Abhanga 3097
The same Rama who is beyond scripture and yogic meditation freely eats humble food, tells stories to monkeys, and lodges with a fisherman, showing that divine grace reaches ordinary, overlooked people as readily as it reaches scholars and yogis.
The verse
साही शास्त्रां अतिदुरी तो परमात्मा श्रीहरि । तो दशरथाचे घरीं क्रीडतो राम ॥१॥
शिवाचें निजदेह वाल्मीकाचें निजगुहे । तो भिल्लटीचीं फळें खाय श्रीराम तो ॥ध्रु.॥
योगियांचे मनीं नातुडे चिंतनीं । वानरांचे कानीं गोष्टी सांगे ॥२॥
चरणीं शिळा उद्धरी नामें गणिका तारी । तो कोळिया घरीं पाहुणा राम ॥३॥
क्षण एक सुरवरा नातुडे नमस्कारा । तो रिसा आणि वानरा क्षम दे राम ॥४॥
राम सांवळा सगुण राम योगियाचें ध्यान । राम राजीवलोचन तुका चरण वंदितो ॥५॥
Literal translation
V1: The paramātmā Śrīhari, far-beyond the 6-śāstras — plays Rāma in Daśaratha's house V2 (dhrva): Śiva's nija-deha, Vālmīka's nija-guhā — but eats Bhillaṭī's fruits as Śrīrāma V3: Yogis' minds can't catch in chintana — but tells stories to vānaras' ears V4: Stone (Ahalyā) uplifted by feet, Gaṇikā taken-across by Name — but a guest at Kōḷī's house V5: Not caught by suras' namaskāra for one kṣaṇa — but shows mercy to bear (Jāmbavāna) and monkey (Hanumāna) V6 (closing): Rāma sāvaḷā saguṇa, Rāma yōgi's-dhyāna, Rāma rājīvalōchana — Tukā vandates (his) feet
What it means
A canonical 5-verse Rāma-stotra-with-paradoxes by Tukārām.
Each-verse-pairs a-cosmic-high-claim with-an-earthly-low-act: 1. Far-beyond-6-śāstras / plays-in-Daśaratha's-house 2. Śiva's-deha, Vālmīka's-guhā / eats-Bhillaṭī's-fruits 3. Yogi-mind-doesn't-catch-in-chintana / tells-vānaras-stories 4. Stone-uplifted, Gaṇikā-saved / guest-at-Kōḷī's-house 5. Suras-can't-grasp-in-one-namaskāra / mercy-to-bear-and-monkey
The paradox: Rāma-is-simultaneously transcendent-cosmic and intimately-low-domestic. The yogi's-meditation-misses-him; the-vānara-(monkey)-and-bear-receive-his-mercy. The 6-śāstras can't-reach; Daśaratha's-house-holds-him.
The 6-verse-Rāma-stotra closing (Rāma sāvaḷā saguṇa, Rāma yōgi's-dhyāna, Rāma rājīvalōchana — Tukā vandates feet) is one-of-the-most-beautiful Rāma-praises in the Tukārām-corpus.
Compare-Tukārām's 3066 (Jñāneśvara-praise), 3044 (12-verse-avatāra-stotra), 2810 (saints-list with-Rohidāsa-and-Sajana-Kasāī from-bhakti-traditions parallel-to-Bhillaṭī-and-Kōḷī).
For someone today
Tukārām's hymn to Rāma built on paradoxes. The paramātmā Śrīhari — far beyond the six śāstras — plays as Rāma in Daśaratha's house. He is Śiva's own body, Vālmīka's own cave, and yet he eats the fruits of Bhillaṭī (Śabarī) as Śrīrāma. The minds of yogis cannot catch him in meditation, yet he tells stories in the ears of the vānaras. He lifts a stone with his feet and carries a gaṇikā across by the Name, yet he is a guest at the fisherman's house. For a single moment he escapes even the gods' namaskāra, yet he shows mercy to the bear and the monkey. Rāma is dark and radiant with form, Rāma is the yogi's dhyāna, Rāma has lotus eyes — Tukā bows at his feet. The verse offers this classic devotional hymn built on paradox, holding the cosmic and the humble together at once.
मराठी: तुकारामांचे हे विरोधाभासांनी युक्त रामस्तोत्र आहे. सहा शास्त्रांच्याही पलीकडे असणारा परमात्मा श्रीहरी दशरथाच्या घरी रामरूपाने खेळतो. तो शिवाचा स्वतःचा देह, वाल्मीकांची स्वतःची गुहा असूनही श्रीराम म्हणून भिल्लटीची (शबरीची) फळे खातो. योग्यांच्या मनाला चिंतनात तो सापडत नाही, तरी वानरांच्या कानात गोष्टी सांगतो. आपल्या पायांनी दगडाचा उद्धार करतो, नामाने गणिकेला तारतो, तरी कोळ्याच्या घरी पाहुणा होतो. एका क्षणात देवांच्याही नमस्कारात तो सापडत नाही, तरी अस्वल आणि वानराला क्षमा देतो. राम सावळा-सगुण आहे, राम योग्याचे ध्यान आहे, राम राजीवलोचन आहे — तुका त्याच्या चरणांना वंदन करतो. हा अभंग या विरोधाभासांवर आधारित पारंपरिक भक्तिस्तोत्राला मान्यता देतो, ज्यात वैश्विक आणि नम्र एकाच वेळी सामावलेले आहेत.
Where this applies
- Canonical Rāma-stotra with bhakti-paradoxes
- 5 paradox-pairs: cosmic-high / earthly-low
- Companion to 3044 (avatāra-stotra), 2810 (saints-list)