Abhanga 760
Devotion is a two-way bond, Tukaram playfully insists that without his vows, remembrance, and companionship, God would have no one to be named or accompanied by.
The verse
नवां नवसांचीं । जालों तुम्हासी वाणीचीं ॥१॥ कोण तुझें नाम घेतें । देवा पिंडदान देतें ॥ध्रु.॥ कोण होतें मागें पुढें । दुजें बोलाया रोकडें ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे पांडुरंगा । कोणा घेतासि वो संगा ॥३॥
Literal translation
Navām navasām — I-have-become — Yours — vāṇī. Who — Your name — takes — deva — piṇḍa-dāna — gives? Who — would-be — māgē-puḍhē — the-other — speak — rōkaḍē? Tuka says: Pāṇḍuranga — whose — sanga — would-take?
मराठी: नवां नवसांचीं — जालों तुम्हासी वाणीचीं. कोण तुझें नाम घेतें — देवा पिंड-दान देतें?. कोण होतें मागें-पुढें — दुजें बोलाया रोकडें?. Tuka म्हणे: Pāṇḍuranga — कोणा वो संगा घेतासि?.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| नवां नवसांचीं | "navām navasām" |
| जालों तुम्हासी वाणीचीं | "I-have-become — Yours — vāṇī" |
| कोण तुझें नाम घेतें | "who — Your name — takes" |
| देवा पिंडदान देतें | "deva — piṇḍa-dāna — gives" |
| कोण होतें मागें पुढें | "who — would-be — māgē-puḍhē" |
| दुजें बोलाया रोकडें | "the-other — speak — rōkaḍē" |
| पांडुरंगा कोणा घेतासि वो संगा | "Pāṇḍuranga — whose — sanga — would-take" |
What it means
A nine-vows-by-vāṇī-who-else-takes-Your-name-piṇḍa-dāna-no-back-or-front-witness-Pāṇḍuranga-whose-sanga abhang. No-one-else-Pāṇḍuranga register. Three claims:
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नव-नवस-वाणी-तुम्हासी — कोण-नाम-घेतो — पिंड-दान-देतो. Nine-vows-by-vāṇī-who-else-claim. Ofnavām navasām(nine vows — possibly the standard nine-foldnavasatradition or simply many-vows) —I have-become Yours by vāṇī; (without me) who would take Yournāma?;deva, who would give thepiṇḍa-dāna(the funeral-rice-balls — the formal-offering for the deceased; here applied to the deva:who would even remember-You-after-Your-death)?.
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कोण-मागें-पुढें — दुजें-बोलाया-रोकडें. Who-back-or-front-witness-claim. Who would have beenmāgē(behind, in the past) orpuḍhē(ahead, in the future) —to speak-the-other (as witness) rōkaḍē (on-the-spot, ready)?.No-one-else-as-witness-back-or-front.
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Tuka: Pāṇḍuranga — कोणा-वो-संगा-घेतासि. Pāṇḍuranga-whose-sanga-claim. Tuka says:Pāṇḍuranga; whosesanga(company) would You take? (= no-one-else's-but-mine). Pāṇḍuranga-whose-other-sanga. (The bhakta playfully claims: without me, You'd-have-no-bhakta-and-no-sanga.)
[T]
For someone today
Tukaram teases God with a loving, half-serious question: if he hadn't pledged himself with these vows, who else would even speak God's name, remember him, or stand as witness through time? He isn't doubting God's greatness, he's pointing out that devotion runs both ways. A devotee needs God, but God also needs someone to be named, remembered, and kept company by. The verse ends with Tukaram asking playfully whose companionship God would keep without him. It's a reminder that your small, ordinary devotion is not a one-sided plea, it is a real and needed relationship.
मराठी: तुकाराम देवाशी प्रेमळपणे, अर्धगमतीने प्रश्न विचारतात, जर मी हे नवस केले नसते, तर तुझे नाव कोण घेतले असते, तुला कोण आठवले असते, किंवा काळाच्या ओघात तुझा साक्षीदार कोण झाला असता? हे देवाच्या मोठेपणाबद्दल शंका नाही, तर भक्तीचा प्रवाह दोन्ही बाजूंनी वाहतो हे सांगणे आहे. भक्ताला देवाची गरज असतेच, पण देवालाही आपले नाव घेणारे, आपल्याला आठवणारे आणि आपली सोबत करणारे कोणीतरी हवे असते. शेवटी तुकाराम गमतीने विचारतात, माझ्याशिवाय देव कोणाची संगत घेतील? यातून हाच धडा मिळतो की तुमची साधी, रोजची भक्तीसुद्धा एकतर्फी विनवणी नसून एक खरी आणि आवश्यक नाती आहे.
Where this applies
- When you wonder whether your small daily devotional practice actually matters to God
- When you want to relate to the divine with warmth and playful closeness rather than only formal reverence
- When you feel your faith is one-sided and want to reclaim it as a real, mutual relationship
- When you need reassurance that your act of remembering and naming God has real value