Abhanga 2074
For today: this is our capital — we say Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala; let's cross the bhava-river happily — with the company of Vaiṣṇavas, the mass; the worldly-vāna — let's discard and eat this meal; Tuka says — no need again and again — the trips (rebirths).
The verse
आम्हां हें चि भांडवल । म्हणों विठ्ठल विठ्ठल ॥१॥ सुखें तरों भवनदी । संग वैष्णवांची मांदी ॥ध्रु.॥ बाखराचें वाण । सांडूं हें जेवूं जेवण ॥२॥ न लगे वारंवार । तुका म्हणे वेरझार ॥३॥
Literal translation
This is our capital — we say Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala. Let's cross the bhava-river happily — with the company of Vaiṣṇavas, the mass. The worldly-vāna — let's discard and eat (this) meal. Tuka says: no need again and again — the trips (rebirths).
Word-by-word gloss
| Marathi | Meaning |
|---|---|
| आम्हां हें चि भांडवल | "this is our capital" |
| म्हणों विठ्ठल विठ्ठल | "we say Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala" |
| सुखें तरों भवनदी | "let's cross the bhava-river happily" |
| संग वैष्णवांची मांदी | "with the company of Vaiṣṇavas — the mass" |
| बाखराचें वाण | "the worldly-vāna (bākharā = something-of-flour-grain)" |
| सांडूं हें जेवूं जेवण | "let's discard and eat (this) meal" |
| न लगे वारंवार | "no need again-and-again" |
| तुका म्हणे वेरझार | "Tuka says — the trips (= rebirths)" |
What it means
Viṭhṭhala-Viṭhṭhala-as-capital + cross-bhava-river-with-Vaiṣṇavas abhang.
The opening — Viṭhṭhala-as-capital: āmhām hē chi bhāṇḍavala — mhaṇōm Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala — this is our capital — we say Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala. Our-only-bhāṇḍavala (capital) — speaking-the-Name Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala.
The river-crossing: sukhē tarōm bhava-nadī — sanga Vaiṣṇavāñchī māndī — let's cross the bhava-river happily — with the company of Vaiṣṇavas, the mass. Māndī = crowd, throng. Cross-the-bhava-river happily — in-the-Vaiṣṇava-crowd. Samsāra-crossing is a-group-trip.
The discard: bākharāchē vāṇa — sāṇḍūm hē jēvūm jēvaṇa — the worldly-vāna — let's discard and eat (this) meal. Bākharā = flour-bread (here = a coarse, worldly fare). Discard-the-coarse; eat-this-(divine)-meal.
The closing — no rebirths: na lagē vāra-vāra — Tukā mhaṇē vēra-jhāra — no need again and again — Tuka says — the trips (= rebirths). No-need for-again-and-again trips (= rebirths).
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For someone today
For today: this is our capital — we say Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala; let's cross the bhava-river happily — with the company of Vaiṣṇavas, the mass; the worldly-vāna — let's discard and eat this meal; Tuka says — no need again and again — the trips (rebirths).
Where this applies
- When you feel like you have nothing of real value and forget that devotion itself is enough
- When crossing a hard stretch of life feels lonely and you need the company of like-minded people
- When you are tired of chasing worldly comforts that never quite satisfy
- When you wonder whether there is a way to be free of repeating the same painful cycles again and again