Adoration, a litany of holy names
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
अगा श्रीधरा केशवा । अगा बांधवा द्रौपदीच्या ॥1॥
अगा विश्वव्यापका जनादनना । गोकुळवासी गोपिकारमणा ।
अगा गुणनिधि गुणनिधाना । अगा मदनना कंसाचिया ॥ध्रु.॥
अगा सवाौत्तमा सर्वेश्वरा । गुणातीता विश्वंभरा ।
अगा निर्गुणा निराकारा । अगा आधारा दीनाचिया ॥2॥
अगा उपमन्यसहाकारा । अगा शयना फणिवरा ।
अगा काळकृतांत असुरा । अगा अपारा अलक्षा ॥3॥
अगा वैकुंठनिवासा । अगा अयोध्यापति राजहंसा ।
अगा ये पंढरिनिवासा। अगा सर्वेशा सहजरूपा ॥4॥
अगा परमात्मा परमपुरुषा। अगा अव्यया जगदीशा ।
अगा कृपाळुवा आपुल्या दासा । तोडीं भवपाशा तुका ह्मणे ॥5॥
कैसी करूं तुझी सेवा । ऐसें सांगावें जी देवा ।
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
O Shridhara, Keshava. O brother of Draupadi. O all-pervading Janardana, dweller in Gokul, beloved of the gopis. O treasure of virtues, O Destroyer of Kamsa. O Supreme One, Lord of all, transcender of qualities, sustainer of the universe. O formless, shapeless One, O support of the helpless. O protector of Upamanyu, O One who reclines on the great serpent. O Death to the demons, O boundless, imperceptible One. O dweller of Vaikuntha, O sovereign of Ayodhya, O royal swan. O resident of Pandhari, O Lord of all, whose nature is effortless. O supreme Self, O imperishable Lord of the world. O merciful One to Your servants, cut the bonds of worldly existence. Says Tuka. Tell me, how shall I serve You? Instruct me, O God.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
O Shridhara, Keshava. O brother of Draupadi. O all-pervading Janardana, dweller in Gokul, beloved of the gopis. O treasure of virtues, O destroyer of Kamsa. O highest of all, Lord of all, beyond the qualities, holder of the universe. O without quality, without form, O support of the helpless. O helper of Upamanyu, O one who lies on the great serpent. O death to the demons, O boundless, unseeable one. O dweller in Vaikuntha, O king of Ayodhya, royal swan. O dweller in Pandhari, O Lord of all, of natural form. O supreme Self, supreme Person. O changeless Lord of the world. O merciful one to your servant, cut the bonds of worldly life. Tuka says: how should I serve you? Tell me that, God.
What it means
This abhanga is one long calling, heaping Vitthal's names from every story and every level of the tradition into a single breath of address. The names move across opposites on purpose: the cowherd of Gokul and the Lord beyond all qualities, the slayer of demons and the support of the helpless, the form that lies on the serpent and the formless Self. By gathering Krishna, Rama and Vitthal into one stream of names, Tukaram insists they are one God answering to all of them. The piling of titles ends in two plain requests, and that is the point of the litany: cut my worldly bonds, and tell me how I am to serve you.
Devotion to Vitthal
Poems of praise, invocation, and intimate address to Lord Vitthal at Pandharpur.
More in this theme →