Mythology, the rescuer bound by His own pledge
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
गजइंद्र पशु आप्तें मोकलिला । तो तुज स्मरला पांडुरंगा ॥1॥
त्यासाठीं गरुड सांडुनि धांवसी । माया झळंबेसी दिनानाथा ॥ध्रु.॥
धेनु वत्सावरी झेंप घाली जैसी । तैसें गजेंद्रासी सोडविलें ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे ब्रीद बांधलें यासाठीं । भक्तांसी संकटीं रक्षावया ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
The elephant Gajendra, abandoned by his own kin, cried out to You, O Panduranga. For his sake, You left Garuda behind and came running, O Lord of the lowly. Just as a cow rushes toward her calf, so did You rescue Gajendra. Says Tuka, this is the pledge You have bound upon Yourself: to protect Your devotees in their hour of peril.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
The elephant Gajendra was a beast, left by his own people. He remembered you, Panduranga. For his sake you left Garuda behind and came running, you who love the lowly; your power surged out like a flood. As a cow leaps toward her calf, so you set Gajendra free. Tuka says: you bound this vow upon yourself for this very reason, to guard your devotees in their hour of danger.
What it means
Tukaram tells the story of Gajendra, the elephant seized in the water and abandoned by his herd, who cried out the Name and was saved. He stresses how the Lord came: leaving even Garuda behind, rushing as a cow rushes to her calf, the lover of the lowly moving with the urgency of a parent. The poem then names why this happens at all. The Lord has bound a pledge upon himself, a vow to protect his devotees in danger, and he keeps it. The comfort is that the same vow still stands for anyone who calls.
Sacred Stories
Abhangas drawing on mythological narratives to illuminate spiritual truths.
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