The Name, the one task of the mind
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
करीं हें चि काम । मना जपें राम राम ॥1॥
लागो हा चि छंद । मना गोविंद गोविंद ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे मना । मज भीक द्यावी दीना ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
O mind, do this one task: chant Rama, Rama. Let this one passion take hold: Govinda, Govinda. Says Tuka, O mind, give this alms to me, a lowly one.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
O mind, do this one task: chant Rama, Rama. Let this one passion take hold: Govinda, Govinda. Tuka says: O mind, give this alms to me, a lowly one.
What it means
Tukaram speaks straight to his own mind and gives it a single assignment, narrowing all of spiritual life down to repeating the Name. He wants the restless mind, which fastens onto many passions, to fasten on just one: Govinda. The last line is striking because he begs from his own mind as a poor man begs alms, treating the simple act of remembrance as a charity he cannot command but must plead for. It admits how hard it is to hold the mind to even one thing, and how much the devotee depends on grace to do it.
The Power of the Name
The supremacy of nama-smarana: God's name as the highest practice.
More in this theme →