Saint Tukaram Gatha Translation

"To feel that 'all people are God' and 'the whole world is full of happiness,' one must have the personal experience of God. Simply repeating the words is not useful." - Saint Tukaram.

Gatha Abhang 1158 - Hoil jaala ange
होईल झाला अंगें देव जो आपण । तयासी हे जन अवघे देव ॥१॥
येरांनीं सांगावी रेमट काहाणी । चित्ता रंजवणी करावया ॥२॥
धाला आणिकांची नेणे तहानभूक । सुखें पाहें सुख आपुलिया ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे येथे पाहिजे अनुभव । शब्दाचे गौरव कामा नये ॥४॥

IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
hōīl jālā aṅgēn dēva jō āpaṇa |
tayāsī hē jana avaghē dēva ||1||
yērānnīn sāṅgāvī rēmaṭa kāhāṇī |
chittā rañjavanī karāvayā ||2||
dhālā āṇikānchī nēṇē tahānabhūka |
sukhēn pāhēn sukha āpuliyā ||3||
tukā mhaṇē yēthē pāhijē anubhava |
śabdāchē gaurava kāmā nayē ||4||

Translation
1. Only those who become God themselves through the grace of Lod Shrihari and Guru, will truly feel that 'all people are forms of God.’
2. Others will just tell pointless stories of divine knowledge to amuse people.
3. Just as someone who has eaten until full cannot imagine the hunger and thirst of other people, a liberated man who has become a God himself only sees happiness in the whole world from his own happiness.
4. Tuka says: To feel that 'all people are God' and 'the whole world is full of happiness,' one must have the personal experience of God. Simply repeating the words is not useful.
***

"Such hypocrites stubbornly refuse to accept the teachings of the true and great saints." - Saint Tukaram.

Gatha Abhang 1157 - Tochi latikyaamaajee bhala
तोचि लटिक्यामाजी भला । म्हणे देव म्यां देखिला ॥१॥
ऐशियाच्या उपदेशें । भवबंधन कैसें नासे ।
बुडवी आपणासरिसे । अभिमानें आणिकांस ॥२॥
आणिक नाहीं जोडा । देव म्हणवि तया मूढा ॥३॥
आणिकांचे न मनी साचें । तुका म्हणे या श्रेष्ठांचें ॥४॥

IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
tōchi laṭikyāmājī bhalā | mhaṇē dēva myān dēkhilā ||1||
aiśiyāchyā upadēśēn | bhavabandhana kaisēn nāsē |
buḍavī āpaṇāsarisē | abhimānēn āṇikāns ||2||
āṇika nāhīn jōḍā | dēva mhaṇavī tayā mūḍhā ||3||
āṇikānchē na manī sāchēn | tukā mhaṇē yā śrēṣṭhānchēn ||4||

Translation
1. Among bluffers the one who says, 'I have seen God,' is the greatest of all liars.
2. How can a listener be freed from worldly ties by the teachings of such a hypocrite? These liars, without true spiritual knowledge, become full of pride and needlessly deceive innocent people. They cause both themselves and others to fall into hell.
3. There is no person in the world to compare to a fool who calls himself 'God'.
4. Tuka says: Such hypocrites stubbornly refuse to accept the teachings of the true and great saints.
***

Look at the ethos of abhang singing by Yogesh Soman as Saint Tukaram! And his entire team! I am printing translation of this GREAT abhang for the benefit of Non-Marathi friends.

Tukaram Gatha Abhang 236 - Aamhee vaikunthavaasee, aalo
Marathi Text
आम्ही वैकुंठवासी । आलों याचि कारणासी । बोलिले जे ॠषी । साच भावें वर्ताया ॥१॥
झाडूं संतांचे मारग । आडरानें भरलें जग । उच्छिष्टाचा भाग । शेष उरले ते सेवू ॥२॥
अर्थे लोपलीं पुराणें । नाश केला शब्दज्ञानें । विषयलोभीं मनें । साधने हें बुडविली ॥३॥
पिटूं भक्तीचा डांगोरा । कळिकाळासी दरारा । तुका म्हणे करा । जयजयकार आनंदें ॥४॥

Roman Script
1. Aamhee vaikunthavaasee, aalo yaachi kaaranaasee, Bolile je rushee, saach bhaave vartaaya
2. Zaadoo santaanche marag, aadarane bharale jaga, Ucchishtaacha bhaag, shesh urale te sevoo
3. Arthe lopalee puraane, naash kela shabdadnyaane, Vishaylobhee mane, saadhane he budavilee
4. Pitoo bhakteecha daangora, kaleekaalaasee daraara, Tuka mhane karaa, jayajaykaar aanande.

Translation
Saint Tukaram’s Self Realization, self power and self confidence shows in many abhangs. This is one such abhang. His consciousness had merged with God’s Superconsciousness. As a result, all that he did was coming directly from God. In fact he announces in this abhang that before coming to the Earth he was residing in Vaikuntha with God.
1. In reality I am a resident of Vaikuntha (staying with Lord Vishnu) and I have come here for a specific reason. I have come to truly live in the way preached by Rishis (ascetics and saints).
2. I will clean the old paths laid down by the saints. (I will explain the right way to everyone, the young and the old, in a way that they will understand). The whole world is on a crooked path but I will give to the world, taste of the leftover food from the saints and bring it on the right path. I will also eat that leftover food. (Eating leftover food is considered as a very high respect for someone. In fact it is believed that blessings of the Great Ones flow directly from that food. This is similar to the belief that ‘Prasadam’, the leftover food from the ‘Naivadyam’ that is offered is God, gives God’s blessings to the person who eats it.)
3. These days, the true meaning of the Puranas has been forgotten and people have distorted the meaning of the words written in the verses. In this way life is getting destroyed. All minds have become greedy for sensual pleasures and the means of reaching God have been drowned.
4. Tuka says I will blow the trumpet of devotion and won’t do anything else. That will even scare Yama, the deity of death. Come on; let us all chant the name of the Lord Hari loudly and happily.

https://youtu.be/g2C-YgZ6Isk?si=3z7HbxnlV6ZQF6c-
***

Aamhi Vaikunthvasi | Abhanga Tukaram | Digpal Lanjekar | Avadhoot Gandhi | Yogesh Soman, Smita S अभंगातून जाहला हरिनामाचा गोड गजर... तुकारामांच्या वाणीतून उगम पावला...

With the Love given by God, devotees who have experienced the supreme Being make holy intentions. They wish to perform great religious acts and chant God's name. In the company of such devotees, sin cannot come anywhere near them. - Saint Tukaram.

Gatha Abhang 1156 - Prem devaache dene
प्रेम देवाचें देणें । देहभाव जाय जेणें । न धरावी मनें । शुद्धी देशकाळाची ॥१॥
मुक्त लज्जाविरहित । भाग्यवंत हरीभक्ती । जाले वोसंडत । नामकीर्ती पवाडे ॥२॥
जोडी जाली अविनाश । जन्मोनि जाले हरीचे दास । त्यांस नव्हे गर्भवास । परब्रह्मीं सौरस ॥३॥
हेचि वाहाती संकल्प । पुण्यप्रसंगाचे जप । तुका म्हणे पाप । गांवीं नाहीं हरीजना ॥४॥

IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
prēma dēvāchēn dēṇēn | dēhabhāva jāya jēṇēn |
na dharāvī manēn | śuddhī dēśakāḷāchī ||1||
mukta lajjāvirahita | bhāgyavanta harībhaktī |
jālē vōsaṇḍata | nāmakīrtī pavāḍē ||2||
jōḍī jālī avināśa | janmōni jālē harīchē dāsa |
tyāns navhē garbhavāsa | parabrahmīn saurasa ||3||
hēchi vāhātī saṅkalpa | puṇyaprasangāchē japa |
tukā mhaṇē pāpa | gānvīn nāhīn harījanā ||4||

Translation
1. Love is a gift from God. Therefore, true devotion comes only when God graciously gives Love. When one meditates on God with Love, pride in the body disappears, and the mind doesn't even remember time or place.
2. Because of the Love given by God, the very fortunate devotee becomes free and loses all shame in expressing devotion. Joy from chanting and singing God's name overflows within him.
3. Those who utilize their human birth to become devotees of God attain the imperishable Supreme Being. They do not have to be born again, and they become one with the Supreme Being, finding true bliss.
4. Similarly, with the Love given by God, devotees who have experienced the supreme Being make holy intentions. They wish to perform great religious acts and chant God's name. Tuka says: In the company of such devotees, sin cannot come anywhere near them.
***

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In due time, He drank the life out of Putana, who had come to poison Him with her milk. - Saint Tukaram.
Gatha Abhang 1155 - Vitambile bhat, dila
विटंबिलें भट । दिला पाठीवरी पाट ॥१॥
खोटें जाणोनि अंतर । न साहेचि विश्वंभर ॥२॥
तेंचि करी दान । जैसें आइके वचन ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे देवें । पूतना शोषियेली जीवें ॥४॥
IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
viṭambilēn bhaṭa | dilā pāṭhīvarī pāṭa ||1||
khōṭēn jāṇōni antara | na sāhēchi viśvambhara ||2||
tēnchi karī dāna | jaisēn aikē vachana ||3||
tukā mhaṇē dēvēn | pūtanā śōṣiyēlī jīvēn ||4||
Translation
1. In order to kill Krishna, Kansa sent a cunning Brahmin named Mahabalbhat to Gokul. As soon as the Brahmin arrived, Nanda and Yashoda honored him by offering him a paat (a rectangular wooden seat with short leg supports). He told them, 'I am a great astrologer who knows the past, present, and future,' so Yashoda brought the child Lord Shrikrishna to him and asked him to tell her son's future. The cunning Mahabalbhat deliberately began to give an unfavorable prophecy. He said, 'Yashoda, your son has bad qualities. He will steal, commit adultery, and destroy His own clan. He has already betrayed and ruined many people. You should give up your affection for Him and bury Him alive.' Hearing this, Nanda and Yashoda were filled with great sorrow, but God could not tolerate this horrible and dangerous mischief from the liar. By His unseen and miraculous power, He caused the seat the Brahmin was sitting on to stick tightly to his back and, in this way, He humiliated him.
2. God, the sustainer of the world, knowing his deceitful heart, did not tolerate his falsehood.
3. He gave him a gift of fitting humiliation in return for the false prophecy.
4. Tuka says: In due time, He drank the life out of Putana, who had come to poison Him with her milk.
***
If you love Lord Shrikrishna then Abhang Gatha is for you to read! You will swim in an ocean of joy!! Just try it!

Lord Krishna charmed the men and women of Gokul and drew all their hearts to Himself. - Saint Tukaram.

Gatha Abhang 1154 - Gokuleechya sukha, antapaar
गोकुळीच्या सुखा । अंतपार नाहीं लेखा ॥१॥
बाळकृष्ण नंदा घरीं । आनंदल्या नरनारी ॥२॥
गुढिया तोरणें । करिती कथा गाती गाणें ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे छंदें । येणें वेधिलीं गोविंदें ॥४॥

IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
gōkuḷīchyā sukhā | antapāra nāhīn lēkhā ||1||
bāḷakṛṣṇa nandā gharīn | ānandalyā naranārī ||2||
guḍiyā tōraṇēn | karitī kathā gātī gāṇēn ||3||
tukā mhaṇē chhandēn | yēṇēn vēdhilīn gōvindēn ||4||

Translation
1. The happiness in Gokul was endless. It was a joy that could not be measured.
2. Because God, in the form of the child Krishna, was in Nanda's home, which made all the men and women happy.
3. During every one of Krishna's playful acts, people would put up flags, hang garlands, tell stories of God, and sing songs praising God.
4. Tuka says: Lord Krishna charmed the men and women of Gokul and drew all their hearts to Himself.
***
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The Lord had made the gopis unaware of their own bodies through His own form. - Saint Tukaram.

Gatha Abhang 1153 - Mukh dola paahe
मुख डोळां पाहे । तैशीच ते उभी राहे ॥१॥
केल्याविण नव्हे हातीं । धरोनि आरती परती ॥२॥
न धरिती मनीं । कांहीं संकोच दाटणी ॥३॥
तुका म्हणें देवें । ओस केल्या देहभावें ॥४॥

IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
mukha ḍōḷān pāhē | taisīcha tē ubhī rāhē ||1||
kelyāviṇ navhē hātīn | dharōni āratī paratī ||2||
na dharitī manīn | kānhīn saṅkōcha dāṭaṇī ||3||
tukā mhaṇēn dēvēn | ōsa kelyā dēhabhāvēn ||4||

Translation
1. They were the gopis. The moment their eyes gazed upon the beautiful face of Lord Shrihari, they would stop and stand still.
2. Unless He took them by the hand and moved them aside, they would never return on their own.
3. Even in such a crowd, they felt no shame in their hearts while looking at the Lord's face.
4. Tuka says: The Lord had made the gopis unaware of their own bodies through His own form.
***
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When a great crowd of gopi women gathered there to have the sight of the infant Lord Shrikrishna, I became the one who arranged for them to go to the Lord one after another. - Saint Tukaram.

Gatha Abhang 1152 - Sodiyelya gaanthee, darushane
सोडियेल्या गांठी । दरुषणें कृष्णभेटी ॥१॥
करिती नारी अक्षयवाणें । जीवभाव देती दानें ॥२॥
उपजल्या काळें । रूपें मोहील्या सकळें ॥३॥
तुका तेथें वारी । एकी आडोनि दुसरी ॥४॥

IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
sōḍiyēlyā gāṇṭhī | daruṣaṇēn kṛṣṇabhēṭī ||1||
karitī nārī akṣayavāṇēn | jīvabhāva dētī dānēn ||2||
upajalyā kāḷēn | rūpēn mōhīlyā sakaḷēn ||3||
tukā tethēn vārī | ēkī āḍōni dusarī ||4||

Translation
1. By seeing the infant Lord Krishna, all doubts about the soul and the non-soul* were removed.
2. All the women of Gokul began to sing praises of Lord Shrikrishna.
3. From the moment of his birth, the Lord enchanted everyone with His divine form.
4. Tuka says: When a great crowd of gopi women gathered there to have the sight of the infant Lord Shrikrishna, I became the one who arranged for them to go to the Lord one after another.
* In Indian philosophy: Ātmā (soul / Self) is the true, eternal consciousness, unchanging, divine. Anātmā (non-soul) is everything that is not the true Self: body, mind, senses, emotions, ego, possessions, social identity, etc. Most human confusion comes from mixing these two up: “I am the body”, “I am my thoughts”, “I am my success or failure”. This confusion is called avidyā (ignorance).

The knots of doubt are deep, tangled confusion, intellectual and experiential uncertainty, questions like: Who am I really? What is permanent? What truly belongs to me? These doubts are not solved by logic alone — they are existential knots. In Tukobaraay's devotional vision Krishna is not merely a form or person. Krishna represents the living embodiment of the Ātmā / Brahman. So, when one has true Krishna-darshan, the eternal (Ātmā) is directly experienced, and the temporary (Anātmā) is seen for what it is. Just as: darkness does not need to be argued away. It disappears when light appears.
***

When King Kansa learned that his enemy, Shri Krishna, had been born, he was caught in a whirlpool of fear and became dizzy, unable to think clearly. - Saint Tukaram

Gatha Abhang 1151 - Firaavilee donee, kanya
फिरविलीं दोनी । कन्या आणि चक्रपाणी ॥१॥
जाला आनंदी आनंद । अवतरले गोविंद ॥२॥
तुटलीं बंधनें । वसुदेवदेवकीचीं दर्शनें ॥३॥
गोकुळासी आलें । ब्रम्ह अव्यक्त चांगलें ॥४॥
नंद दसवंती । धन्य देखिले श्रीपती ॥५॥
निशीं जन्मकाळ । आले अष्टमी गोपाळ ॥६॥
आनंदली मही । भार गेला सकळ ही ॥७॥
तुका म्हणे कंसा । आठ भोविला वळसा ॥८॥

IAST (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration) style Roman Script
phiravilīn dōnī | kanyā āṇi chakrapāṇī ||1||
jālā ānandī ānanda | avataralē gōvinda ||2||
tuṭalīn bandhanēn | vasudēvadēvakīchīn darśanēn ||3||
gōkuḷāsī ālēn | brahma avyakta chāṅgalēn ||4||
nanda dasavantī | dhanya dēkhilē śrīpatī ||5||
niśīn janmakāḷa | ālē aṣṭamī gōpāḷa ||6||
ānandalī mahī | bhāra gēlā sakaḷa hī ||7||
tukā mhaṇē kansā | āṭha bhōvilā vaḷasā ||8||

Translation
1. To protect righteousness and save the virtuous, God appeared in Mathura. But since King Kansa posed a threat, Vasudeva took Lord Krishna to Yashoda in Gokul and brought back Yashoda's daughter, who was Yogamaya*. This is how the daughter and Shri Krishna were exchanged.
2. When Govinda took Incarnation, there was joy everywhere!
3. As soon as Vasudeva and Devaki saw the infant Lord Shrihari, the chains on their hands and feet were broken, along with the bo***ge of ignorance and past actions.
4. The unmanifested Brahman took a beautiful name and form and came to Gokul.
5. Nand and Yashoda are blessed because they saw the Lord of Lakshmi with their own eyes.
6. Shri Krishna was born at midnight on the eighth day of Krishna paksha (the dark half of the month of Shravana, under the Rohini constellation, in Hindu calendar which lunar based). At this blessed time, Lord Gopala Krishna was born.
7. The Earth was filled with great joy because the incarnation of God had removed the burden of all the demons.
8. Tuka says: When King Kansa learned that his enemy, Shri Krishna, had been born, he was caught in a whirlpool of fear and became dizzy, unable to think clearly.

* Yogamaya - According to the Bhāgavata Purāṇa and other Krishna traditions, on the night Lord Krishna was born to Vasudeva and Devakī in Mathurā, Vasudeva secretly carried the newborn across the Yamunā to Gokul and exchanged Him with the baby girl born to Nanda and Yaśodā.

Kansa, who feared the prophecy that Devakī’s child would kill him, seized this infant girl and tried to kill her by dashing her against a stone. But the child slipped from his hands, rose into the sky in divine form, and revealed herself as a goddess. She declared that the one destined to destroy him had already been born elsewhere, and then disappeared.
This divine girl is known as Yogamaya.

Why is it necessary to read THE ENTIRE ABHANG GATHA instead of a hundred or thousand abhang only?

A few abhang may inspire us. A few hundred may educate us. But the entire Abhang Gatha can transform us.

The reason is simple. Sant Tukaram Maharaj is not merely giving information; he is training the mind and heart.

Again and again, through more than 4,500 abhang, he warns us about lust, anger, greed, pride, attachment, delusion, and the endless traps of worldly life. He portrays them as thieves, swindlers, deceivers, hunters, and enemies waiting to rob us of our spiritual wealth.

A single warning may be forgotten. A thousand repeated warnings become part of our thinking. Gradually, the reader begins to recognize danger before it takes hold. Temptation no longer appears attractive. Delusion no longer appears harmless. One becomes inwardly alert.

But the Gatha does something even more beautiful.

Through hundreds of abhang, Tukaram Maharaj reveals his boundless love for Vithoba - his Lord, Friend, Father, Mother, Protector, and Beloved. As we repeatedly encounter this loving relationship, something begins to change within us. We start seeing God not as a distant concept, but as a living presence.

Again and again, Maharaj addresses Vithoba with expressions overflowing with affection: Māulīhūnī mayāḷa (more loving than a mother), Chandrahūnī śītaḷa (cooler than the moon), Amṛtāhūnī gōḍa (sweeter than nectar), Jīvāchē jīvana (the life of life), Prītīchā hā lāḍa (the darling of love), and countless other endearing names.

Slowly, almost without realizing it, the reader too begins to think of God in these intimate and loving terms.

This is the unique power of the complete Gatha. Its effect is cumulative. Each abhang adds another brushstroke until a new way of seeing life emerges.

The Gatha does not merely teach devotion to God. It cultivates wisdom, discrimination, vigilance, humility, and love for the Divine.

That is why every seeker should resolve to read the entire Abhang Gatha at least once in their lifetime.

Deepak Phadnis
Translator, DIVINE VERSES - ABHANG GATHA