Abhanga 4233
Outward marks of devotion belong to and honor the Lord, not oneself, and giving yourself fully and singly to service is what makes you strong enough to rise above ordinary worldly life.
The verse
गोपीचंदन मुद्रा धरणें । आम्हां लेणें वैष्णवां ॥१॥
मिरवूं अळंकार लेणें । हीं भूषणें स्वामीचीं ॥ध्रु.॥
विकलों ते सेवाजीवें । एक्या भावें एकविध ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे शूर जालों । बाहेर आलों संसारा ॥३॥
Literal translation
Gōpīchandana mudrā dharaṇe — the gōpīchandana mudrā to wear; āmhām leṇe vaiṣṇavām — our leṇa, we Vaiṣṇavas. Miravūm aḷankāra leṇe — we show-off the aḷankāra and leṇa; hīm bhūṣaṇe svāmīñcīm — these are the svāmī's bhūṣaṇas. Vikalōm te sevā-jīve — I have been sold to sevā-jīva; ekyā bhāve ekavidha — with one bhāva, eka-vidha. Tukā mhaṇe śūra jālōm — Tukā says: I have become a śūra; bāhera ālōm samsārā — I have come out of samsāra.
What it means
A canonical 3-verse Vaiṣṇava-identity text. Gōpīchandana-mudrā as Vaiṣṇava ornament; sold-to-sevā-jīva; one-fold-bhāva; became-śūra-out-of-samsāra.
For someone today
Tukārām says that the sacred forehead mark he wears as a Vaiṣṇava is not his own decoration to boast about — it belongs to his master and honors him. He has sold himself entirely into a life of devoted service, holding to a single, undivided love. Because of that wholehearted surrender, Tukārām says, he has become strong — a hero who has stepped clear outside the ordinary pull of worldly life.
मराठी: तुकाराम म्हणतात की वैष्णव म्हणून ते जे गोपीचंदनाचे टिळे कपाळावर धारण करतात, तो त्यांचा स्वतःचा अलंकार नाही तर तो त्यांच्या स्वामींचा सन्मान आहे. त्यांनी स्वतःला संपूर्णपणे सेवेच्या जीवनाला विकले आहे, एकाच अभंग भावाने. या पूर्ण समर्पणामुळेच, तुकाराम म्हणतात, ते शूर झाले आहेत — संसाराच्या सामान्य ओढीतून बाहेर पडलेला वीर.
Where this applies
- When you wear a symbol of faith or belonging and want to remember what it truly represents
- When you commit fully to serving a cause or person rather than dividing your loyalty
- When you feel pulled between showing off devotion and honoring what it actually stands for
- When you want the strength to step outside the ordinary pull of worldly distractions