Abhanga 1434

Do not let cynics talk you out of the name's power, since what you hold firmly in mind is what you become, and countless stories show the name rescuing people from the worst situations.

The verse

Literal translation

What it means

Anti-anti-nāma polemic abhang. A long 8-verse defense of nāma-power against deniers. The opening verdict: nāma mhaṇatām mōkṣa nāhīm — aisā upadēśa karitī kāhīm — badhira vhāvēm tyācē ṭhāyīm — duṣṭa vacana vākya tēm — some give theupadēśa: 'saying nāma, there is no mokṣa'; —be deaf at that place; — thatvacana / vākyaisduṣṭa(wicked). (Targets: probably jñāna-only teachers and strict-vidhi-mantra schools who require mantra-dīkṣā and vidhi-procedures rather than open-public-japa as in 1433.)

The diagnosis of the deniers: jayācē rāhilēm mānasīm — tēm chi pāvalē tayāsī — cāñcapaḍatām mēlīm pisīm — bhaltaisīm vācāḷēm — what stayed in (their) mānasa — that itself they obtained; — fumbling, they died like pisēm; — random vācāḷas. Connecting to 1422's jayācā ādara tē chi vhāvē: what they held-in-mānasa, they became. So those who held anti-nāma in mind obtained nāma-less death.

The next-life-verdict: nava-vidhīcā niṣēdha — jēṇē mukhēm karitī vāda — janmā ālē nindya — śūkara-yātī samsārā — those whoprohibit the nava-vidhi(= thenine-fold bhakti:śravaṇa, kīrtana, smaraṇa, pāda-sēvana, arcana, vandana, dāsya, sakhya, ātma-nivedana) by theirvāda(argument) —born nindya in pig-births in samsāra. (Strong: pig-rebirth for nāma-deniers.)

The nāma-pavāḍa (= heroic-deeds-of-the-name) examples: 1. Bāḷā kṣīra-sāgarīm kōṇḍilēm — Bāḷā — the child Dhruva — was stationed in the kṣīra-sāgara (= polestar / above-the-milk-ocean) for the nāma's sake; 2. Hari lāgē Śankhāsura-pāṭhī — pōṭīm Veda cārī kāḍhilē — Hari pursued Śankhāsura (the conch-demon who stole the Vedas) — broke his belly — recovered the four Vedas (= Hari's own name needed rescuing!); 3. Nāmēm gaṇikā tārilī — by nāma, the gaṇikā was saved (= probably the parrot-taught-Rām-nāma-courtesan story; classical bhakti-trope); 4. Prahlāda — jaḷatām buḍatām ghātīm — viṣācē hātīm rākhē — Prahlāda's nāma-in-citta saved him from burning (Hiraṇyakaśipu's pyre / Hōlikā), drowning (sea-thrown), striking-blows, and poison. (Foundational Bhāgavata-Purāṇa nāma-test stories.)

The closing: nāma-khyāti — narakā-pratī jātī — niṣēdhitī tīm ēkēm — (such is) nāma's renown; — those who prohibit (it) — go to naraka. Final ruling: anti-nāma teachers go to hell.

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For someone today

Tukaram has strong words for anyone who tells you that simply chanting God's name cannot bring liberation, he calls it wicked talk and says you should turn a deaf ear to it. He points out that what a person holds firmly in their mind is what they end up becoming, so filling your mind with doubt about the name's power only brings you a nameless, fumbling end. To back up his case he lists the old stories where the name did the impossible, the child Dhruva was given a place among the stars, Vitthal tore open a demon's belly to recover the lost Vedas, a fallen woman was saved simply by uttering the name, and Prahlad was protected from fire, drowning, and poison because he kept the name in his heart. The lesson is simple, don't let cynics talk you out of a practice that has carried people through the worst of circumstances.

मराठी: तुकाराम महाराज अशा लोकांबद्दल कठोर शब्द वापरतात जे सांगतात की केवळ नामस्मरणाने मोक्ष मिळत नाही, ते याला दुष्ट बोलणे म्हणतात आणि सांगतात की अशा बोलण्याकडे बहिऱ्यासारखे दुर्लक्ष करावे. ते सांगतात की माणूस मनात जे घट्ट धरून ठेवतो तेच तो बनतो, त्यामुळे नामाच्या सामर्थ्यावर शंका मनात बाळगली तर शेवटी नामाशिवाय, गोंधळलेला अंत वाट्याला येतो. आपला मुद्दा पटवून देण्यासाठी ते जुन्या कथा सांगतात जिथे नामाने अशक्य ते शक्य केले, बाळ ध्रुवाला ताऱ्यांमध्ये स्थान मिळाले, विठ्ठलाने राक्षसाचे पोट फाडून हरवलेले वेद परत मिळवले, एका पतित स्त्रीला केवळ नाम उच्चारल्याने तारले गेले, आणि प्रल्हादाला आगीपासून, बुडण्यापासून आणि विषापासून वाचवले गेले कारण त्याने नाम हृदयात ठेवले होते. धडा साधा आहे, टीकाकारांच्या बोलण्याने अशा साधनेपासून दूर जाऊ नये जिने लोकांना सर्वात वाईट परिस्थितीतून तारले आहे.

Where this applies

• When someone tells you that a simple daily practice like chanting or prayer is pointless and won't actually change anything
• When you start doubting a practice you've relied on just because a skeptic sounds confident and dismissive
• When you're going through a crisis, illness, danger, or despair and need a reason to hold onto a simple, steady practice
• When you notice that what you constantly think about and believe seems to be shaping who you're becoming

Related verses

• Abhanga 2448 — The easiest path to God is repeating divine names with love at home, right where you are,
• Abhanga 2467 — What looks like your whole world, like a fig to the insect living inside it, is only a tin
• Abhanga 2494 — Living in devotion turns an ordinary day into a festival and removes the fear of birth and
• Abhanga 4481 — Tukaram promises that sincerely calling on the Lord's name, knowingly or unknowingly, with