Abhanga 2864
Simply clapping your hands and repeating God's name, open to anyone regardless of background, is offered here as a joyful and complete path to liberation.
The verse
लागोनियां पायां विनवितों तुम्हाला । करें टाळी बोला मुखें नाम ॥१॥
विठ्ठल विठ्ठल म्हणा वेळोवेळां । हा सुखसोहळा स्वर्गी नाहीं ॥ध्रु.॥
कृष्ण विष्णु हरि गोविंद गोपाळ । मार्ग हा प्रांजळ वैकुंठीचा ॥२॥
सकळांसीं येथें आहे अधिकार । कलयुगीं उद्धार हरिनामें ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे नामापाशीं चारी मुक्ति । ऐसें बहुग्रंथीं बोलियेलें ॥४॥
Literal translation
Lāgōnīyām pāyām vinavitōm tumhālā — falling at the feet, I implore you (all); kare ṭāḷī bōlā mukhe nāma — (strike) theṭāḷī(clap) with thekara(hand), speak thenāma(Name) with themukha(mouth). Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala mhaṇā veḷōveḷā — sayViṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala— time-and-time-again; hā sukha-sōhaḷā svargī nāhī — thissukha-sōhaḷā(joy-festivity) is not insvarga(heaven). Krṣṇa Viṣṇu Hari Govinda Gopāḷa — Krṣṇa, Viṣṇu, Hari, Govinda, Gōpāḷa; mārga hā prāñjaḷa Vaikuṇṭhīñcā — this is theprāñjaḷa(clear, straight) path ofVaikuṇṭha. Sakaḷāmsīm yethē āhe adhikāra — all haveadhikāra(qualification) here; kali-yugī uddhāra Hari-nāme — inKali-yuga,uddhāra(lifting-up, deliverance) is byHari-nāma. Tukā says: nāmā-pāśī chārī mukti — at the (Hari-)Nāma is thechārī(four-fold)mukti; aisē bahu-granthīm bōliyele — thus has beenbōliyele(spoken) in manygrantha(scriptures).
What it means
A canonical 4-verse clap-hands-and-say-Viṭṭhal Vārkarī kīrtana text. THE most-frequently-cited text for kīrtana-opening — almost every Vārkarī-kīrtana begins with this verse or one like-it.
Verse 1 (instruction): Lāgōnīyām pāyām vinavitōm tumhālā — kare ṭāḷī bōlā mukhe nāma — falling at the feet, I implore you (all) — clap with hand, say the Name with mouth. The bhakta begs the audience to clap-and-say-the-Name. The two-fold-instruction: kara-ṭāḷī + mukha-nāma.
Dhrūpada: Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala mhaṇā veḷōveḷā — hā sukha-sōhaḷā svargī nāhī — say Viṭhṭhala Viṭhṭhala time-and-time-again — this joy-festivity is not in heaven. The repetition-injunction + the radical-claim: the joy-of-saying-Viṭṭhal-here is greater-than svarga (heaven).
Verse 2 (path): Krṣṇa Viṣṇu Hari Govinda Gopāḷa — mārga hā prāñjaḷa Vaikuṇṭhīñcā — Krṣṇa-Viṣṇu-Hari-Govinda-Gopāḷa — this is the clear-path of Vaikuṇṭha. The five-Name-list as the clear-path-to-Vaikuṇṭha. (Prāñjaḷa — clear, straight, simple.)
Verse 3 (democratization): Sakaḷāmsīm yethē āhe adhikāra — kali-yugī uddhāra Hari-nāme — all have adhikāra here — in Kali-yuga, uddhāra by Hari-nāma. The two-fold democratic-claim: (1) all-have-adhikāra (no caste, gender, learning-prerequisite); (2) in Kali-yuga, uddhāra is specifically-by-Hari-nāma.
Verse 4 (close): Tukā mhaṇe nāmā-pāśī chārī mukti — aisē bahu-granthīm bōliyele — at the Nāma is the four-fold mukti — thus said in many scriptures. The chārī mukti — the four-types of liberation (sāmīpya, sārūpya, sālōkya, sāyujya in some traditions; or alternate fourfold classifications) — all are at the Nāma. The scriptural-warrant: thus said in many granthas.
For someone today
Tukaram bows and pleads with everyone listening, clap your hands and say the name Vitthal out loud, again and again, because the joy of doing that together is greater than anything heaven itself has to offer. He lists a string of names for God, Krishna, Vishnu, Hari, Govinda, Gopal, and says that simply calling on them is a clear, uncomplicated path, one that needs no special training or status. Anyone at all, regardless of birth, learning, or background, is welcome to this practice, and in these hard times, chanting the divine name is itself enough to lift a person up, and he notes that many scriptures back this claim, saying every kind of liberation is found right there in the name.
मराठी: तुकाराम महाराज सर्वांच्या पाया पडून विनवणी करतात, टाळी वाजवा आणि तोंडाने विठ्ठलाचं नाव पुन्हा पुन्हा घ्या, कारण असं एकत्र नाव घेण्यातला आनंद स्वर्गातही मिळत नाही. ते कृष्ण, विष्णू, हरी, गोविंद, गोपाळ अशी नावं सांगतात आणि म्हणतात की फक्त ही नावं घेणं हाच स्पष्ट आणि सोपा मार्ग आहे, त्यासाठी कुठलंही खास शिक्षण किंवा दर्जा लागत नाही. जात, विद्या किंवा पार्श्वभूमी काहीही असो, हा मार्ग सर्वांसाठी खुला आहे, आणि या कठीण काळात केवळ नामस्मरणानेच माणसाचा उद्धार होतो, असं अनेक ग्रंथांतही सांगितलं आहे, नामातच सर्व प्रकारची मुक्ती सामावलेली आहे.
Where this applies
- When you feel spiritual practice must require years of study, wealth, or special status before it truly counts.
- When you want a simple daily practice, like repeating a name or word, that does not need elaborate ritual or equipment.
- When you are leading or joining a group chant or gathering and want to understand why the simple, repeated call matters.
- When you doubt whether ordinary joy, found in singing together, could really rival something as grand as heaven.