Abhanga 3028
The ache of being separated from God is like a cow torn from her calf, a longing so urgent that even hearing about him from others is not enough until you find him yourself.
The verse
कोणे गांवीं आहे सांगा हा विठ्ठल । जरी ठावा असेल तुम्हां कोणा ॥१॥
लागतसें पायां येतों लोटांगणीं । मात तरी कोणी सांगा याची ॥ध्रु.॥
गुण रूप याचे वाणिती या संतां । मज क्षेम देतां सुख वाटे ॥२॥
सर्वस्वें हा जीव ठेवीन चरणीं । पांडुरंग कोणी दावी तया ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे गाईंवत्सा तडातोडी । तैसी जाते घडी एकी मज ॥४॥
Literal translation
Kōṇe gāvīm āhe sāngā hā Viṭhṭhal — in which village is this Viṭhṭhal — please tell; jarī ṭhāvā asela tumhām kōṇā — if any of you knows. Lāgatasēm pāyām yetōm lōṭāngaṇīm — I fall at (your) feet — come prostrating; māta tarī kōṇī sāngā yāñcī — at least, someone, please tell news of him. Guṇa-rūpa yāñce vāṇitī yā samtām — the sants recite his guṇa-rūpa; maja kṣema detām sukha vāṭe — giving me kṣema brings sukha. Sarvasvē hā jīva ṭhevīm charaṇīm — with all (my) being, I will place jīva at the charaṇa; Pāṇḍuranga kōṇī dāvī tayā — someone, please show me Pāṇḍuranga. Tukā mhaṇe gāīm-vatsā taḍātōḍī — Tukā says: cow-and-calf wrenched-apart; taisī jāte ghaḍī ekī maja — so each ghaḍī passes for me.
What it means
A canonical Tukārām yearning-for-Viṭhṭhal abhang. The persona is a-bhakta-searching-village-to-village for-Viṭhṭhal. The opening-question (kōṇē gāvīm āhe — in-which-village-is-he) is Vārkarī-iconic — a bhakta-on-foot-asking-strangers-for-the-Lord's-whereabouts.
The verse contains the cow-and-calf-wrenched-apart (gāīm-vatsā taḍātōḍī) image — one of Tukārām's most-poignant images-for-bhakta-Lord-separation. The cow-and-calf-bond is the Vārkarī's-favorite-image for-the-irreversible-pull of-bhakti-yearning.
Compare-Tukārām's-own 2811 (chakora-and-moon, hungry-baby-for-mother), 3027 (prāṇa-like-fish-without-water).
For someone today
Tukārām speaks here like a pilgrim wandering from village to village, asking every stranger: which village is Viṭhṭhal in? If any of you knows, please tell me. He falls at people's feet, almost prostrating himself, just begging for any news of the Lord. Hearing the saints describe his beauty and qualities brings comfort, but it isn't enough — he still longs to see him directly. He vows to give his whole being, placing his very self at the Lord's feet, if only someone would show him where Pāṇḍuranga is. He compares his ache to a cow torn apart from her calf — that's how every single moment drags on for him in this separation. It captures the ache of being separated from God as urgent as a cow torn from her calf, a longing so deep that hearing about him from others isn't enough until you find him yourself.
मराठी: तुकाराम येथे जणू गावोगाव फिरणाऱ्या यात्रेकरूसारखे बोलतात — प्रत्येकाला विचारतात, विठ्ठल कोणत्या गावात आहे, कुणाला माहीत असेल तर सांगा. ते लोकांच्या पायांवर डोकं ठेवतात, जवळजवळ लोटांगण घालतात, फक्त विठ्ठलाची काही खबर मिळावी म्हणून. संत त्याचे गुणरूप वर्णन करताना ऐकून बरे वाटते, पण ते पुरेसे नाही — त्यांना प्रत्यक्ष दर्शनाची ओढ आहे. आपला संपूर्ण जीव त्याच्या चरणी वाहीन, फक्त कुणीतरी पांडुरंग कुठे आहे ते दाखवा, असा ते नवस करतात. आपल्या या विरहाला ते गाय आणि वासरू ताटातूट झाल्याच्या वेदनेशी जोडतात — प्रत्येक क्षण त्यांना तसाच तीव्र वाटतो. परमेश्वरापासून दुरावण्याची वेदना गाय आणि वासराच्या ताटातुटीसारखी असते, इतकी तीव्र आस असते की दुसऱ्यांकडून त्याच्याबद्दल ऐकणे पुरेसे नसते, जोवर स्वतः त्याला गाठत नाही, हेच हा अभंग सांगतो.
Where this applies
- When you feel far from someone or something essential and keep asking others for news of them
- When hearing other people talk about their faith comforts you, but does not fully satisfy your own longing
- When you are separated from someone you love deeply, like a parent from a child, and every moment apart feels long
- When you want to commit your whole life to reaching something, not just admire it from a distance