Abhanga 178
Some of the sweetest shared moments of devotion happen in silence, among friends who wait for each other, follow rather than lead, and let a glance say what words would spoil.
The verse
मेळउनि सकळ गोपाळ । कांहीं करिती विचार ॥१॥ वेळ लावियेला अझुणी । एकाकरितां गडे हो ॥ध्रु.॥ वाट काढिली गोविंदीं । मागें गोपाळांची मांदी ॥२॥ अवघा चि वावरे । कळों नेदी कोणा फिरे ॥३॥ घर पाहोनि एकांताचें । नवविधा नवनीताचें ॥४॥ रिघे आपण भीतरी । पुरवी माथुलियाच्या हरी ॥५॥ बोलों नेदी म्हणे स्थिर । खुणा दावी खा रे क्षीर ॥६॥
Literal translation
Gathering all the gopāls, they make some plan. Delay is still happening — for one of us, comrades. Govind cuts the path; behind, the band of gopāls. He wanders everywhere — doesn't let anyone know who turns. Finding a solitary house — of nine-fold butter. He goes inside himself, fills (the bags) of the maternal-uncle's (households) — Hari. Doesn't let (anyone) speak — says be still; shows signs: drink the milk!
मराठी: सकळ गोपाळ मेळवून — काही विचार करतात. अजुणी वेळ लावलाय — एकासाठी, गड्या! गोविंदाने वाट काढली — मागे गोपाळांची मांदी. सर्वत्र फिरतो — कोण फिरतो हे कुणाला कळू देत नाही. एकांताचं घर पाहून — नवविधा-नवनीताचं. आपण भीतरी शिरतो — माथुलियाच्या (मामांच्या / गौळणींच्या) हरी पुरवतो. बोलू देत नाही — स्थिर राहा म्हणतो; खुणांनी दाखवतो — खा रे क्षीर!
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| मेळउनि सकळ गोपाळ | "gathering all the gopāls" |
| कांहीं करिती विचार | "they make some vichāra (plan/deliberation)" |
| वेळ लावियेला अझुणी | "delay is happening still" |
| एकाकरितां गडे हो | "for one (of us), comrades" |
| वाट काढिली गोविंदीं | "Govind cuts the path (leads the way)" |
| मागें गोपाळांची मांदी | "behind, the māndī (band/crowd) of gopāls" |
| अवघा चि वावरे | "(he) wanders everywhere" |
| कळों नेदी कोणा फिरे | "does not let (anyone) know who (it is who) turns" |
| घर पाहोनि एकांताचें | "finding a ekāntācē (solitary, empty) house" |
| नवविधा नवनीताचें | "of navavidha-navanīta (nine-fold butter)" |
| रिघे आपण भीतरी | "(he) goes inside himself" |
| पुरवी माथुलियाच्या हरी | "Hari fills (the bag) of the māthūliyā (the maternal-uncle's? = the gopis')" |
| बोलों नेदी म्हणे स्थिर | "doesn't let (anyone) speak — says be still" |
| खुणा दावी खा रे क्षीर | "shows khuṇā (signs): drink the milk!" |
What it means
A gopa-conspiracy abhang — Krishna leading the gopa-band on a butter-raid. The structural movements:
- मेळउनि — gathering. The first move is band-formation. No solo-raid.
- विचार — plan. Group-deliberation.
- वेळ लावियेला अझुणी, एकाकरितां गडे हो — the delay is for one comrade still. The band waits for the missing one. No one is left behind.
- वाट काढिली गोविंदीं — Govind cuts the path. The one who finds the way is Krishna himself; the gopas follow.
- अवघा चि वावरे — कळों नेदी कोणा फिरे — wanders everywhere; doesn't let anyone know who turns. Krishna's covert mobility — to outsiders, no specific gopa is identifiable.
- नवविधा-नवनीता — the nine-fold butter. Navavidhā in bhakti vocabulary is the nine-fold bhakti (śravaṇa, kīrtana, smaraṇa, pādasevana, archana, vandana, dāsya, sakhya, ātma-nivedana). The butter is the cream of these nine practices. The raid is on nine-fold-bhakti-butter.
- रिघे आपण भीतरी — goes inside himself. The raid is internal; the actual entry is into one's own bhīta (interior).
- बोलों नेदी म्हणे स्थिर — खुणा दावी — doesn't let speak; says be still; shows signs. The covert-act requires silence; communication is by signs. खा रे क्षीर — drink the milk — the imperative is silent.
The closing image is striking: the covert raid on the nine-fold-butter happens in silence-with-signs. [T]
For someone today
This abhang describes a kind of shared bhakti experience that has to stay unspoken. It offers several principles.
First, gather your companions before attempting this — don't go it alone. Second, wait for whoever is missing; no one gets left behind. Third, let Govind cut the path — Krishna leads, and you follow, rather than trying to lead the raid yourself.
What's being sought isn't ordinary pleasure but something richer — the cream of ninefold devotion, the concentrated essence of the nine classical practices of bhakti (hearing, singing, remembering, serving, worshipping, bowing, service, friendship, and self-surrender). And the real entry point isn't external imitation — it's going inward, into your own interior.
Finally, this has to happen in silence, with only glances and gestures as signals. Talking about it while it's happening spoils it.
For today: when you're inside a real, shared moment of devotion with close companions, stay quiet, signal with a glance, and simply take in what's being offered. Discussing it out loud in the moment lets the richness leak away.
मराठी: ही ओवी अशा एका सामायिक भक्ती-अनुभवाबद्दल सांगते जो न बोलताच अनुभवावा लागतो. यात काही तत्त्वं आहेत.
पहिलं — हे एकट्याने करण्याचा प्रयत्न करू नका; आधी सोबत्यांना जमवा. दुसरं — जो कोणी मागे राहिला असेल त्याची वाट पाहा; कुणालाही मागे सोडू नये. तिसरं — गोविंदाला वाट काढू द्या — कृष्ण पुढे असतो, तुम्ही मागे चालता, स्वतःच नेतृत्व करण्याचा प्रयत्न करू नका.
जे शोधलं जातंय ते साधं सुख नाही, तर त्याहून खोल काहीतरी आहे — नऊ प्रकारच्या भक्तीचं सार, म्हणजे श्रवण, कीर्तन, स्मरण, सेवा, पूजा, वंदन, दास्य, सख्य आणि आत्मनिवेदन या नऊ शास्त्रीय भक्ती-मार्गांचं गाळीव तूप. आणि यात प्रत्यक्ष प्रवेश बाहेरून नक्कल करून होत नाही — तो आतल्या आत, स्वतःच्या अंतरंगात जाऊनच होतो.
शेवटी, हे सगळं मौनात, फक्त नजरेने आणि खुणांनी घडतं. ते घडत असताना त्याविषयी बोलणं त्याला बिघडवतं.
आजसाठी: जवळच्या सोबत्यांबरोबर खऱ्या, सामायिक भक्ती-क्षणात असाल तर शांत राहा, नजरेने संकेत द्या, आणि जे मिळतंय ते फक्त स्वीकारा. त्या क्षणी मोठ्याने चर्चा केल्याने ती समृद्धी निसटून जाते.
Where this applies
- Covert-with-Krishna moment. Silence with signs.
- Band wandering, no one identifiable. Krishna leads; gopas follow.
- Nine-fold-butter is the target. Navavidha-navanīta.