Vigilance, the self as witness
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
क्षणक्षणां सांभािळतों । साक्षी होतों आपुला ॥1॥
न घडावी पायीं तुटी । मन मुठी घातलें ॥ध्रु.॥
विचारतों वचनां आधीं । धरूनि शुद्धी ठेविली ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे मागें भ्यालों ॥ तरीं जालों जागृत ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Moment by moment I guard myself, becoming my own witness. I must not allow any break in my devotion to His feet; I have placed the mind under firm control. I weigh my words before I speak and keep a steady awareness at all times. Says Tuka, I was frightened by what happened before, and since then I have remained vigilant.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Moment by moment I watch over myself; I have become my own witness. There must be no break in my hold on His feet, so I have taken my mind in my fist. I test my words before I speak and keep my awareness clean. Tuka says: I was frightened by what happened before. Since then I have stayed awake.
What it means
Tukaram describes the discipline of constant inner watchfulness, standing as witness over his own mind. The aim is single: never to let the grip on God's feet slip, so he keeps the mind clenched in his fist and weighs each word before it leaves him. He is honest about the source of this vigilance; an earlier fall, or near-fall, frightened him, and fear became the spur. The poem makes self-examination practical: liberation is not a one-time gain but a wakefulness held moment by moment, lest the old slippage return.
The Moral Ideal
Purity, sincerity, truthfulness, humility, peacefulness, and service.
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