Abhanga 1588
Tukaram waits daily on the road like a daughter watching for her family, trusting that God, having heard his joys and sorrows, will come in person to take him home to the divine māhera.
The verse
आपुल्या माहेरा जाईंन मी आतां । निरोप या संतां हातीं आला ॥१॥ सुख दुःख माझें ऐकिलें कानीं । कळवळा मनीं करुणेचा ॥ध्रु.॥ करुनी सिद्ध मूळ साउलें भातुकें । येती दिसें एकें न्यावयासी ॥२॥ त्या चि पंथें माझें लागलेंसे चत्ति । वाट पाहें नित्य माहेराची ॥३॥ तुका म्हणे आतां येतील न्यावया । अंगें आपुलिया मायबाप ॥४॥
Literal translation
I will go to my own māhera now — the message has come into my hand through these saints. My joy-sorrow has been heard in their ears — surge of karuṇā in the mind. The mūḷa (summons) is made ready, the bhātukē (child's-meal) given out — they will come some day to take me. My chitta has attached to that very path — I watch daily the way of the māhera. Tuka says: now they will come to take me — bodily, themselves, my mother-father.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| आपुल्या माहेरा जाईंन मी आतां | "to my own māhera (mother's-house) — I will go — now" |
| निरोप या संतां हातीं आला | "the message — through these saints — has come — to my hand" |
| सुख दुःख माझें ऐकिलें कानीं | "my joy-sorrow — has been heard — in (the) ears" |
| कळवळा मनीं करुणेचा | "kaḷavaḷā (surge-of-feeling) — in mind — of karuṇā" |
| करुनी सिद्ध मूळ साउलें भातुकें | "made ready — the mūḷa (summons / source); — the bhātukē (child's-meal) — given out" |
| येती दिसें एकें न्यावयासी | "they will come — some day — to take (me)" |
| त्या चि पंथें माझें लागलेंसे चत्ति | "on that very path — my chitta — has attached" |
| वाट पाहें नित्य माहेराची | "I watch — the way — daily — of (the) māhera" |
| तुका म्हणे आतां येतील न्यावया | "Tuka says — now — they will come — to take" |
| अंगें आपुलिया मायबाप | "bodily, themselves — my māya-bāpa (mother-father)" |
What it means
Vaikuṇṭha-gamana opening abhang. Māhera-anticipation. The opening of the most narratively-coherent stretch in the gatha — Tukaram's anticipation of the divine-summons to ascend.
The māhera-image: in Maharashtrian-tradition, māhera = the mother's natal-house (where a married-woman returns for visits, longed-for as the original-home). For the bhakta-as-bride, māhera = the divine-source / Vaikuṇṭha. Going to māhera = returning to the original-divine-home. (Distinctive warkari-image — esp. in Tukaram and Janābāī.)
The opening: āpulyā māhērā jā'īna mī ātām — nirōpa yā samtām hātīm ālā — I will go to my own māhera now — the message has come through these saints to my hand. The saints are the messengers who bring the divine-summons.
The cause: sukha-duḥkha mājhē aikilē kānīm — kaḷavaḷā manīm karuṇēcā — my joy-sorrow has been heard in (the) ears — surge of karuṇā in the mind. The Lord heard the bhakta's joy-and-sorrow; karuṇā-surge arose in the divine-mind.
The preparations: karunī siddha mūḷa sā'ulēm bhātukē — yētī disēm ēkē nyāvayāsī — the mūḷa (summons) is made ready, the bhātukē (= child's-snack-meal) is given out; they will come some day to take me. Mūḷa = the formal-summons sent by an elder to fetch a relative; bhātukē = the little-meal-package sent for a returning child. The Lord has prepared the summons + sent the snack-package — they will come to fetch me.
The waiting-image: tyā chi panthē mājhēm lāgalēsē chitti — vāṭa pāhē nitya māhērācī — my chitta has attached to that very path — I watch daily the way of the māhera. The bhakta-bride watching the road daily for her brother to come fetch her home.
The closing: ātām yētīla nyāvayā — angēm āpulyā māya-bāpa — now they will come to take me — bodily, themselves, my mother-father. They will come bodily themselves — not send servants; the mother-father will personally come. (Striking-formulation: the divine-parents personally fetching.)
This abhang opens a 4-abhang anticipation-cluster (1588+1589+1590+1591) preceding the climactic-arrival in 1592.
[T]
For someone today
For today: I will go to my own mother-father's-house now — the message has come into my hand through these saints; my joy-and-sorrow was heard in their ears, a surge of karuṇā in the mind; the summons is ready, the snack-meal given out — they will come some day to take me; my chitta has attached to that very path — I watch the way of māhera every day; now they will come bodily themselves, my mother-father.
Where this applies
- When you long for a sense of coming home after years spent away, physically or spiritually
- When you feel that someone finally heard your joys and sorrows and it moved them to act
- When you keep watching for a sign or answer you trust is already on its way
- When you picture love, not distance, in the person who is finally coming to fetch you