Abhanga 4145
Treating God as a close friend, letting go of self-importance, and constantly remembering the divine name is the simplest, easiest path to real inner freedom.
The verse
श्रीराम सखा ऐसा धरीं भाव । मीपणाचा ठाव पुसीं मना ॥१॥
शरण निरंतर म्हण तूं गोविंदा । वाचे लावीं धंदा नारायण ॥ध्रु.॥
यापरि सोपान नाहीं रे साधन । वाहातसें आण तुझी मना ॥२॥
नको कांहीं करूं अळस अंतरीं । जपें निरंतर रघुपती ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे मोठा लाभ नरदेहीं । देहीं च विदेही होती नामें ॥४॥
Literal translation
Śrīrāma sakhā aisā dharīm bhāva — mīpaṇāñcā ṭhāva pusīm manā — hold bhāva: Śrīrāma is sakhā — erase the place of mīpaṇa from mana. Śaraṇa nirantara mhaṇa tūm Govindā — vāche lāvīm dhandā Nārāyaṇa — say śaraṇa nirantara to Govinda — bring Nārāyaṇa-dhandā to vāchā. Yāparī sōpāna nāhī re sādhana — no sōpāna sādhana like this; vāhātsē āṇa tujhī manā — I bear (the) oath to your mana. Nakō kāmhī karūm aḷasa antarīm — japa nirantara Raghupatī — don't be lazy in antar — japa Raghupatī nirantara. Tukā mhaṇe mōṭhā lābha nara-dehīm — dehīm cha videhī hōtī nāme — Tukā says: nara-deha is great-lābha — in deha (one) becomes videhī by Name.
What it means
Tukārām's bhakti-method-claim: Rāma-as-sakhā-bhāva, erase-mīpaṇa, śaraṇa-Govinda, Nārāyaṇa-on-tongue — easier than any sādhana. The human-body is a great-gain because in-it one-becomes-videhī by-Name.
For someone today
Tukaram teaches a simple method: treat God as your closest friend, and let go of the sense of self-importance that clouds your mind. Constantly surrender, keep the divine name always on your tongue, and he insists there's no easier path to peace than this steady, humble practice. He calls the human body itself a rare and precious opportunity, because through this constant remembrance a person can feel free and unburdened even while still living an ordinary embodied life.
मराठी: तुकाराम एक साधी पद्धत शिकवतात, देवाला आपला जिवलग मित्र माना आणि मनाला ढगाळणारा अहंभाव सोडून द्या. सतत शरणागत राहा, नाम नेहमी जिभेवर ठेवा, आणि ते ठामपणे सांगतात की या स्थिर, नम्र साधनेइतका सोपा मार्ग दुसरा नाही. मानवी देह हीच एक दुर्मीळ आणि अमूल्य संधी आहे असे ते म्हणतात, कारण या सतत स्मरणातून माणूस सामान्य देहधारी जीवन जगत असतानाही मुक्त आणि निर्भार वाटू शकतो.
Where this applies
- When you want a simpler daily spiritual practice instead of complicated rituals or techniques
- When ego or self-importance keeps getting in the way of your peace of mind
- When you choose to treat something sacred as a close friend rather than a distant authority
- When you feel grateful for the rare opportunity of simply being alive to practice something meaningful