Abhanga 1651
For today: Hear, O mother — my request — I am placing my head at your feet; Bhāgīrathī, the great-sin-remover, mistress of all tīrthas; bhukti while alive, moksha in death at your shore — here-and-hereafter you are sukha-rūpa; Tuka the Viṣṇu-servant, the saints' nourished-one, has sent this word-flower by him.
The verse
परिसें वो माते माझी विनवणी । मस्तक चरणीं ठेवीतसें ॥१॥ भागीरथी महादोष निवारणी । सकळां स्वामिणी तीर्थांचिये ॥ध्रु.॥ जीतां भुक्ति मोक्ष मरणें तुझ्या तिरीं । अहिक्यपरत्री सुखरूप ॥२॥ तुका विष्णुदास संतांचें पोसनें । वागपुष्प तेणें पाठविलें ॥३॥
Literal translation
English: Hear, O mother, my vinavaṇī — I am placing my head at your feet. Bhāgīrathī, mahā-doṣa-nivāraṇī, mistress of all tīrthas. Bhukti while alive — moksha in death at your shore — here-and-hereafter sukha-rūpa. Tuka the Viṣṇu-dāsa, the saints' nourished-one — by him this vāga-puṣpa has been sent.
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| परिसें वो माते माझी विनवणी | "hear — O mother — my — vinavaṇī" |
| मस्तक चरणीं ठेवीतसें | "head — at feet — I am placing" |
| भागीरथी महादोष निवारणी | "Bhāgīrathī — great-doṣa-removing" |
| सकळां स्वामिणी तीर्थांचिये | "of all — mistress — of tīrthas" |
| जीतां भुक्ति मोक्ष मरणें तुझ्या तिरीं | "alive — bhukti; — moksha — in death — at your shore" |
| अहिक्यपरत्री सुखरूप | "here-and-hereafter — sukha-rūpa" |
| तुका विष्णुदास संतांचें पोसनें | "Tukā — Viṣṇu-dāsa — saints' nourished-one" |
| वागपुष्प तेणें पाठविलें | "vāga-puṣpa (word-flower) — by him — has sent" |
What it means
Bhāgīrathī-letter abhang. First of 4-abhang Bhāgīrathī-letter-cluster (introduced by editorial-marker at end of 1650).
This abhang functions as a physical-letter sent from Dehu to Vārāṇasī, addressed directly to Mā Bhāgīrathī (Gangā). The yātrī carrying the letter would recite-it / set-it-afloat at the Bhāgīrathī's-shore on Tukārām's behalf.
The address: parisēm vō mātē mājhī vinavaṇī — mastaka caraṇīm ṭhēvītasēm — hear, O mother, my vinavaṇī (request) — I am placing my head at your feet. The mātē-vocative (= "O mother") + head-at-feet.
The titles: Bhāgīrathī mahā-dōṣa-nivāraṇī — sakaḷām svāmiṇī tīrthāñciyē — Bhāgīrathī, great-doṣa-removing, mistress of all tīrthas. Mahā-dōṣa-nivāraṇī = the great-sin-remover (= the traditional epithet of Gangā for purifying the worst sins); sakaḷa-tīrtha-svāmiṇī = mistress of all tīrthas (= the primary-pilgrimage-river above all others).
The two-fold-claim: jītām bhukti mōkṣa maraṇē tujhyā tirīm — ahikya-paratrī sukha-rūpa — while alive — bhukti; in death — moksha at your shore; here-and-hereafter sukha-rūpa. The traditional Gangā-doctrine: bathing-while-alive gives bhukti (worldly-good); dying-at-the-shore gives moksha; in this-world and the next, you are sukha-rūpa.
The signature: Tukā Viṣṇu-dāsa samtāñcēm pōsanēm — vāga-puṣpa tēṇē pāṭhavilēm — Tuka the Viṣṇu-dāsa, fed by saints — by him this word-flower has been sent. Tukā Viṣṇu-dāsa samtāñcēm pōsanēm is the self-identification: "Tuka, the Viṣṇu-servant, the saints' nourished-one"; vāga-puṣpa tēṇē pāṭhavilēm = by him, this word-flower has been sent. The abhang itself is the vāga-puṣpa (= flower of speech) offered to the river.
(This abhang is paired-with the physical-letter-tradition — Tukārām composing letters to deities at distant pilgrimage-sites without traveling there himself; the bhakti-pan-Indian-network.)
[T]
For someone today
For today: Hear, O mother — my request — I am placing my head at your feet; Bhāgīrathī, the great-sin-remover, mistress of all tīrthas; bhukti while alive, moksha in death at your shore — here-and-hereafter you are sukha-rūpa; Tuka the Viṣṇu-servant, the saints' nourished-one, has sent this word-flower by him.
Where this applies
- Mother-Bhāgīrathī-hear-my-request.* Mātē-Bhāgīrathī-vinavaṇī.
- Great-doṣa-removing-mistress-of-all-tīrthas.* Mahā-dōṣa-nivāraṇī-tīrtha-svāmiṇī.
- Bhukti-alive-moksha-in-death-at-your-shore.* Jītām-bhukti-maraṇē-mōkṣa-tujhyā-tirīm.
- Tuka-Viṣṇu-dāsa-saint-fed-word-flower-sent.* Viṣṇu-dāsa-samta-pōsanēm-vāga-puṣpa.