Abhanga 2834
Attend kīrtana with full, reverent attention because God himself is present there, and show your reverence for the sants through real humility, not just words.
The verse
कां न वजावें बैसोनि कथे । ऐसें ऐका हो श्रोते । पांडुरंग तेथें । उभा असे तिष्ठत ॥१॥
म्हणऊनि करी धीर । लक्ष लावूनि सादर । भवसिंधुपार । असेल ज्या तरणें ॥ध्रु.॥
कथे कांहीं अणुमात्र। नो बोलावें हा वृत्तांत । देवभक्तां चत्ति । समरसीं खंडणा ॥२॥
कां वैष्णवा पूजावें । ऐका घेईंल जो भावें । चरणरजा शिवें । वोडविला मस्तक ॥३॥
ऐसें जाणा हे निभ्रांत । देव वैष्णवांचा अंकित । अलिप्त अतीत । परमित त्यासाठीं ॥४॥
घालोनि लोळणा। तुका आला लोटांगणीं । वंदी पायवणीं । संतचरणींचें माथां ॥५॥
Literal translation
Kām na vajāve baisōnī kathē — why not go (and) sit inkathā(story-recitation, kīrtana)?; aisē aikā hō śrōte — listen, Ośrōte(audience); Pāṇḍuranga tēthē — Pāṇḍuranga (himself) there; ubhā ase tiṣṭhata — stands waiting (tiṣṭhata). Mhaṇaūnī karī dhīra — therefore — holddhīra(steadiness, patience); lakṣa lāvūnī sādara — withlakṣa(attention) (and)sādara(reverence); bhava-sindhu-pāra — (crossing of)bhava-sindhu(bhava-ocean); asela jyā taraṇē — (for one) for whom is thetaraṇa(crossing). Kathē kāmhī aṇu-mātra — in the kathā — not theaṇu-mātra(atom-measure); nō bōlāve hā vrttānta — should thisvrttānta(worldly-account) be spoken; deva-bhaktām chitti — (in the) Deva-bhakta chitta (mind); samarasīm khaṇḍanā — (in the)samarasa(merging) —khaṇḍanā(breakage). Kām vaiṣṇavā pūjāve — why shouldvaiṣṇavābe worshipped?; aikā ghēīla jō bhāve — listen — (he) who takes (with)bhāva; charaṇa-rajā śive — (places) thecharaṇa-rajā(feet-dust) onśiva(head); vōḍavilā mastaka — placed themastaka(head) (under the feet-dust). Aisē jāṇā he nibhrānta — know thisnibhrānta(without-doubt); Deva vaiṣṇavāñcā ankita — Deva (is) theankita(marked-one, bonded-servant) of vaiṣṇavas; alipta atīta — (though)alipta(untouched) (and)atīta(transcendent); paramita tyāsāṭhī — (he is)paramita(measured, bound) for their (sake). Ghālōnī lōḷaṇā — throwing-himself in alōḷaṇa(roll-on-the-ground); Tukā ālā lōṭāngaṇī — Tukā came (in)lōṭāngaṇa(full-prostration); vandī pāya-vaṇī — (he) bows (at) thepāya-vaṇī(foot-water, foot-path); santa-charaṇīñce māthām — (placing) the head (at) the sants' feet.
What it means
A canonical 5-verse kīrtana-etiquette text. Each verse is a discipline-statement.
Verse 1: Kām na vajāve baisōnī kathē — aisē aikā hō śrōte — Pāṇḍuranga tēthē — ubhā ase tiṣṭhata — why not go and sit in kathā? — listen, audience! — Pāṇḍuranga (himself) stands waiting there. The canonical-warrant for kīrtana-attendance: the Lord himself attends; he is standing-waiting (tiṣṭhata). The bhakta-attendance is worth-it because the Lord-himself-is-there.
Dhrūpada: mhaṇaūnī karī dhīra — lakṣa lāvūnī sādara — bhava-sindhu-pāra — asela jyā taraṇē — therefore hold dhīra, with attention and reverence — for one for whom bhava-sindhu-pāra is to be. The discipline: steady-attention-reverent — if you want bhava-sindhu-crossing.
Verse 2: Kathē kāmhī aṇu-mātra — nō bōlāve hā vrttānta — deva-bhaktām chitti — samarasīm khaṇḍanā — in the kathā — not the atom-measure — should this worldly-account be spoken — (else) in the Deva-bhakta chitta-merging — breakage. The discipline: no worldly-talk during kathā — because it breaks the samarasa (chitta-merging) between Deva and bhakta. The aṇu-mātra — even an atom's-measure of worldly-talk damages.
Verse 3: Kām vaiṣṇavā pūjāve — aikā ghēīla jō bhāve — charaṇa-rajā śive — vōḍavilā mastaka — why should vaiṣṇavas be worshipped? — listen — (he) who takes (with) bhāva — places feet-dust on head — placed head (under) feet-dust. The discipline: feet-dust-on-head-with-bhāva is the vaiṣṇava-worship.
Verse 4: Aisē jāṇā he nibhrānta — Deva vaiṣṇavāñcā ankita — alipta atīta — paramita tyāsāṭhī — know this without-doubt — Deva is the ankita (marked-bondsman) of vaiṣṇavas — though alipta-atīta (untouched-transcendent), he is paramita (bound, limited) for their (sake). The bhakti-claim: the otherwise-untouched-transcendent Deva binds-himself for the vaiṣṇavas' sake. The Deva-as-ankita-of-vaiṣṇavas is one of the most-radical bhakti-claims.
Verse 5 (close): Ghālōnī lōḷaṇā — Tukā ālā lōṭāngaṇī — vandī pāya-vaṇī — santa-charaṇīñce māthām — throwing-himself in a roll — Tukā came in lōṭāngaṇa (full-prostration) — bows the pāya-vaṇī (feet-water/path) — placing the head at the sants' feet. Tukārām himself performs the prostration he prescribes.
For someone today
A canonical kīrtana-etiquette text. Why not sit in kathā? — Pāṇḍuranga (himself) stands waiting. Therefore hold dhīra, attention and reverence — for one for whom bhava-sindhu-crossing is to be. In kathā — not an atom-measure of worldly-talk — (else) the Deva-bhakta chitta-merging breaks. Why worship vaiṣṇavas? — (he) who takes with bhāva — places feet-dust on head. Know this — Deva is the ankita (bondsman) of vaiṣṇavas — though untouched-transcendent, he is bound for their sake. Tukā came in full-prostration — bows at the sants' feet.
Five operative-disciplines: (1) attend kīrtana — the Lord is there; (2) hold steady-attention-reverence; (3) no worldly-talk during kīrtana (it breaks the samarasa); (4) take vaiṣṇava-feet-dust with bhāva; (5) Deva is bonded to his bhaktas — the radical bhakti-claim.
Where this applies
- When you're distracted or only half present during a kīrtana or prayer session
- When you feel tempted to gossip or talk business during a religious gathering
- When you wonder whether showing up in person for satsang actually matters
- When you want to show real humility toward a teacher or elder, not just polite words