Abhanga 4405
A complete prayer can be simple: ask for peace and compassion in your heart, speech turned toward God, freedom from inner division, and to belong to God.
The verse
हें चि मागणें विठाबाईं । पायीं ठेवूनियां डोईं ॥१॥
शांति दया अंतःकरणीं । रंगो रामनामीं वाणी ॥ध्रु.॥
मूळ द्वंद्वाचें विघडो । निजानंदीं वृत्ति जडो ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे हरी । आतां आपुलेंसें करीं ॥३॥
Literal translation
This-only-māgaṇē-Viṭhābāī — head-at-feet. Śānti-dayā-antaḥkaraṇa — vāṇī-Rāma-Nāma. Mūḷa-of-dvandva-untie — vrtti-in-nija-ānanda. Tukā: Hari — make-me-your-own.
What it means
A 3-verse Viṭhābāī-petition. This only is my request, Viṭhābāī — placing my head on your feet. Peace and compassion in my heart — speech be coloured in Rāma-Nāma. The root of duality — be untied; the disposition — be attached in own-bliss. Tukā says: Hari — now make me your own. The 4-fold request: 1. śānti-dayā in antaḥkaraṇa 2. vāṇī coloured in Rāma-Nāma 3. mūḷa of dvandva untied 4. vrtti in nija-ānanda
A complete inner-transformation-petition. The closing make-me-your-own is the bhakti-summative-prayer.
For someone today
This abhang is a simple, complete prayer of surrender. Tukaram bows his head at Vithabai's feet and asks for just a few things: peace and compassion inside his heart, speech that naturally turns to God's name, freedom from the pull of duality and division, and a mind settled in its own inner joy. He closes by asking God to simply claim him as God's own, not asking for anything grand or complicated, just to belong.
मराठी: हा अभंग एक साधी आणि परिपूर्ण शरणागतीची प्रार्थना आहे. तुकाराम विठाबाईंच्या पायावर डोके ठेवून फक्त काही गोष्टी मागतात - अंतःकरणात शांती आणि दया, वाणी सहज रामनामाने रंगावी, द्वैताचे मूळ सुटावे, आणि वृत्ती स्वतःच्याच आनंदात स्थिर व्हावी. शेवटी ते फक्त एवढेच मागतात की देवाने त्यांना आपले म्हणून स्वीकारावे - मोठे किंवा गुंतागुंतीचे काही नाही, फक्त आपलेपणा हवा आहे.
Where this applies
- When you do not know what to pray for and want a short, honest, complete request
- When your words come out harsh and you wish they were gentler and kinder
- When you feel torn by a divided or conflicted mind
- When you want to feel that you truly belong to something bigger than your own struggles