Abhanga 4317
Tukaram bows to his sadguru and defines the life of a good person simply as keeping God's name constantly on the tongue.
The verse
चरणीं नमन सद्गूच्या पूर्ण । नित्य हरिगुण गाऊं सदा ॥१॥
गोवर्धन जेणें नखीं हो धरिला । काळ्या नाथिला महाबळी ॥ध्रु.॥
ऐसे हरिगुण गातो वाचेवरि । पतितासी तारी जनार्दन ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे हें चि सज्जना जीवन । वाचेसी स्मरण गोविंदाचें ॥३॥
Literal translation
Charaṇī-namana-sadguru — sing-Hari-guṇa-sadā. Govardhana-held-by-nail — Kāḷiya-mahā-baḷī-tamed. Hari-guṇa-on-vāchā — Janārdana-saves-pātita. Tukā: this-sajjana-jīvana — smaraṇa-of-Govinda-on-vāchā.
What it means
A 3-verse sadguru-bow + Hari-guṇa-sadā text. Full obeisance at the sadguru's feet — let us sing Hari-guṇa always. He who held Govardhana with a single fingernail; tamed the mighty Kāḷiya — such Hari-guṇa I sing on my tongue — Janārdana saves the fallen. Tukā says: this itself is the life of the sajjana — the remembrance of Govinda on the tongue. Pair with 4211 (Govardhana-precedent invoked in dāvānala-cluster), 4297 (7-figure rescue-precedent-list).
For someone today
Tukaram begins by bowing completely at his sadguru's feet, and commits to singing God's virtues every single day. He recalls two famous stories as proof of what God can do, lifting the whole Govardhan mountain with just a fingernail, and taming the fierce serpent Kalinga, showing that even the fallen and the hopeless can be saved. Tukaram says he keeps such stories of God's greatness on his tongue, and closes with a plain, practical definition of what a good life actually is, simply keeping God's name in your speech, day after day.
मराठी: तुकाराम महाराज सुरुवातीला सद्गुरूंच्या चरणी संपूर्ण नमन करतात, आणि रोज हरीचे गुण गाण्याचा निश्चय करतात. देव काय करू शकतो याचे पुरावे म्हणून ते दोन प्रसिद्ध कथा आठवतात, संपूर्ण गोवर्धन पर्वत केवळ एका नखावर उचलणे, आणि भयंकर कालिया नागाला वठणीवर आणणे, यातून दिसते की पडलेल्या आणि निराश झालेल्यांनाही तारता येते. तुकाराम सांगतात की अशा हरीच्या महतीच्या गोष्टी ते सतत वाणीवर ठेवतात, आणि शेवटी खरा चांगला जीवन म्हणजे काय याची साधी, व्यावहारिक व्याख्या देतात, फक्त रोजच्या रोज वाणीत गोविंदाचे नाव ठेवणे.
Where this applies
- When you want a plain, doable definition of what living a good life actually means
- When you draw courage from stories of God's power to save even hopeless situations
- When you begin your day by bowing in gratitude to a teacher before anything else
- When you make singing or speaking God's name a daily habit rather than an occasional act