Abhanga 357

Arriving at your goal after walking both smooth and thorny paths by faith lets you stop explaining yourself and see hardship as what set you apart, not what broke you.

The verse

Literal translation

What it means

A reached-the-deva-after-trial abhang. Likely continuation of the Mambaji Gosavi persecution response cluster (cf. 354-356). Three claims:

1. पावलों पावलों — देवा पावलों रे — reached, reached — O deva, reached. The triple-claim of arrival. Repeated-three-times to seal the arrival. I have reached the deva — the goal is reached.

2. बरवें संचित होतें तैसें जालें — आतां काय बोलों — good sañcita was — became as it was — now what to say. The sañcita-claim: the good sañcita that was — became / fruited — as it was. Now nothing more to say; the speech-exhausts at arrival.

3. सोज्ज्वळ कंटकवाटा — भावें करूं गेलों — smooth-and-thorny-paths — by bhāva I went to walk. The path-walking-claim: I went to walk smooth-and-thorny-paths by bhāva. (Sōjjvaḷa = smooth, clean; kaṇṭaka-vāṭā = thorn-paths. The path included both smoothness and thorns; both walked by bhāva.)

4. तुका म्हणे करूनि वेगळा केलों रे — Tuka says: making (me), set (me) apart. The closing-claim: the deva, by making me,set me apart. Vēgaḷā kēlōm — was made separate. The deva's-act of separation — separating Tukaram for / as His own. (In the persecution-context: the persecution functioned as the separation-mechanism.)

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For someone today

This abhang names the arrival-after-trial frame:

1. Recognize when you have reached. Pāvalōm pāvalōm — dēvā pāvalōm. The triple-claim of arrival is a moment of recognition. Don't miss the moment when arrival has happened.

2. Sañcita-as-fruit needs no further speech. Baravēm sañcita hōtē taisē jālē — ātām kāya bōlōm. When the sañcita has fruited as it was, speech exhausts; nothing more to add.

3. Walk both smooth and thorny by bhāva. Sōjjvaḷa kaṇṭaka-vāṭā bhāvē karūm gēlōm. The path is mixed — smooth and thorn; walk both by bhāva.

4. The deva separates the bhakta — accept the separation. Karūnī vēgaḷā kēlōm. Set-apart is what the deva does. The trial / the persecution / the unusual-life is the separation-mechanism. Don't resist being made-separate.

For today: recognize the arrival-moment when it comes; let speech exhaust at arrival; walk both smooth and thorny by bhāva; accept the deva's setting-apart as His way of claiming you.

This abhang is the resolution-note within the Mambaji Gosavi cluster: after the persecution (354-356), Tukaram has reached. The separation that the persecution effected is recognized as the deva's act, not the persecutor's.

मराठी: ही ओवी arrival-after-trial frame नाव सांगते:

1. Reached केव्हा झालं ओळखा. पावलों पावलों — देवा पावलों. Triple-claim of arrival — moment of recognition. Arrival झाला — moment miss करू नका.

2. Sañcita-as-fruit ला more speech लागत नाही. बरवें संचित होतें तैसें जालें — आतां काय बोलों. Sañcita जसं होतं तसं fruited झालं — speech exhaust; more add नाही.

3. Smooth आणि thorny दोन्ही bhāva ने चाला. सोज्ज्वळ कंटकवाटा भावें करूं गेलों. Path mixed — smooth-and-thorn; दोन्ही bhāva ने चाला.

4. Deva bhakta ला separate करतो — separation accept करा. करूनि वेगळा केलों. Set-apart deva चं काम. Trial / persecution / unusual-life separation-mechanism. Made-separate होण्याला resist करू नका.

आज: Arrival-moment ओळखा; Arrival ला speech exhaust होऊ द्या; Smooth-thorn दोन्ही bhāva ने चाला; Deva चं setting-apart त्याचं claim म्हणून accept करा.

Mambaji Gosavi cluster मधली resolution-note: Persecution नंतर (354-356), Tukaram reached. Persecution ने effected separation — deva चं act, persecutor चं नाही.

Where this applies

• Triple-claim of arrival. पावलों x3.
• Sañcita as fruited; speech exhausted. Beyond-words.
• Smooth and thorny both walked by bhāva. Path-stance.
• Deva sets the bhakta apart. Accept-the-separation.

Related verses

• Abhanga 2467 — What looks like your whole world, like a fig to the insect living inside it, is only a tin
• Abhanga 4481 — Tukaram promises that sincerely calling on the Lord's name, knowingly or unknowingly, with
• Abhanga 4482 — Tukaram teaches that no ritual equals sincerely speaking the Lord's name, that self-center
• Abhanga 4497 — Tukaram describes a life so soaked in devotion that Krishna's presence fills every ordinar