Abhanga 475
This short, joyful verse celebrates an ordinary day made precious by good company. Tukaram says today feels golden simply because he sat and ate together with fellow devotees, a well-prepared shared meal. The chanting of Rama and Krishna's names pulled everyone in through sheer love, not obligation. He ends by savoring the festival dish itself, calling it sweet and delicious. The lesson is that holiness doesn't have to be dramatic; it can be as simple as a shared table, familiar names sung together, and gratitude for the meal in front of you.
The verse
आजी दिवस जाला । धन्य सोनियाचा भला ॥१॥ जालें संताचे पंगती । बरवें भोजन निगुती ॥ध्रु.॥ रामकृष्णनामें । बरवीं मोहियेलीं प्रेमें ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे आला । चवी रसाळ हा काला ॥३॥
Literal translation
Today became a day — blessed, sōniyācā, good. Saint-pankti happened — bhojana niguti. Rāma-Krishna-names — attracted by prema. Tuka says: came — cavī-rasāḷa-kāḷā.
मराठी: आजी दिवस जाला — धन्य सोनियाचा भला. जालें संताचे पंगती — बरवें भोजन निगुती. रामकृष्णनामें — बरवीं मोहियेलीं प्रेमें. तुकाराम म्हणतां — आला — चवी रसाळ हा काला.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| आजी दिवस जाला | "today became a day" |
| धन्य सोनियाचा भला | "blessed, sōniyācā, good" |
| जालें संताचे पंगती | "saint-pankti happened" |
| बरवें भोजन निगुती | "bhojana niguti — well-prepared" |
| रामकृष्णनामें बरवीं मोहियेलीं प्रेमें | "Rāma-Krishna-names — attracted by prema" |
| तुका म्हणे आला चवी रसाळ हा काला | "Tuka says: came — cavī-rasāḷa-kāḷā" |
What it means
A short today-is-blessed-saint-pankti-kāḷā-festival abhang. The kāḷā is a Vārkarī-tradition festival-meal where rice, curd, butter, sugar, and devotional-sweets are mixed in a large vessel and shared by devotees, especially at the close of an Āṣāḍhī or Kārtikī yātrā. Three claims:
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आजी दिवस जाला — धन्य सोनियाचा भला — today became a day — blessed, sōniyācā, good. The opening-celebration: today has become a day — blessed,sōniyācā(of-gold-quality), good. Auspicious-day-recognition.
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जालें संताचे पंगती — बरवें भोजन निगुती — saint-pankti happened — bhojana niguti. The saint-feast claim: thesaint-pankti(line-of-saints-seated-for-meal) has happened; thebhojana(meal) isniguti(well-arranged). Communal-saint-meal.
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रामकृष्णनामें — बरवीं मोहियेलीं प्रेमें — Rāma-Krishna-names — attracted by prema. The prema-attraction claim: Rāma-Krishna-names — beautifully attracted byprema. Names-attract-prema, prema-attracts-meal.
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तुका म्हणे आला — चवी रसाळ हा काला — Tuka says: came — cavī-rasāḷa-kāḷā. The closing-claim: Tuka says: it has come; tasty (cavī), juicy (rasāḷa) thiskāḷā. The kāḷā-festival is delicious.
[T]
For someone today
This short, joyful verse celebrates an ordinary day made precious by good company. Tukaram says today feels golden simply because he sat and ate together with fellow devotees, a well-prepared shared meal. The chanting of Rama and Krishna's names pulled everyone in through sheer love, not obligation. He ends by savoring the festival dish itself, calling it sweet and delicious. The lesson is that holiness doesn't have to be dramatic; it can be as simple as a shared table, familiar names sung together, and gratitude for the meal in front of you.
मराठी: ही छोटी, आनंदी ओवी एका साध्या दिवसाला चांगल्या सहवासामुळे किती मौल्यवान बनवता येतं हे सांगते. तुकाराम म्हणतात की आजचा दिवस सोन्यासारखा वाटतो कारण ते संतांबरोबर एकत्र बसून, नीट तयार केलेलं जेवण एकत्र जेवले. राम-कृष्णाच्या नामाच्या गजरानं सगळ्यांना प्रेमानं ओढून घेतलं, कोणत्याही सक्तीशिवाय. शेवटी ते त्या उत्सवाच्या जेवणाची, काल्याची, चव चाखून त्याला गोड आणि रसाळ म्हणतात. यातून हे कळतं की भक्ती नाट्यमय असायलाच हवी असं नाही; ती एका साध्या एकत्र जेवणाइतकी, परिचित नामांच्या एकत्र गजराइतकी आणि समोरच्या अन्नाबद्दलच्या कृतज्ञतेइतकी साधी असू शकते.
Where this applies
- Today is blessed. Recognize.
- Saint-pankti with niguti-meal. Communal.
- Rāma-Krishna-namesattract byprema. Names-as-magnets.
- Tasty-juicy kāḷā. Festival-meal.