Abhanga 1593
The Lord comes running for the single devoted heart, calling it friend, and even the sight of him coming clears away wrongdoing.
The verse
शंखचक्रगदापद्म । पैल आला पुरुषोत्तम ॥१॥ ना भी ना भी भक्तराया । वेगीं पावलों सखया ॥ध्रु.॥ दुरूनि येतां दिसे दृष्टी । धाकें दोष पळती सृष्टी ॥२॥ तुका देखोनि एकला । वैकुंठींहूनि हरि आला ॥३॥
Literal translation
Śankha-cakra-gadā-padma — on this side has come Puruṣōttama. "Fear not, fear not, O bhakta-rāya — quickly I have arrived, sakhā." From afar when coming, seen by the eye — with fear, the dōṣas flee from creation. Seeing Tuka alone — Hari has come from Vaikuṇṭha.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| शंखचक्रगदापद्म | "śankha-cakra-gadā-padma" |
| पैल आला पुरुषोत्तम | "on this side — has come — Puruṣōttama" |
| ना भी ना भी भक्तराया | "fear not, fear not — O bhakta-rāya" |
| वेगीं पावलों सखया | "quickly — I have arrived — O sakhā" |
| दुरूनि येतां दिसे दृष्टी | "from afar — coming — seen — by (the) eye" |
| धाकें दोष पळती सृष्टी | "with fear — dōṣas (sins) — flee — (from) creation" |
| तुका देखोनि एकला | "Tuka — seeing — alone" |
| वैकुंठींहूनि हरि आला | "from Vaikuṇṭha — Hari — has come" |
What it means
Personal-divine-arrival abhang. Vaikuṇṭha-gamana cluster. A short-intense companion to 1592, narrating the arrival from a different angle: the bhakta's relational-perspective.
The opening identification: śankha-cakra-gadā-padma — paila ālā Puruṣōttama — śankha-cakra-gadā-padma — on this side has come Puruṣōttama. The four-weapon-set (śankha-cakra-gadā-padma = conch, discus, mace, lotus) confirms the identity: Puruṣōttama (the supreme-puruṣa, Viṣṇu).
The address: nā bhī nā bhī bhakta-rāyā — vēgīm pāvalōm sakhayā — fear not, fear not, O bhakta-rāya — quickly I have arrived, sakhā. The Lord addresses Tuka as bhakta-rāya (king-of-bhaktas) and sakhā (friend). Vēgīm pāvalōm — I have arrived quickly — the divine-haste-to-meet-the-bhakta. (Striking-formulation: the Lord names the bhakta his sakhā and announces his own quick-arrival.)
The cosmic-effect: durūni yētām disē dṛṣṭī — dhākēm dōṣa paḷatī sṛṣṭī — from afar when coming, seen by the eye — with fear, the dōṣas flee from creation. Even the sight of Hari approaching from afar makes the dōṣas (= sins / faults) flee from creation in fear. The cosmic-purifying-vision of the approaching Lord.
The closing-revelation: Tukā dēkhōni ēkalā — Vaikuṇṭhīm-hūni Hari ālā — seeing Tuka alone — from Vaikuṇṭha, Hari has come. For Tuka alone, Hari descended from Vaikuṇṭha. (Striking-formulation: the descent is for the single-bhakta; Vaikuṇṭha-empties-for-Tuka.)
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For someone today
For today: with conch, discus, mace, and lotus, Puruṣōttama has come on this side; "fear not, fear not, O king-of-bhaktas — I have arrived quickly, friend"; from afar when his coming is seen, the very sins flee from creation in fear; seeing Tuka alone — from Vaikuṇṭha, Hari has come.
Where this applies
- When you feel like your prayers or small devotions do not matter because you are only one person among billions
- When you are lonely or feel forgotten and need to know you can still be sought out and called a friend
- When you are carrying guilt or a bad habit and wonder if change is even possible
- When you doubt that being loved by name could apply to someone as ordinary as you