Abhanga 1567
A single sincere look at the sacred, or closeness to a genuinely devoted soul, is enough to lift up even a dull or burdened life.
The verse
पाहातां पाउले हे विष्णुमूर्ती । कोटिकुळां सहित जे उद्धरती ॥१॥ जय देव जय देव जय पंढरिराया । श्रीपंढरिराया। करुनियां कुरवंडी । सांडीन काया ॥ध्रु.॥ श्रीमुखासहित देखे जो कर्मा । पासुन सुटे जैसा रवि नासी तमा ॥२॥ विष्णूचें पूजन एकाभावेंसी । नित्यमुक्त पूज्य तिहीं लोकांसी ॥३॥ धालें सुखें सदा प्रेमें डुल्लती । तीर्थे मळिन वास तयांचा वाहाती ॥४॥ जड जीवां उद्धार होय लागोनि । शरण तुका वंदी पाउलें दोन्ही ॥५॥
Literal translation
Seeing the pā'ulē of this Viṣṇu-mūrti — with kōṭi-kuḷa, they uddharatī. Jaya Pāṇḍharī-rāya — making kuravaṇḍī, I will sāṇḍīna kāyā. Seeing Śrī-mukha with karma — gets free like ravi destroys tama. Viṣṇu-pūjana by ēkā-bhāva — nitya-mukta, pūjya to tihīm lōkas. Dhāle, by sukha, always by prema, they ḍullatī — tīrthas carry the maḷina-vāsa of theirs. To jaḍa-jīvas, uddhāra happens by connection — in śaraṇa, Tuka vandī pā'ulē dōnnhī.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| पाहातां पाउले हे विष्णुमूर्ती | "seeing — pā'ulē (feet) — these — Viṣṇu-mūrti" |
| कोटिकुळां सहित जे उद्धरती | "with kōṭi-kuḷa (crore-of-lineages) — they uplift (uddharatī)" |
| जय देव जय देव जय पंढरिराया | "jaya Deva jaya Deva jaya Paṇḍharī-rāyā" |
| करुनियां कुरवंडी सांडीन काया | "making kuravaṇḍī (circling-around-as-sacrifice) — I will abandon (sāṇḍīna) — the kāyā (body)" |
| श्रीमुखासहित देखे जो कर्मा | "along with Śrī-mukha — who sees — karma" |
| पासुन सुटे जैसा रवि नासी तमा | "gets free — like — ravi (sun) — destroys — tama (darkness)" |
| विष्णूचें पूजन एकाभावेंसी | "pūjana of Viṣṇu — by one-bhāva (single-pointed-feeling)" |
| नित्यमुक्त पूज्य तिहीं लोकांसी | "nitya-mukta, pūjya — to three lōkas" |
| धालें सुखें सदा प्रेमें डुल्लती | "satisfied (dhālē) — by sukha — always — by prēma — they sway (ḍullatī)" |
| तीर्थे मळिन वास तयांचा वाहाती | "tīrthas — sully (maḷina) — their vāsa (residual-trace) — carry (vāhātī)" |
| जड जीवां उद्धार होय लागोनि | "to jaḍa-jīvas — uplift — happens — by connection" |
| शरण तुका वंदी पाउलें दोन्ही | "in refuge — Tuka — bows-to — both feet (pā'ulē dōnnhī)" |
What it means
Pāṇḍharī-rāya-foot-ārtī. Third āratī. The opening: pāhātām pā'ulē hē Viṣṇu-mūrtī — kōṭi-kuḷām sahita jē uddharatī — seeing thepā'ulē(feet) — of thisViṣṇu-mūrti; —with crore-of-lineages, they uplift.Just-seeing-the-feet uplifts even one's-entire-lineage.
The body-sacrifice: karuniyām kuravaṇḍī — sāṇḍīna kāyā — makingkuravaṇḍī(= circling-around-the-deity-and-throwing-off-as-sacrifice); — I willabandon the body. Kuravaṇḍī — folk-ritual where one circles a person/deity with rice-or-money-and-throws-it-away as protective-offering (= self-sacrifice gesture). Abandoning the body itself as kuravaṇḍī.
The karma-freedom: Śrī-mukhā-sahita dēkhē jō karmā — pāsuna suṭē jaisā ravi nāsī tamā — (when one) sees — Śrī-mukha —with karma; —gets free— like —sun—destroys—tama(darkness). Looking at his face while-bound-by-karma frees one — like sun destroys darkness.
The eternal-status: Viṣṇūcēm pūjana ēkā-bhāvēmsī — nitya-mukta pūjya tihīm lōkāmsī — Viṣṇu-pūjana — byone-bhāva; —nitya-mukta,pūjya— tothree lōkas. One-bhāva-pūjana makes oneeternally-freeandworship-worthy in all three worlds.
The bhakta-state: dhālē sukhēm sadā prēmēm ḍullatī — tīrthē maḷina vāsa tayāñcā vāhātī — satisfied — bysukha— always — byprēma— theysway(ḍullatī); —tīrthas—sully— theirvāsa—carry. The bhaktas-of-Viṣṇu sway in prema; — tīrthas themselves go-bathe in their footprint-trace — carrying the bhakta's residual-vāsa as purification. (Striking inversion: tīrthas come-to-be-purified by bhaktas; cf. 1539's kathā-sindhu-jaḷa-nhā'ūm-yētī.)
The closing-uplift-and-refuge: jaḍa jīvām uddhāra hōya lāgōnī — śaraṇa Tukā vandī pā'ulē dōnnhī — tojaḍa-jīvas (= dull / sluggish life-forms) —uplift—happens—by connection; — inrefuge— Tuka —bows—both feet. Even dull-jīvas are uplifted by connection-to-such-bhaktas; Tuka bows-to-both-feet in refuge.
This āratī completes the 3-āratī-section (1565-1567): Pāṇḍharī-nātha → Garuḍa-dhvajā → Pāṇḍharī-rāya. Three different epithets for the same deity, three āratīs.
[T]
For someone today
For today: seeing the feet of this Viṣṇu-form uplifts crore-of-lineages; making kuravaṇḍī, I'll abandon the body; seeing his Śrī-mukha while bound by karma frees one like sun destroys darkness; Viṣṇu-worship by single-bhāva makes one eternally-free, worshipped in three worlds; bhaktas sway always in prema — even tīrthas come carry their bhakta's residual-trace; dull-jīvas are uplifted by connection; Tuka bows both feet in refuge.
Where this applies
- When you feel weighed down by past mistakes and need to know that a moment of genuine devotion can still set you free
- When you doubt that simple, sincere worship is enough and think you need something more elaborate
- When you notice how being near a truly peaceful person seems to calm and purify everyone around them
- When you feel too dull, tired, or unremarkable to grow spiritually and need reassurance that closeness to goodness is enough