Abhanga 2867
The greatest devotion, Tukārām says, is accepting what life has given you with a peaceful mind and handing its burdens to God instead of adding anxiety on top of them.
The verse
हे चि थोर भक्ति आवडती देवा । संकल्पावी माया संसाराची ॥१॥
ठेविलें अनंतें तैसें चि राह वें । चित्ती असों द्यावें समाधान ॥ध्रु.॥
वाहिल्या उद्वेग दुःख चि केवळ । भोगणें तें फळ संचिताचें ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे घालूं तयावरी भार । वाहूं हा संसार देवा पायीं ॥३॥
Literal translation
He chi thōra bhakti āvaḍatī Devā — this very (is) thethōra(great) bhakti,āvaḍatī(dear) to Deva; samkalpāvī māyā samsārāñcī — (one should)samkalpāvī(make a formal-offering, dedicate bysamkalpa) of themāyāofsamsāra. Ṭhevilē Anantē taise chi rāhāve — what theAnanta(infinite-Lord) has placed — let-it-stay just-like-that; chitti asō dyāve samādhāna — letsamādhāna(peace, contentment) be in the chitta. Vāhilyā udvega duḥkha chi keveḷa — carryingudvega(anxiety) is onlyduḥkha; bhōgaṇe te phaḷa samcitāñce — thebhōgaṇa(experiencing) is just thephaḷa(fruit) ofsamcita(accumulated-karma). Tukā says: ghālūm tayāvarī bhāra — let usghālūm(throw, place) thebhāra(burden) on him; vāhūm hā samsāra Devā pāyī — let us carry this samsāra at Deva's feet.
What it means
A canonical 4-verse bhakti-of-equanimity text. THE most-quoted Tukārām text on ṭhevilē-Anantē-taisē-chi-rāhāve (stay-as-the-Ananta-has-placed-you).
Verse 1: He chi thōra bhakti āvaḍatī Devā — samkalpāvī māyā samsārāñcī — this is the great bhakti dear to Deva — make samkalpa (formal-offering) of samsāra-māyā. The samkalpa — formally-offering-as-dedicated. The bhakta dedicates-samsāra-itself to Deva.
Dhrūpada: Ṭhevilē Anantē taise chi rāhāve — chitti asō dyāve samādhāna — what the Ananta has placed — stay just-like-that — let samādhāna be in the chitta. The canonical-line of equanimity-of-circumstance: accept-what-the-Ananta-has-placed; let-chitta-be-at-samādhāna.
Verse 2: Vāhilyā udvega duḥkha chi keveḷa — bhōgaṇe te phaḷa samcitāñce — carrying udvega is only duḥkha — the experiencing is just the fruit of samcita. The diagnostic: udvega (anxiety) adds-duḥkha-to-existing-duḥkha. The experiencing is samcita-karma-fruit-anyway — it will-occur-regardless. The udvega is the additional-self-imposed-duḥkha.
Verse 3 (close): Tukā mhaṇe ghālūm tayāvarī bhāra — vāhūm hā samsāra Devā pāyī — let us throw the burden on him — let us carry samsāra at Deva's feet. The relief-strategy: throw-the-burden on the Lord; carry-the-samsāra (as offering) at Deva's feet.
This is the foundational Vārkarī text on equanimity-with-circumstance + samsāra-as-offering. The ṭhevilē-Anantē-taisē-chi-rāhāve line is among the most-quoted Tukārām lines in Marathi-folk-culture.
For someone today
This is Tuka's classic teaching on equanimity, one of his most quoted lines in all of Marathi culture. He says the greatest devotion of all is simply this: to offer your entire worldly life to God as a gift, formally and completely. Whatever the Infinite Lord has placed in front of you, stay right where you are with it, and let your mind remain at peace. Worrying and getting anxious only adds extra suffering on top of what's already coming your way as the fruit of your past actions — anxiety doesn't change the outcome, it just makes it heavier to bear. So Tuka says: let's place the whole burden on him, and carry this worldly life as an offering laid at God's feet. This is the foundational teaching behind the famous Marathi saying that whatever the Infinite has given, accept it and stay steady.
मराठी: ही तुकाराम महाराजांची समत्वावरची क्लासिक शिकवण आहे, मराठी संस्कृतीत सर्वाधिक उद्धृत होणाऱ्या ओळींपैकी एक. ते म्हणतात, सर्वात मोठी भक्ती हीच आहे — आपले संपूर्ण संसारजीवन देवाला औपचारिकपणे, पूर्णत्वाने अर्पण करणे. अनंताने जे काही तुझ्यासमोर ठेवले आहे, त्याच स्थितीत राहा, आणि मन शांत ठेव. काळजी आणि चिंता केल्याने आधीच नियतीने ठरवलेल्या दुःखावर आणखी दुःखाची भर पडते — चिंतेने परिणाम बदलत नाही, तो केवळ अधिक जड होतो. म्हणून तुकाराम महाराज म्हणतात — चला, हा सगळा भार त्याच्यावरच टाकूया, आणि हे संसारजीवन देवाच्या चरणी अर्पण म्हणून वाहूया. 'ठेविले अनंते तैसेचि राहावे' या प्रसिद्ध मराठी उक्तीमागील मूळ शिकवण हीच आहे.
Where this applies
- When your circumstances feel fixed and you keep fighting against them instead of accepting them.
- When you're anxious about outcomes you can't control and the worry itself is making things worse.
- When life's burdens feel too heavy to carry alone.
- When you want to turn ordinary daily responsibilities into an act of devotion rather than a chore.