संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 875 of 4582

Abhanga 875

Meeting a true saint and receiving their word can untie the knot of doubt, cool the heart, and carry you across life's hardest struggles, making that meeting the greatest gift there is.

When blessed time of saint-meeting; embrace at feet has fallen — and you have to recognize this register

When the knot of doubt has untied; the belly is cool — and you accept this image

When the bhava-river was crossed by the prasāda of the answer — and you allow this image

The verse

धन्य काळ संतभेटी । पायीं मिठी पडिली तो ॥१॥ संदेहाची सुटली गांठी । जालें पोटीं शीतळ ॥ध्रु.॥ भवनदीचा जाला तारा । या उत्तरा प्रसादें ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे मंगळ आतां । कोण दाता याहूनि ॥३॥

Literal translation

Dhanya — kāḷa — santa-bhēṭi. Pāyī — miṭhī — fallen. Sandēha — gānṭhī — untied. Pōṭī — śītaḷa. Bhava-nadī — tārā — uttara — prasāda. Tuka says: mangaḷa — dātā — yāhūni.

मराठी: धन्य काळ — संत-भेटी — पायीं मिठी पडली तो. संदेहाची गांठी सुटली — पोटीं शीतळ झालें. भव-नदीचा तारा झाला — ह्या उत्तरा-च्या प्रसादें. Tuka म्हणे: मंगळ आतां — कोण दाता याहूनि?.

Word-by-word gloss

Marathi	Meaning
धन्य काळ संतभेटी	"dhanya — kāḷa — santa-bhēṭi"
पायीं मिठी पडिली तो	"pāyī — miṭhī — fallen"
संदेहाची सुटली गांठी	"sandēha — gānṭhī — untied"
जालें पोटीं शीतळ	"pōṭī — śītaḷa"
भवनदीचा जाला तारा	"bhava-nadī — tārā"
या उत्तरा प्रसादें	"uttara — prasāda"
मंगळ आतां	"mangaḷa — now"
कोण दाता याहूनि	"who — dātā — than-this"

What it means

A blessed-time-of-saint-meeting-embrace-at-feet-knot-of-doubt-untied-belly-cool-bhava-river-crossed-by-prasāda-mangaḷa-greatest-giver abhang. Saint-bhēṭi-blessed-time register. Three claims:

धन्य-काळ — संत-भेटी — पायीं-मिठी-पडली — संदेह-गांठी-सुटली — पोटीं-शीतळ. Saint-meeting-and-embrace-and-doubt-untied-claim. Blessed (dhanya) is thekāḷaofsanta-bhēṭi; themiṭhīat thepāyīmhas fallen; thegānṭhīofsandēhahas untied; thepōṭīhas becomeśītaḷa. Saint-meeting-blessed; embrace-at-feet; doubt-untied; cool-belly.
भव-नदी-तारा — उत्तरा-प्रसादें. Bhava-river-crossed-by-prasāda-claim. Thebhava-nadīwastārā(crossed); bythis uttara's prasāda. Bhava-river-crossed-by-the-saint's-uttara-prasāda. (The uttara (the saint's word) is itself the prasāda by which the bhava-nadī is crossed.)
Tuka: मंगळ — कोण-दाता-याहूनि. Greatest-giver-claim. Tuka says: mangaḷa now;who is a dātā more-than-this?Auspicious-now; no-greater-giver. (Closing-celebration: who could be agreater giver than the saint who has-given-this?)

[T]

For someone today

Tukaram describes the moment of meeting a true saint as a blessed occasion, one where falling at their feet in embrace untangles the knot of doubt inside you and leaves your whole being cool and at peace. That single meeting, and the saint's word given as prasāda, is enough to carry you across the river of worldly struggle. Tukaram ends by asking who could possibly be a greater giver than someone who hands you that kind of relief. The lesson is about recognizing what real spiritual company is worth, and letting yourself feel grateful and settled when you find it.

मराठी: तुकाराम सांगतात की खऱ्या संताच्या भेटीचा क्षण हा धन्य क्षण असतो, जिथे त्यांच्या पायाशी मिठी मारल्याने मनातील संदेहाची गाठ सुटते आणि संपूर्ण अंतःकरण शीतल, शांत होते. ती एक भेट, आणि संताचे प्रसादरूपी शब्द, संसारनदी पार करण्यासाठी पुरेसे असतात. तुकाराम शेवटी विचारतात की अशी शांतता देणाऱ्यापेक्षा मोठा दाता आणखी कोण असू शकतो. खऱ्या सत्संगाचे मोल ओळखणे आणि ते मिळाल्यावर मनापासून कृतज्ञ व शांत वाटू देणे, हाच या ओवीचा गाभा आहे.

Where this applies

Doubt-untied. Inner-knot.
Crossed-by-prasāda. Saint-saves.
Greatest-giver. Acknowledgement.

Sant-sang / Sant-pūjā Bhakti