्तोत्र । करीतसे नंदीनामा पवित्र । जन पाहताति विचित्र । त्यांसी म्हणे नंदीनामा ॥९॥
aisem nānāparī stotra | karītase namdīnāmā pavitra | jana pāhatāti vicitra | tyāmsī mhaṇe namdīnāmā ||9||
Thus in many ways that pure Nandinama offered hymns of praise; the people watched in wonder; he said to them:
A narrative pivot — his private confession becomes a public address, turning testimony into teaching for the crowd.
Be willing to share what you've learned from your own hardship, so it can help others too.
ऐका हो जन समस्त । श्रीगुरू जाणा परब्रह्मवस्तु । आपण पाप केलें बहुत । दर्शनमात्रें सर्व गलें ॥११०॥
aikā ho jana samasta | śrīgurū jāṇā parabrahmavastu | āpaṇa pāpa kelem bahuta | darśanamātrem sarva galem ||110||
Listen, all you people: know Śrī Guru to be the supreme Brahman itself; I committed much sin, and by mere darshan it all melted away.
He addresses the crowd directly, offering his own healing as public proof of the guru's power.
Let your own visible transformation be an honest, humble testimony to others, without boasting.
जैसें तृणाचे बणवीसी । अग्नि लागतां क्षणें कैसी । गुरुकृपा होय ज्यासी । पाप जळे तयापरी ॥११॥
jaisem tṛṇāce baṇavīsī | agni lāgatām kṣaṇem kaisī | gurukṛpā hoya jyāsī | pāpa jaḷe tayāparī ||11||
Just as fire touching a bundle of dry grass burns it in an instant, so when the guru's grace comes upon someone, sin burns away in the same way.
A vivid simile, fire and dry grass, for how completely and quickly grace can dissolve accumulated wrongdoing once it truly arrives.
Trust that real change, once grace or insight truly takes hold, can happen faster than years of struggle suggested.
'चरणं पवित्रं विततं पुराणं' । ऐसें बोले वेद आपण । सेवा सेवा हो गुरुचरण । गुरुवेगळा देव नाहीं ॥१२॥
'caraṇam pavitram vitatam purāṇam' | aisem bole veda āpaṇa | sevā sevā ho gurucaraṇa | guruvegaḷā deva nāhīm ||12||
The feet are pure, vast, ancient — so speaks the Veda itself; serve, serve the guru's feet; there is no god apart from the guru.
A direct scriptural citation is quoted and then interpreted — grounding the guru's supremacy in scriptural authority, not just personal testimony.
Serve the wisdom and people who have genuinely guided you, treating that service as itself a form of devotion.
ब्रह्मदेवें आपण देखा । दुष्टाक्षरें लिहिलीं कपाळिका । तैसेही होय निका । श्रीगुरुचरणीं लागतां ॥१३॥
brahmadevem āpaṇa dekhā | duṣṭākṣarem lihilīm kapāḷikā | taisehī hoya nikā | śrīgurucaraṇīm lāgatām ||13||
Even if Brahmā himself had written evil letters, an ill fate, upon one's forehead, even that becomes good upon touching Śrī Guru's feet.
Even predestined misfortune, fate itself in the folk image of writing on the forehead, is said to be overridable by grace.
Don't treat any circumstance as unchangeably fated; seek out grace and effort that can still transform it.
जवळी असतां निधान । कां नोळखा हो तुम्ही जन । नृसिंहसरस्वती कामधेनु । भजा भजा हो सकळिक ॥१४॥
javaḷī asatām nidhāna | kām noḷakhā ho tumhī jana | nṛsimhasarasvatī kāmadhenu | bhajā bhajā ho sakaḷika ||14||
With the treasure so near, why do you people not recognize it? Nṛsiṃha Sarasvatī is the wish-cow — worship him, worship him, all of you.
He turns the address into direct exhortation, urging the crowd not to overlook what is right in front of them.
Point out clearly to others the good that is right in front of them but easily overlooked.
इहसौख्य ज्ञान ऐका । अंतीं पावे वैकुंठलोका । संदेह नाहीं होईल सुखा । सत्य जाणा हो बोल माझा ॥१५॥
ihasaukhya jñāna aikā | amtīm pāve vaikumṭhalokā | samdeha nāhīm hoīla sukhā | satya jāṇā ho bola mājhā ||15||
Listen to this wisdom of happiness in this very life; at the end one reaches the world of Vaikuṇṭha; there is no doubt of happiness — know my word to be true.
Ihasaukhya (happiness in this life) is paired with Vaikuṇṭha (the afterlife abode) — the promise spans both present and future well-being.
Pursue a path that promises well-being both now and in the long run, not just one or the other.
नंदीनामा स्तोत्र करितां । श्रीगुरु संतोषी अत्यंता । भक्तांसी ऐसा निरोप देत । 'कवीश्वर' म्हणा यासी ॥१६॥
namdīnāmā stotra karitām | śrīguru samtoṣī atyamtā | bhaktāmsī aisā niropa deta | 'kavīśvara' mhaṇā yāsī ||16||
As Nandinama offered these hymns, Śrī Guru was greatly pleased; he gave this instruction to the devotees: call him Kavīśvara, lord of poets.
The Guru formally honors the man's new-found gift with a title, publicly affirming what grace had privately granted.
Publicly acknowledge and honor a genuine gift you see emerging in someone.
कवि 'बसवरस' नाम तयासी । निर्धार केला आम्हीं भरंवसीं । ऐसें कृपेनें बोलती त्यासी । ऐकोनि चरणीं लागला ॥१७॥
kavi 'basavarasa' nāma tayāsī | nirdhāra kelā āmhīm bharamvasīm | aisem kṛpenem bolatī tyāsī | aikoni caraṇīm lāgalā ||17||
Let the poet be named Basavarasa; we have determined this with confidence, he said to him mercifully; hearing this, he clung to his feet.
A new name is bestowed — a classic marker in this literature of a fundamentally transformed identity.
Recognize that real transformation sometimes deserves to be marked with a new commitment or fresh start, not just quiet continuation.
जें कां शेष होतें जंघेवरी । तें तात्काळ गेलें दूरी । नंदीनामा आनंद करी । राहिला सेवा करीत देखा ॥१८॥
jem kām śeṣa hotem jamghevarī | tem tātkāḷa gelem dūrī | namdīnāmā ānamda karī | rāhilā sevā karīta dekhā ||18||
Whatever remained of the disease on his shins immediately vanished far away; Nandinama rejoiced, and he remained there in service, see.
The lingering affliction caused by earlier doubt is now fully resolved once devotion, expressed as poetry, is established.
Let sustained new practice finish healing what a single moment of grace only began.
सिद्ध म्हणे नामधारकासी । श्रीगुरुचरित्र ऐसें परियेसीं । कथा करीत कवि बसवरसी । श्रीगुरुसेवेसी राहिला ॥१९॥
siddha mhaṇe nāmadhārakāsī | śrīgurucaritra aisem pariyesīm | kathā karīta kavi basavarasī | śrīgurusevesī rāhilā ||19||
Siddha says to Namdharak: such is the Śrī Guru-charitra, listen; the poet Basavarasa, telling this story, remained in Śrī Guru's service.
A closing narrative summary of this sub-episode before the story turns to the next character.
Let a completed story settle before moving on to the next one, rather than rushing past it.
नामधारक म्हणे सिद्धमुनि । दुसरा कवि 'नरहरि' म्हणोनि । तो केवीं झाला शिष्य सुगुणी । कवेश्वर भक्त जाहला ॥१२०॥
nāmadhāraka mhaṇe siddhamuni | dusarā kavi 'narahari' mhaṇoni | to kevīm jhālā śiṣya suguṇī | kaveśvara bhakta jāhalā ||120||
Namdharak says to Siddhamuni: the second poet, named Narahari — how did he become a virtuous disciple, a devotee-poet-lord?
The disciple's curiosity moves the narrative forward again, setting up the next chapter's subject.
Keep asking follow-up questions when a story hints at more still to learn.
तें विस्तारोनि आम्हांसी । सांगा स्वामी कृपेंसी । वांछा असे मानसीं । गुरुचरित्र ऐकावें ॥२१॥
tem vistāroni āmhāmsī | sāmgā svāmī kṛpemsī | vāmchā ase mānasīm | gurucaritra aikāvem ||21||
Please tell us that in full detail, O master, with your grace; there is a longing in my mind — I wish to hear the Guru-charitra.
The chapter closes with the same posture of eager, humble request with which it began — a formal frame around the whole episode.
Keep approaching teaching with the same humility and longing you began with, even after learning much already.
म्हणे सरस्वती-गंगाधर । पुढील कथेचा विस्तार । ऐकतां होय मनोहर । नामस्मरण कामधेनु ॥१२२॥
mhaṇe sarasvatī-gamgādhara | puḍhīla kathecā vistāra | aikatām hoya manohara | nāmasmaraṇa kāmadhenu ||122||
Says Sarasvatī-Gaṅgādhar: the extent of the coming story, when heard, becomes delightful; remembrance of the divine Name is a wish-cow.
The author's own voice briefly appears, promising the next episode's sweetness.
Look forward to continued learning as something genuinely delightful, not merely dutiful.
इति श्रीगुरुचरित्रामृते परमकथाकल्पतरौ श्रीनृसिंहसरस्वत्युपाख्याने सिद्धनामधारकसंवादे द्विजकुष्टपरिहारो नाम
iti śrīgurucaritrāmṛte paramakathākalpatarau śrīnṛsimhasarasvatyupākhyāne siddhanāmadhārakasamvāde dvijakuṣṭaparihāro nāma
Thus, in the nectar of the Śrī Guru-charitra, in the supreme wish-tree of stories, in the tale of Śrī Nṛsiṃha Sarasvatī, in the dialogue of Siddha and Namdharak — this chapter is named the Relief of the Brahmin's Leprosy —
This is the formal colophon naming the chapter, standard to each episode's close, here titled for the leprosy-healing that structured it.
Give a proper name and closure to a significant chapter of your own life once it resolves.
चतुश्चत्वारिंशोऽध्यायः ॥४४॥
catuścatvārimśo'dhyāyaḥ ||44||
— the forty-fourth chapter.
The colophon's numbering concludes, formally marking the chapter's end.
Mark endings clearly, even small ones, so the next beginning feels distinct.
श्रीगुरुदत्तात्रेयार्पणमस्तु ॥ श्रीगुरुदेवदत्त ॥
śrīgurudattātreyārpaṇamastu || śrīgurudevadatta ||
May this be offered to Śrī Guru Dattātreya; Śrī Guru is the giver of divinity.
The closing dedication offers the entire telling back to Dattātreya, the composite Guru-deity of this tradition, as an act of worship in itself.
Dedicate the completion of any meaningful work to something beyond your own credit.
( ओंवीसंख्या १२२ )
( omvīsamkhyā 122 )
The ovī count for this chapter is 122.
A scribal note recording the traditional verse-count of the chapter, useful for textual transmission and verification.
Keep careful account of what you have completed, as a simple form of honoring the effort.