Abhanga 3134
Holding the divine's feet in the mind is itself complete rest, and loving a felt, personal devotion needs no rush toward formless oneness.
The verse
माझिया जीवासी हे चि पैं विश्रांति । तुझे पाय चत्तिीं पांडुरंगा ॥१॥
भांडवल गांठी आलें सपुरतें । समाधान चत्तिें मानियेलें ॥ध्रु.॥
उदंड उच्चारें घातला पसरु । रूपावरी भरु आवडीचा ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे मज भक्तीची आवडी । अभेदीं तांतडी नाहीं म्हुण ॥३॥
Literal translation
Mājhiyā jīvāsī he chi paim viśrāmti — to my jīva, this very (is) viśrānti; tujhe pāya chittīm Pāṇḍurangā — your feet in (my) chitta, Pāṇḍurangā. Bhāṇḍavala gāṇṭhī āle sapurate — the capital in gāṇṭhī has come-to-be sapurate; samādhāna chitte māniyele — the chitti has felt samādhāna. Udamḍa uchchāre ghātalā pasaru — with much uchchāra, (you) have spread pasaru; rūpāvarī bharu āvaḍīñcā — on (your) rūpa, the load of āvaḍī. Tukā mhaṇe maja bhaktīñcī āvaḍī — Tukā says: I have fondness for bhakti; abhedīm tāmtaḍī nāhī mhuṇa — no haste for abheda.
What it means
A 3-verse bhakti-preference text by Tukārām.
The claim: Your-feet-in-my-chitta is-the-viśrānti; bhāṇḍavala-in-gāṇṭhī sufficient; chitti-samādhāna; on-your-rūpa my-āvaḍī-load. I-have-fondness-for-bhakti — no-haste-for-abheda (non-dual-merger).
The closing-claim is striking: Tukārām prefers-bhakti-and-rūpa over-non-dual-abheda. The bhakta-loves-the-form-of-Pāṇḍuranga more-than the-formless-abheda.
For someone today
Tukārām's bhakti-fondness claim. To my jīva, this very (is) rest — your feet in (my) chitta, Pāṇḍurangā. The capital in (my) purse has come-to-be sufficient; the mind has felt peace. With much utterance, (you) have spread the extension; on (your) rūpa, the load of (my) fondness. I have fondness for bhakti; I have no haste for abheda. The verse offers this preference: fondness for bhakti over any rush toward non-dual union.
मराठी: तुकाराम भक्तीबद्दलची आपली ओढ सांगतात. पांडुरंगा, तुझे पाय माझ्या मनात असणे हीच माझ्या जिवाला खरी विश्रांती आहे. माझ्या गाठीशी असलेले भांडवल आता पुरेसे वाटते, आणि मनाला समाधान लाभले आहे. तुझ्या नामाच्या उच्चाराने सर्वत्र विस्तार झाला, आणि तुझ्या रूपावर माझ्या आवडीचा भार साठला आहे. तुकाराम म्हणतात, मला भक्तीचीच आवड आहे, अद्वैतासाठी घाई नाही. अशा प्रकारे हा अभंग सांगतो की भक्त निर्गुण-अद्वैताच्या घाईपेक्षा सगुण भक्तीच्या ओढीलाच प्राधान्य देतो.
Where this applies
- When you feel restless and searching, and want to know that simple devotion can itself be the rest you are looking for
- When you feel pressure to chase advanced spiritual states instead of enjoying the relationship you already have
- When you love worshipping a specific form or image of the divine and wonder if that is somehow less than formless meditation
- When your mind feels scattered and you need one steady thought to bring it back to peace