Refusal of praise, the danger of pride
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
न करावी स्तुति माझी संतजनीं । होईल या वचनीं अभिमान ॥1॥
भारें भवनदी नुतरवे पार । दुरावती दूर तुमचे पाय ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे गर्व पुरवील पाठी । होईल माझ्या तुटी विठोबाची ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
O saints, do not praise me, for pride will arise from such words. Under the weight of pride, one cannot cross the river of worldly existence, and your feet grow distant from me. Says Tuka, pride will betray me in the end and sever my bond with Vithoba.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
O saints, do not praise me, for pride will rise from such words. Under the weight of pride one cannot cross the river of worldly existence, and your feet grow far from me. Tuka says: pride will betray me in the end and break my bond with Vithoba.
What it means
Tukaram asks the saints to stop praising him, because he knows what praise does: it breeds pride. He names the cost plainly. Pride is a weight that sinks a person, so that the river of worldly existence cannot be crossed and God's feet, the only support, drift out of reach. The real fear behind the request is the deepest loss: he sees that pride, if it takes hold, will betray him and sever his bond with Vithoba.
The Moral Ideal
Purity, sincerity, truthfulness, humility, peacefulness, and service.
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