Moral discipline, self-examination
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
आशा ते करविते बुद्धीचा लोप । संदेह तें पाप कैसें नव्हे ॥1॥
आपला आपण करावा विचार । प्रसन्न तें सार मन गोही ॥ध्रु.॥
नांवें रूपें अंगीं लाविला विटाळ । होतें त्या निर्मळ शुद्ध बुद्ध ॥2॥
अंधळ्यानें नये देखण्याची चाली । चालों ऐसी बोली तुका बोले ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Desire is what brings about the obliteration of buddhi. How can doubt be anything other than transgression? One should examine oneself carefully; a serene and contented mind is the true essence. Through name and form, defilement has been imposed upon that which was originally spotless, pure awareness. Says Tuka, the blind cannot walk the path of those who see.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Desire is what wipes out the intellect. And how is doubt anything but sin? Examine yourself, by yourself; a calm and contented mind is the real witness and the heart of it. Through name and form, defilement has been smeared onto what was spotless, pure awareness. Tuka says: the blind cannot walk the way of those who see.
What it means
Tukaram is pointing to the inner work that real discipline requires. He names desire as the thing that destroys clear understanding, and treats nagging doubt as a kind of sin, since it corrodes faith. The remedy is honest self-examination, and the sign that you are on track is a serene, contented mind, which is itself the inner witness and the essence of the matter. What looked like impurity was never in the awareness itself; it was smeared onto a spotless, pure consciousness by the play of name and form. The closing line cautions that one who is inwardly blind cannot simply imitate the path of those who actually see.
The Moral Ideal
Purity, sincerity, truthfulness, humility, peacefulness, and service.
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