Abhanga 3970
Tukaram uses martial imagery here: besiege Pandhari, post pickets on the Bhima's bank, pick a quarrel with God, loot the town, seize Rukmini's husband. He is saying that reaching for grace should not be timid or passive. Waiting politely for God to notice you gets you nowhere; the sants are told to march, demand, and claim what they want with total resolve. The war drum has already sounded, so there is no time left for hesitation. This is a call to bring urgency, boldness, and even joyful defiance to your spiritual life.
The verse
वेढा वेढा रे पंढरी । मोर्चे लावा भीमातिरीं ॥१॥
चलाचला संत जन । करा देवासी भांडण ॥ध्रु.॥
लुटालुटा पंढरपूर । धरा रखुमाईचा वर ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे चला । घाव निशानी घातला ॥३॥
Literal translation
Veḍhā veḍhā re paṇḍharī — mōrche lāvā bhīmātirīm — besiege, besiege Paṇḍharī — place pickets on Bhīmā's bank. Chalāchalā santa jana — karā devāsī bhāṇḍaṇa — move-move, sant folk — make quarrel with Deva. Luṭāluṭā paṇḍharapūra — dharā rakhumāīcā vara — loot-loot Paṇḍharpur — seize Rukmīṇī's husband. Tukā mhaṇe chalā — ghāva niśānī ghātalā — Tukā says: go — the blow on niśāṇī is struck.
What it means
A 3-verse militant pilgrimage-rallying. Besiege Paṇḍharī, picket Bhīmā's-bank, quarrel-with-Deva, loot-Paṇḍharpur, seize-Rukmīṇī's-husband-(Viṭṭhal); the-war-drum-is-already-struck — go. Devotion-as-military-conquest of the Lord — joyful spiritual militancy.
For someone today
Tukaram uses martial imagery here: besiege Pandhari, post pickets on the Bhima's bank, pick a quarrel with God, loot the town, seize Rukmini's husband. He is saying that reaching for grace should not be timid or passive. Waiting politely for God to notice you gets you nowhere; the sants are told to march, demand, and claim what they want with total resolve. The war drum has already sounded, so there is no time left for hesitation. This is a call to bring urgency, boldness, and even joyful defiance to your spiritual life.
मराठी: तुकाराम इथे युद्धाची भाषा वापरतात — पंढरीला वेढा घाला, भीमातीरी मोर्चे लावा, देवाशी भांडण करा, पंढरपूर लुटा, रखुमाईच्या पतीला धरा — हे सांगण्यासाठी की कृपा मिळवण्यासाठी नम्रपणे थांबून राहणे पुरेसे नाही. संतांना चालण्याचा, मागण्याचा आणि पूर्ण निश्चयाने हवे ते मिळवण्याचा आदेश दिला आहे. रणशिंग आधीच वाजले आहे, त्यामुळे संकोच करण्याची वेळ नाही. ही शिकवण आपल्या आध्यात्मिक जीवनात निकड, धाडस आणि आनंदी हट्ट आणण्याचे आवाहन आहे.
Where this applies
- Tukārām's militant-pilgrimage rallying corpus
- Companion to 3967 (Hari-warriors)