Abhanga 1113
Tukaram pictures Vitthal as a mother whose breasts overflow with love the moment she sees her child, who pulls the baby close instead of staying distant, and who is never harsh, only tender. The morsel she feeds is not ordinary food but brahma-rasa itself, the very essence of the divine, placed straight into the child's mouth. The verse says that whatever longing you bring to God, however childish or persistent, will be met with patience, not rejection. You do not need to prove you deserve that closeness; it is offered the way a mother offers milk, simply because you are hers.
The verse
माझी विठ्ठल माउली । प्रेमें पान्हा पान्हायेली ॥१॥ कृवाळूनि लावी स्तनीं । न वजे दुरी जवळूनि ॥ध्रु.॥ केली पुरवी आळी । नव्हे निष्ठ कोंवळी ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे घांस । मुखीं घाली ब्रम्हरस ॥३॥
Literal translation
Viṭhṭhal māulī — prēma pānhā pānhāyēlī. Cuvāḷūni stanī — durī javaḷ. Āḷī — niṣṭhura kōvaḷī. Tuka says: brahma-rasa mukhī.
मराठी: माझी Viṭhṭhal माउली — प्रेमें पान्हा पान्हायेली. कृवाळूनि स्तनीं लावी — दुरी न वजे जवळूनि. आळी पुरवी केली — निष्ठुर नव्हे, कोंवळी. Tuka म्हणे: घांस — मुखीं ब्रह्म-रस घाली.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| माझी विठ्ठल माउली | "Viṭhṭhal māulī" |
| प्रेमें पान्हा पान्हायेली | "prēma pānhā pānhāyēlī" |
| कृवाळूनि लावी स्तनीं | "cuvāḷūni stanī" |
| न वजे दुरी जवळूनि | "durī javaḷ" |
| केली पुरवी आळी | "āḷī" |
| नव्हे निष्ठ कोंवळी | "niṣṭhura kōvaḷī" |
| मुखीं घाली ब्रम्हरस | "brahma-rasa mukhī" |
What it means
The Viṭhṭhal-as-mother-suckling abhang. Among the most-tender mother-images in the Gatha. Four claims:
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Viṭhṭhal-माउली — प्रेम-पान्हा. Mother-overflows-claim.
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कुवाळूनि-स्तनीं — दुरी-न. Cradling-applies-to-breast-claim.
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आळी-पुरवी — निष्ठुर-नव्हे. Tender-not-harsh-claim.
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Tuka: मुखीं-ब्रह्म-रस. Brahma-rasa-in-mouth-claim. (The milk she gives is brahma-rasa itself.)
[T]
For someone today
Tukaram pictures Vitthal as a mother whose breasts overflow with love the moment she sees her child, who pulls the baby close instead of staying distant, and who is never harsh, only tender. The morsel she feeds is not ordinary food but brahma-rasa itself, the very essence of the divine, placed straight into the child's mouth. The verse says that whatever longing you bring to God, however childish or persistent, will be met with patience, not rejection. You do not need to prove you deserve that closeness; it is offered the way a mother offers milk, simply because you are hers.
मराठी: तुकाराम विठ्ठलाला अशा आईच्या रूपात पाहतात जिचे स्तन प्रेमाने आपोआप भरून येतात, जी बाळाला दूर न लोटता जवळ ओढून घेते आणि जी कधीच कठोर नसते, फक्त कोमल असते. ती जो घास भरवते तो साधे अन्न नसून प्रत्यक्ष ब्रह्मरस असतो, थेट मुखात घातलेला. या अभंगाचा अर्थ असा की तुम्ही देवाकडे कितीही हट्टाने किंवा लहान मुलासारखे मागणी घेऊन गेलात, तरी ती धीराने आणि प्रेमानेच स्वीकारली जाईल. ती जवळीक मिळवण्यासाठी तुम्हाला काही सिद्ध करावे लागत नाही; आई जशी सहज दूध देते तशीच ती सहज दिली जाते.
Where this applies
- Mother-pānhā. Pānhāyēlī.
- Cradling. Stana.
- Tender. Kōvaḷī.
- Brahma-rasa. Mukhī.