The Name, the one imperishable thing
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
अवघा चि आकार ग्रासियेला काळें । एक चि निराळें हरिचें नाम ॥1॥
धरूनि राहिलों अविनाश कंठीं । जीवन हें पोटीं सांटविलें ॥ध्रु.॥
शरीरसंपित्त मृगजळभान । जाईल नासोन खरें नव्हे ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे आतां उपाधीच्या नांवें । आणियेला देवें वीट मज ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
All form has been devoured by Time. Only Hari's Name stands apart, imperishable. I have lodged the indestructible one at my throat and stored this life-giving treasure within my belly. Bodily wealth is a mirage; it will perish, for it was never real. Says Tuka, God Himself has filled me with disgust for all worldly concerns.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Every form has been swallowed by Time. Only Hari's Name stands apart, never destroyed. I have kept the deathless one held at my throat and stored this life within my belly. Bodily wealth is a mirage; it will perish, for it was never real. Tuka says: now God himself has filled me with disgust for every worldly thing.
What it means
Tukaram weighs what survives against what does not. Time devours every shape and form; the single thing it cannot touch is the Name of Hari, which stands apart, imperishable. So he keeps that deathless Name at his throat and stores it within him as his real life, while he sees bodily wealth for what it is, a mirage bound to vanish because it was never solid to begin with. He adds that this clarity is itself God's gift: God has turned him away, filling him with distaste for all worldly concern.
The Power of the Name
The supremacy of nama-smarana: God's name as the highest practice.
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