Abhanga 1596
For today: guests have come to the house — today Hṛṣīkēśa himself came; coarse broken-rice-grains, boiled in plain water (is what I have); at home a broken bedstead with rag-cloth as bedding; a tulasī-leaf as my post-meal mouth-cleansing; Tuka says — I am poor.
The verse
पाहुणे घरासी । आजि आले हृषीकेशी ॥१॥ कण्या दरदर । पाण्यामाजी रांधिल्या ॥ध्रु.॥ घरीं मोडकिया बाजा । वरि वाकळांच्या शेजा ॥२॥ मुखशुद्धि तुळसी दळ । तुका म्हणे मी दुर्बळ ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: Guests to the house — today Hṛṣīkēśa came. Broken-rice-grains, coarse, boiled in water. At home, a broken bedstead — upon it, vākaḷa-rag bedding. Tulasī-leaf as mukha-śuddhi — Tuka says: I am poor.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| पाहुणे घरासी | "guests — to (the) house" |
| आजि आले हृषीकेशी | "today — has come — Hṛṣīkēśa" |
| कण्या दरदर | "broken-rice-grains (kaṇyā) — crushed-coarse (darā-darā)" |
| पाण्यामाजी रांधिल्या | "in water — boiled" |
| घरीं मोडकिया बाजा | "at home — broken bedstead (mōḍakī bājā)" |
| वरि वाकळांच्या शेजा | "upon (it) — vākaḷa-rag — bedding (śējā)" |
| मुखशुद्धि तुळसी दळ | "mukha-śuddhi — tulasī-leaf" |
| तुका म्हणे मी दुर्बळ | "Tuka says — I am durbaḷa (poor / weak)" |
What it means
Humble-hospitality abhang. Vaikuṇṭha-gamana cluster. One of the most affecting abhangs in the gatha — Tukaram's poverty meets the divine-guest.
The arrival: pāhuṇē gharāsī — āji ālē Hṛṣīkēśī — guests to the house — today Hṛṣīkēśa came. Hṛṣīkēśa (= "lord-of-the-senses") is one of Viṣṇu's names. The supreme-Lord has come as a guest.
The food-offering: kaṇyā darā-darā — pāṇyāmājī rāndhilyā — broken-rice-grains, crushed-coarse, boiled in water. Kaṇyā = the coarse-broken-rice-grains (the cheapest grade of rice); darā-darā = very crushed / coarse; pāṇyāmājī rāndhilyā = boiled in plain water (= no oil, no seasoning, no ghee). The poorest possible food.
The bed-offering: gharīm mōḍakiyā bājā — vari vākaḷāñcyā śējā — at home, broken bedstead — upon it, vākaḷa-rag bedding. Mōḍakī bājā = broken bedstead (the wooden cot is split / dilapidated); vākaḷa = patchwork-rag-cloth made from old quilt-pieces. The poorest-possible-bedding.
The closing-confession: mukha-śuddhi tuḷasī daḷa — Tukā mhaṇē mī durbaḷa — mukha-śuddhi: tulasī-leaf — Tuka says: I am poor. Mukha-śuddhi = the post-meal mouth-cleansing (normally with betel-leaf, areca-nut, cardamom, cloves); Tuka has only a tulasī-leaf. Tukā mhaṇē mī durbaḷa — Tuka says: I am poor / weak. (Striking-formulation: the poorest-of-the-poor receiving the supreme-Lord with the only-things-he-has. The bhakti-paradox: the divine-guest is honored by the very poverty of the offerings.)
This abhang is famously-loved in warkari tradition for its radical-honesty about Tukaram's poverty and its implicit-claim that the Lord accepts even kaṇyā-rice-in-water from a true bhakta.
[T]
For someone today
For today: guests have come to the house — today Hṛṣīkēśa himself came; coarse broken-rice-grains, boiled in plain water (is what I have); at home a broken bedstead with rag-cloth as bedding; a tulasī-leaf as my post-meal mouth-cleansing; Tuka says — I am poor.
Where this applies
- Hṛṣīkēśa-as-guest-at-house.* Pāhuṇē-Hṛṣīkēśī-gharāsī.
- Broken-rice-coarse-boiled-in-water.* Kaṇyā-darā-darā-pāṇyāmājī.
- Broken-bedstead-rag-bedding.* Mōḍakī-bājā-vākaḷa-śējā.
- Tulasī-as-mukha-śuddhi-I-am-poor.* Tuḷasī-daḷa-mukha-śuddhi-mī-durbaḷa.