Abhanga 4061
Tukaram points out how tiny his own requests are compared to the giver he's asking, who is the husband of Lakshmi, the source of all abundance. A thirsty person drinking from the Ganga doesn't shrink the river at all, and in the same way, asking from a wish-fulfilling tree while only ever begging for small, everyday needs misses the scale of what's actually on offer. He says that by simply meditating on the sants, on those who have already realized the truth, the highest reality itself has come within his reach. The lesson is to stop asking small and to trust that the source you're drawing from is inexhaustible.
The verse
माझें मागणें तें किती । दाता लक्ष्मीचा पति ॥१॥
तान्हेल्यानें पीतां पाणी । तेणें गंगा नव्हे उणी ॥ध्रु.॥
कल्पतरु जाला देता । तेथें पोटाचा मागता ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे संतां ध्यातां । परब्रम्ह आलें हाता ॥३॥
Literal translation
What-my-māgaṇē — dātā-Lakṣmī-pati. Thirsty-drinks — Gangā-not-diminished. Kalpataru-giver — pōṭā-petitioner. Tukā: santas-meditated — parabrahma-to-hand.
What it means
A 3-verse small-petitioner-vs-vast-giver text. How small is my request — the giver is the husband of Lakṣmī. The thirsty drinking water — the Gangā isn't diminished. The Kalpataru is the giver — yet there a petty belly-petitioner asks. By meditating on the santas, parabrahma has come to hand. The Gangā-and-thirsty image — infinite-source not diminished by finite-request. Pair with 3117 (philanthropy-as-bhakti-model).
For someone today
Tukaram points out how tiny his own requests are compared to the giver he's asking, who is the husband of Lakshmi, the source of all abundance. A thirsty person drinking from the Ganga doesn't shrink the river at all, and in the same way, asking from a wish-fulfilling tree while only ever begging for small, everyday needs misses the scale of what's actually on offer. He says that by simply meditating on the sants, on those who have already realized the truth, the highest reality itself has come within his reach. The lesson is to stop asking small and to trust that the source you're drawing from is inexhaustible.
मराठी: तुकाराम सांगतात की त्यांच्या स्वतःच्या मागण्या किती लहान आहेत, त्या मानाने ज्याच्याकडे ते मागत आहेत तो लक्ष्मीचा पती आहे, सर्व समृद्धीचा स्रोत आहे. तहानलेला माणूस गंगेचे पाणी पिऊनही गंगा उणी होत नाही, तसेच इच्छापूर्ती करणाऱ्या कल्पवृक्षाकडे केवळ रोजच्या छोट्या गरजांसाठी मागणे म्हणजे प्रत्यक्षात काय दिले जात आहे त्याची व्याप्ती न समजणे. ते म्हणतात की केवळ संतांचे ध्यान केल्याने, ज्यांनी आधीच सत्य अनुभवले आहे त्यांचे चिंतन केल्याने, परब्रह्मच त्यांच्या हाती आले आहे. या शिकवणीचा अर्थ असा की छोट्या मागण्या मागणे थांबवा आणि ज्या स्रोतातून तुम्ही घेत आहात तो अक्षय्य आहे यावर विश्वास ठेवा.
Where this applies
- Tukārām's thirsty-doesn't-diminish-Gangā; Kalpataru-petty-petitioner canonical