Devotional Songs and Deconstructing Hierarchies: Abhanga’s Poetic Trajectories

Introduction to Abhanga 

In India, devotional music has a widespread reach spatially and dates back to the age of Vedas temporally. In the early historical periods, these musical notes and devotional songs were invoked as an appeal to deities. Maharashtra has a long and comprehensive tradition of singing devotional hymns to Gods for more than a millennium. Pandharpur, one of the most popular pilgrimage sites, is a place where devotees of Vithoba—a form of Vishnu and a shepherd deity—arrive and sing in a trance-like state. Etymologically, the word Abhanga literally signifies ‘without interruption or pause’ i.e. a musical tradition flowing flawlessly and seamlessly, without stoppage. 

Abhanga is considered a derivative of the larger poetic meter called ‘Ovee’ which was popular in usage amongst remarkable figures like Saint Dnyaneshwari. Saint Tukaram popularised, active Abhanga, lyrical and devotional poetry, amongst peasants to enable them to worship their gods. The most pleasantly appealing factor of the Abhangas is the fact that while singing their Ragas, the emotion of deep devotion is said to have been felt by many pilgrims and singers alike. A grandeur of a procession starts from places like Dehu for fifteen days, with all the pilgrims singing in praise and glory of Vithoba. 

Warkari Sect and Abhanga’s Development 

More than eight centuries ago, Saint Dnyaneshwar led the Bhakti movement in Maharashtra. After him, several of his spiritual descendants left indelible prints in the archives of Maharashtra, Sant Namdev, Tukaram, and Eknath. For these reasons, Maharashtra is often referred as the landscape of Saints with an abundant number of saint poetries, case in point. 

Between the 12th and 18th centuries C.E., over a hundred saint poets emerged in Maharashtra, with their poetry forming a significant part of the region’s devotional music. In the past, singing these saints’ devotional verses was a common daily activity, and traces of this tradition can still be found in Maharashtra’s villages today. Maharashtra boasts a rich and enduring tradition of Vaari, which has been around for over 800 years. Each year, palanquins carrying the ‘paduka’ i.e. sandals of the saints are transported in this pilgrimage to Pandharpur during the celebration of Ashadhi Ekadashi. Typically, Ashadi Ekadashi celebrates the beginning of Wari pilgrimage towards Pandharpur a myriad centuries ago. This devotional music singing has always been a group activity and not an individual enterprise. In the following sections, Sant Chokhamela and Tukaram’s integration of devotional Abhangas with hierarchical subversion will be observed. 

Structural Composition of Abhanga 

There are two categories of Abhanga, Devadwaar Abhanga and Deviwar Abhanga: Abhanga composed for the threshold of God abhangas and Abhanga dedicated towards the divine goddess. Abhangs composed by Tukaram are the most well-known verses in Marathi. An abhanga is usually considered a variant of the ovi/ovee meter. Its stanza has four charans or lines. The first three lines are of the same meter i.e. similar number of syllables and rhythmic structure, whereas the fourth line is often shorter. Phonetically, the lines tend to have three to eight syllables each, giving flexibility in singing and oral transmission. Tala is very important in Abhanga, and the metre gives abhangas a melodic symmetry. The music of Abhangas is usually simple, but the tempo keeps increasing to develop devotional fervour. According to H.D. Velankar, it is important to note that Abhanga is a later composition of Ovi, probably the part which was sung and recited. Saints like Namdeva and Tukaram, describe their stanzas Ovi and not as Abhangas. However, Abhangas have been used here for simplistic understanding, but it should be remembered that Ovi was used as well.  

Resistance, Religion, and Resilience 

Historically, writing poetry on religious themes in Marathi was a violation of hierarchical and caste norms. Writing, composing, and singing Abhangas in praise of Vithoba was not only a devotional act, but an active act of resistance against Brahminical orthodoxy and gatekeeping. According to Rohini Mokashi-Punekar, there were fifty-something saints belonging to the Warkari tradition of Maharashtra and transformed the rural populace. She talks about the fact that Abhanga acted as an instrument of propagating divinity and enigma for the, and also to fight against oppression by Brahmins and inequality against lower castes. 

Chokhamela’s Caste Subversion through Abhangas 

Chokhamela, a saint of 13th-14th century Maharashtra from the Mahar caste, worked for the upper castes as a labourer. He developed fresh takes and perspectives to view God through Dalit and Bahujan lenses. He has composed and developed over four hundred Abhangas and embedded strong caste consciousness in a myriad of them. He was strongly motivated spiritually by Namdev and Dnyaneshwara, and laid the stepping stones for Dalit Marathi literature. In one of his Abhangas he says,

He pulled a wall for
Dnyaneshwar made Changdev,
famous, weeded the beds
for Savata the gardener
and fired pots for Gora.
He loves more than his own self
the goldsmith, the cobbler
and Namdev, the tailor.
He grinds the grain
at Jani’s home, sweeps the dirt
and brings the cow-dung in.
Says Chokha, he is so tender,
his devotees know him
as a fond mother.

In this Abhanga, Chokhamela refers to everyday menial activities to remember and sing praises of God—an opposite action to Brahminical norms and ideologies. It is crystal clear here that Chokhamela reasserts Abhanga as not just a tool of devotion, but as an active sword of resistance against the caste suppression practices of the society. In another Abhanga, Chokhamela is addressed to by God himself,

Sitting, talking, alone, on our own
He held my chin, soothed my moan
Don’t take to heart the world’s cruelty
He said, let me give you this key
What must be will be, what will not won’t be
Joy and sorrow owe to our deeds, you see
Says God, you’ve my word, don’t fret Chokhya
You’re the king amongst devotees, oh yeah

We observe how God assures Chokhamela that the state of being happy or miserable by our deeds. God touches him by his chin, almost like a mentor to his son, and assuages Chokhamela of his pain on his societal discrimination. Vithoba, in the end, addresses him as ‘Chokhya’ and tells him that he will be remembered and considered by him as the ‘King amongst Devotees.’ Eleanor Zelliot expresses that Chokhamela’s Abhangas gave Maharashtra and its populace a conscience to subvert casteism. 

Sant Tukaram’s Connections through Abhangas

Born as Shudra in 1608, Sant Tukaram composed Abhangas on bigotry, oppression, and profligacy in the name of religion done by Brahmins. Sant Tukaram was a revolutionary in this aspect because he concocted his Abhangas not only to protest against the status quo, but also to question the traumatic use of language for evil purposes. Tukaram also apprises that a mediator was not needed, and that liberation of soul can be achieved directly by connecting to God. According to Dilip Chitre, “His mysticism was not rooted in a rejection of reality but rather in a spirited response, to it after its total acceptance as a basic fact of life. Tukaram’s hard common sense is not contradicted by his mysticism: the two reinforce each other.” This symbiosis between reality and spiritual mysticism is what made Tukaram a renowned saint. Tukaram is seen in a constant dilemma of whether to sing Abhangas to his Lord Vitthala or not, since he’s a Shudra and not allowed to. He remembers his god in catastrophe and proclaims that God visits his devotee when the disaster recedes. Tukaram completely surrenders himself to Vithoba, he seeks union with his God—seeing his consciousness as a cosmic phenomenon united with his deity.  

Conclusion: Legacies of Abhanga 

The devotional song-poetry Abhanga is an ethereal historical tradition sung and dedicated to Vithoba. However, it has been subject to some critiques by personalities like B.R. Ambedkar. In the year 1928, Ambedkar expressed his skeptical and nuanced opinion on the nature Bhakti saints and Chokhamela in particular. According to him, these saints actually suppressed Depressed classes more, because they did not criticise the inherent nature of caste and rather deemed it as a result of sin in the previous birth, thereby not uprooting this norm from the society. Abhangas, nonetheless, provide an immense devotional and spiritual character to Bhakti movement, primarily because of their intense social connotations. They way Abhangas are sung, written, and composed inculcates a sense of liberation and comfort not just among devotees but among other listeners too. Nowadays, myriad artists are taking this legacy forward with their own embellishments and renditions. Bands like Abhanga Repost sing Abhangas at cafes, restaurants, and other popular public places. This mixing of contemporary beats and evolution of Abhanga transformed into a cultural phenomenon close to young generations. The history, caste subversive undertones, and devotional integrities of Abhanga along with present amalgamations have converted it to a creative, emotional, and passionate practice—not just a performance, but a raw synthesis.

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