Abhanga 2852
Varṇāve te thōrī ēkā Viṭhṭhalāñcī — the greatness only of Viṭhṭhala — that should be varṇāve (described, praised); kīrtī mānavāñcī sāngō naye — the kīrti (fame, praise) of mānava (humans) should not be told.
The verse
वर्णावी ते थोरी एका विठ्ठलाची । कीर्ती मानवाची सांगों नये ॥१॥
उदंड चि जाले जन्मोनियां मेले । होऊनियां गेले राव रंक ॥ध्रु.॥
त्यांचें नाम कोणी नेघे चराचरीं । साही वेद चारी वर्णिताती ॥२॥
अक्षय अढळ चळेना ढळेना । तया नारायणा ध्यात जावें ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे तुझी विठ्ठल चित्ती ध्यातां । जन्ममरण व्यथा दूर होती ॥४॥
Literal translation
Varṇāve te thōrī ēkā Viṭhṭhalāñcī — the greatness only of Viṭhṭhala — that should be varṇāve (described, praised); kīrtī mānavāñcī sāngō naye — the kīrti (fame, praise) of mānava (humans) should not be told. Udaṇḍa chi jāle janmōnīyām mele — many-many have-become — having-been-born, died; hōūnīyām gele rāva ranka — (having) become — kings or paupers — gone. Tyāñce nāma kōṇī negge charācharī — their name no-one takes in char-achara (moving-and-still creation); sāhī veda chāri varṇitātī — the six (six-darśanas) and the four (Vedas) describe (the Lord). Akṣaya aḍhaḷa chaḷēnā ḍhaḷēnā — imperishable, steady, doesn't-move, doesn't-fall; tayā Nārāyaṇā dhyāta jāve — that Nārāyaṇa is who should-be-meditated-on. Tukā says: tujhī Viṭhṭhala chitti dhyātām — meditating-on you, Viṭhṭhala, in (the) chitta; janma-maraṇa-vyathā dūra hōtī — janma-maraṇa-vyathā (birth-death pain) goes far.
What it means
A 4-verse Viṭṭhal-supremacy verse. Varṇāve te thōrī ēkā Viṭhṭhalāñcī — kīrtī mānavāñcī sāngō naye — only Viṭṭhal's greatness should be described — the praise of humans should not be told. The opening canonical-distinction: praise-the-Lord, not humans.
Udaṇḍa chi jāle janmōnīyām mele — hōūnīyām gele rāva ranka — many-many have been born and died — having become kings or paupers, (they) have gone. The transience-observation: both kings and paupers come-and-go.
Tyāñce nāma kōṇī negge charācharī — sāhī veda chāri varṇitātī — their (transient humans') name no-one takes in the moving-and-still creation — (whereas) the six (śāstras) and four (Vedas) describe (the Lord). The contrast: human-fame fades; Vedic-fame is for the Lord.
Akṣaya aḍhaḷa chaḷēnā ḍhaḷēnā — tayā Nārāyaṇā dhyāta jāve — imperishable, steady, neither-moves-nor-falls — that Nārāyaṇa should be meditated on. The four attributes: akṣaya (imperishable), aḍhaḷa (steady), chaḷēnā (doesn't-move), ḍhaḷēnā (doesn't-fall). All four-fold-stability attributes.
The close: Tukā mhaṇe tujhī Viṭhṭhala chitti dhyātām — janma-maraṇa-vyathā dūra hōtī — Tukā: meditating-on you, Viṭṭhala, in the chitta — birth-death-pain goes far. The outcome-claim: chitta-dhyāna-of-Viṭṭhala removes the birth-death-pain.
For someone today
A canonical Viṭṭhal-supremacy text. The greatness only of Viṭṭhal — that should be praised. The praise of humans should not be told. Many-many have been born and died — kings or paupers — gone. Their name no-one takes — (whereas) the Vedas describe (the Lord). Imperishable, steady, doesn't-move, doesn't-fall — that Nārāyaṇa should be meditated on. Meditating on you, Viṭṭhala, in the chitta — birth-death-pain goes far away. The verse offers: (1) the discipline of praising-only-the-Lord-not-humans; (2) the transience-observation that human-fame fades while Vedic-fame is for the Lord; (3) the four-fold-stability-attributes; (4) the chitta-dhyāna-removes-vyathā claim.
Where this applies
- The canonical only-Viṭṭhal-deserves-praise, no-mānava-kīrti claim
- Recognizing akṣaya-aḍhaḷa attributes of Nārāyaṇa
- Meditating-on-Viṭṭhal — janma-maraṇa-vyathā-removed claim
- The discipline of not-praising-humans in bhakti-life