God's mercy, the long list of the rescued
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
मागें शरणागत तारिले बहुत । ह्मणती दीनानाथ तुज देवा ॥1॥
पाहिले अपराध नाहीं याती कुळ । तारिला अजामेळ गणिका भिल्ली ॥ध्रु.॥
अढळपदीं बाळ बैसविला धुरु । क्षीराचा सागरु उपमन्ये ॥2॥
गजेंद्रपशु नाडियें जळचरें । भवसिंधुपार उतरिला ॥3॥
प्रल्हाद अग्नींत राखिला जळांत । विषाचें अमृत तुझ्या नामें ॥4॥
पांडवां संकट पडतां जडभारी । त्यांचा तू कैवारी नारायणा ॥5॥
तुका ह्मणे तूं या अनाथाचा नाथ । ऐकोनियां मात शरण आलों ॥6॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
In the past You saved many who came to You for refuge. They call You the Lord of the wretched, O God. You looked not at their sins, nor at their caste or lineage. You saved Ajamela, the courtesan, and the tribal woman. You seated the child Dhruva on an eternal throne. You gave Upamanyu an ocean of milk. The elephant, that creature of the earth, was seized by a creature of the water, and You brought him across the ocean of existence. You protected Prahlada in fire and in water. By Your name, poison became nectar. When the Pandavas were in grave danger, You became their advocate, O Narayana. Says Tuka, You are the Lord of the helpless. Hearing this, I have come to Your refuge.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Long ago You saved many who came to You for refuge. They call You the Lord of the wretched, O God. You did not look at their sins, or their caste, or their family line. You saved Ajamela, the courtesan, the tribal woman. You seated the child Dhruva on an eternal throne. You gave Upamanyu an ocean of milk. The elephant, a creature of the land, was seized by a creature of the water, and You carried him across the ocean of existence. You kept Prahlada safe in fire and in water; by Your name the poison turned to nectar. When the Pandavas were in grave danger, You stood up for them, O Narayana. Tuka says: You are the Lord of the helpless. Hearing this, I have come to Your refuge.
What it means
Tukaram recites a roll call of those God rescued and turns it into his own claim on grace. The point of the list is what God refused to weigh: not sins, not caste, not lineage. A fallen brahmin, a courtesan, a tribal woman, a frightened child, a trapped elephant, a boy thrown into fire and poison, a royal family in danger, all were lifted. If God saved them on no qualification but their need, then Tukaram, who has nothing better to offer, can come on the same terms. The whole poem is an argument that ends in arrival: hearing this record, I too have come to Your refuge.
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