Moral ideal, serve the suffering
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
आर्तभूतांप्रति । उत्तम योजाव्या त्या शक्ति ॥1॥
फळ आणि समाधान । तेथें उत्तम कारण ॥ध्रु.॥
अल्पें तो संतोषी। स्थळीं सांपडे उदेसीं ॥2॥
सहज संगम । तुका ह्मणे तो उत्तम ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
One's best powers should be directed toward the welfare of suffering beings. The highest fruit and contentment are found precisely there. The one who is content with little finds God readily in any place. Says Tuka, that spontaneous union is the most excellent.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Your best powers should be turned toward the good of suffering beings. The highest fruit and the deepest contentment are found right there. The one content with little finds God readily in any place. Tuka says: that effortless union is the most excellent of all.
What it means
Tukaram tells you where to aim your finest abilities: at the welfare of beings who suffer. He claims that the highest reward and real contentment are not found elsewhere but precisely in that service. He pairs this with a small, demanding condition, that the one satisfied with little meets God easily wherever he is. The poem ends by exalting a union that comes naturally out of such a life, rather than one forced or sought after.
The Moral Ideal
Purity, sincerity, truthfulness, humility, peacefulness, and service.
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