Social criticism, the greedy performer
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
आशाबद्ध वक्ता । भय श्रोतयाच्या चित्ता ॥1॥
गातो तें चि नाहीं ठावें । तोंड वासी कांहीं द्यावें ॥ध्रु.॥
जालें लोभाचें मांजर । भीक मागे दारोदार ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे गोणी । माप आणि रितीं दोन्ही ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
The speaker is bound by his own greed, and the listener's chitta trembles with fear. The performer does not know what he sings; he merely opens his mouth for whatever is given. He has become a cat of greed, begging from door to door. Says Tuka, both the measure and the sack stand empty.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
The speaker is tied up by his own craving, and the listener's heart fills with unease. He does not even know what he is singing; he just opens his mouth for whatever you will hand him. He has turned into a cat of greed, begging from door to door. Tuka says: both the measuring cup and the sack are empty.
What it means
Tukaram draws the figure of a performer whose devotion has been hollowed out by greed, so that even the listener feels the wrongness of it. The man recites without understanding a word; his only real aim is the handout, and Tukaram likens him to a cat slinking from door to door. The closing image is the verdict: both the measure and the sack are empty, meaning there is nothing of substance on either side, no true knowledge given and no real gain kept. The portrait points at the pattern of mouthing sacred words for what they fetch, and quietly asks the listener whether his own singing is full or empty.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
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