Abhanga 2951
Surround yourself with many forms of devotion at once, keeping the Name constantly present, and that consistent, layered practice builds real inner strength.
The verse
तुझें वर्म हातीं । दिलें सांगोनियां संतीं ॥१॥
मुखीं नाम धरीन कंठीं । अवघा सांटवीन पोटीं ॥ध्रु.॥
नवविधा वेढिन आधीं । सांपडलासी भावसंधी ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे बळिये गाढे । कळिकाळ पायां पडे ॥३॥
Literal translation
Tujhe varma hātī — yourvarma(secret) (is) in (my) hand; dile sāngōnīyām santī — the sants have given (it), having told (me). Mukhī nāma dharīna kaṇṭhī — I will hold the Name in (my) mouth, in (my) throat; avaghā sāmṭavīna pōṭī — (and) store everything in (my) belly. Nava-vidhā veḍhīna ādhī — with thenava-vidhā(nine-fold bhakti), I willveḍhīna(surround, encircle) (you) beforehand; sāpaḍalāsī bhāva-samdhi — you have been-caught at thebhāva-samdhi(joint, junction of bhāva). Tukā says: baḷiye gāḍhe — forcefully strong; kaḷi-kāḷa pāyām paḍe — Kali-time falls at (his) feet.
What it means
A short trap-the-Lord-by-bhakti verse. Tujhe varma hātī — dile sāngōnīyām santī — your secret is in my hand — sants told me. The opening-claim: the secret-of-capturing-the-Lord is known (taught by sants).
Mukhī nāma dharīna kaṇṭhī — avaghā sāmṭavīna pōṭī — I'll hold Name in mouth-and-throat — store all in belly. The bhakta's three-fold-internal-Name-storage: mouth (mukha), throat (kaṇṭha), belly (pōṭa).
Nava-vidhā veḍhīna ādhī — sāpaḍalāsī bhāva-samdhi — with nava-vidhā (nine-fold bhakti), I'll surround you; you've been caught at bhāva-samdhi. The nava-vidhā bhakti — the nine-fold-bhakti (śravaṇa, kīrtana, smaraṇa, pāda-sevana, archana, vandana, dāsya, sakhya, ātma-nivedana — the Bhāgavata's nine-paths). The bhakta uses-them-as-a-surrounding-trap. Bhāva-samdhi — the joint-of-bhāva — is where the Lord-is-caught.
The close: Tukā mhaṇe baḷiye gāḍhe — kaḷi-kāḷa pāyām paḍe — forcefully strong — Kali-time falls at feet. The radical-claim: the bhakta becomes-forcefully-strong; even Kali-time falls-at-his-feet. (Pairs with 2855 kāḷa-yama-becomes-śaraṇa, 2945 seeing-us-Kāḷa-fears.)
For someone today
Tukaram plays with the image of catching the Lord — a secret the sants themselves have taught him. He resolves to keep the Name constantly on his lips and in his throat, and to store it deep within himself, surrounding the Lord from every side through devotion's nine paths — listening, chanting, remembering, serving, worshiping, bowing, serving as a servant, being a friend, and offering his whole self. It is exactly at that tender meeting point of love and faith, he says, where the Lord gets caught. And once a devotee grows this strong, even the fiercest forces of this troubled age fall at his feet.
मराठी: तुकाराम देवाला भक्तीने पकडण्याची एक खेळकर कल्पना मांडतात — हे रहस्य संतांनीच त्यांना सांगितलेले आहे. ते ठरवतात की नामाला सतत मुखात व कंठात धरून ठेवतील, आणि अंतःकरणात खोलवर साठवतील, आणि नऊ प्रकारच्या भक्तीने — श्रवण, कीर्तन, स्मरण, सेवा, अर्चन, वंदन, दास्य, सख्य आणि आत्मनिवेदन — देवाला सर्व बाजूंनी घेरतील. भाव आणि श्रद्धेच्या त्या नाजूक संधिस्थानीच देव सापडतो, असे ते म्हणतात. आणि भक्त एवढा बलवान झाला की या कठीण काळातील भयंकर शक्तीसुद्धा त्याच्या पायाशी नतमस्तक होतात.
Where this applies
- When you want a structured, many-sided approach to deepen your devotion rather than one thin habit
- When you feel like your spiritual life needs a more determined, active effort
- When you want reassurance that consistent devotion builds real inner strength over time