Abhanga 2939
Simply remembering the divine with love is itself a real meeting, and repeating the Name again and again can calm and cool the whole body and mind.
The verse
हे चि भेटी साच रूपाचा आठव । विसावला जीव आवडीपें ॥१॥
सुखाचें भातुकें करावें जतन । सेविल्या ताहान भूक जाय ॥ध्रु.॥
दुरील जवळी आपण चि होतें । कवळिलें चित्ते जिवापासीं ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे नाम घेतों वेळोवेळां । होतील सकळा शीतळा नाडी ॥३॥
Literal translation
He chi bhēṭī sācha rūpāñcā āṭhava — this very (is the)bhēṭī(meeting) — true — theāṭhava(remembrance) of (your)rūpa; visāvalā jīva āvaḍī-pe — the jīva hasvisāvalā(rested) at (the place of)āvaḍī(love-affection). Sukhāñce bhātuke karāve jatana — thesukha-bhātuke(joy-snack, sweet-meal) should bejatana(preserved); sevilyā tāhāna bhūka jāya — having eaten (it), thirst (and) hunger go. Durīla javaḷī āpaṇa chi hōte — the distant (became) near by-itself; kavaḷīle chitte jivā-pāsī — the chitta embraces (him) at (the) jīva (vital-self). Tukā says: nāma ghētōm veḷōveḷām — I take (the) Name time-after-time; hōtīla sakaḷā śītaḷā nāḍī — all thenāḍī(veins, nerves) will becomeśītaḷa(cool).
What it means
A short bhakti-meeting-joy verse. He chi bhēṭī sācha rūpāñcā āṭhava — visāvalā jīva āvaḍī-pe — this-very-is the meeting — true — remembrance of rūpa — jīva rested at affection. The opening-claim: the bhakti-meeting IS the rūpa-āṭhava (remembrance-of-form). No physical-meeting needed; the remembrance-itself is the meeting.
Sukhāñce bhātuke karāve jatana — sevilyā tāhāna bhūka jāya — the joy-snack should be preserved; eating-it, thirst-and-hunger go. Bhātuke — a child's-sweet-snack. The bhakti-experience is a sweet-snack that-removes-hunger-and-thirst. Jatana — preserve, save-for-later.
Durīla javaḷī āpaṇa chi hōte — kavaḷīle chitte jivā-pāsī — distant-became-near by-itself — chitta embraces at jīva. The bhakti-mechanism: the distant-Lord becomes-near; chitta-embraces him at the jīva-level.
The close: Tukā mhaṇe nāma ghētōm veḷōveḷām — hōtīla sakaḷā śītaḷā nāḍī — I take Name time-after-time — all veins will become cool. The discipline: frequent-Name-taking → cooled-veins (śarīra-śītaḷa). (Pairs with 2909 Hāḷāhaḷa-accepted-sikkā-jāle-sarvāngī-śītaḷa.)
For someone today
Simply remembering the Lord with love is itself the real meeting — no physical presence is required. When your mind rests in that loving remembrance, it is like tasting a sweet treat that quiets both hunger and thirst. What once felt distant draws near on its own, and your heart holds it close within you. Tukaram says that repeating the Name again and again will cool and calm you all the way through, like relief spreading through every vein.
मराठी: प्रेमाने केलेले साधे स्मरणच खरी भेट असते — त्यासाठी प्रत्यक्ष भेटीची गरज नसते. मन जेव्हा त्या प्रेमळ स्मरणात विसावते, तेव्हा ते जणू एखादा गोड घास खाल्ल्यासारखे वाटते, ज्याने भूक आणि तहान दोन्ही शमतात. जे दूर वाटत होते ते आपोआप जवळ येते, आणि मन त्याला हृदयाशी धरून ठेवते. तुकाराम म्हणतात, वारंवार नामस्मरण केल्याने अंगातील प्रत्येक नाडी शांत आणि शीतल होते.
Where this applies
- When you feel far from God or from peace and want a simple way back
- When you're restless or anxious and need something to settle your body and mind
- When you want a daily practice that doesn't depend on any special place or occasion