Krishna, the bold are fed, the timid lose
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
पळाले ते भ्याड । त्यांसि येथें जाला नाड ॥१॥
धीट घेती धणीवरी । शिंकीं उतरितो हरी ॥ध्रु.॥
आपुलिया मतीं । पडलीं विचारीं तीं रितीं ॥२॥
तुका लागे घ्यारे पायां । कैं पावाल या ठाया ॥३॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
The cowards who fled have met with ruin. The bold ones take their fill, for Hari lowers the bounty from above for them. Those who deliberated on their own, empty of conviction, were left behind. Says Tuka, fall at His feet; only then will you ever reach this place.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
The cowards who ran away met with ruin here. The bold ones take their fill, for Hari lowers the bounty to them. Those who reasoned it out on their own were left empty, with nothing. Tuka says: fall at his feet; only then will you ever reach this place.
What it means
In the game of reaching the hung-up bounty, the timid who flee lose out, while the bold who press in are fed, because Hari himself lowers the prize to them. The middle line sharpens it: those who trusted only their own reasoning, calculating instead of committing, came away empty. The poem is contrasting cautious self-reliance with daring surrender. Tukaram's close makes the lesson plain: the bounty is not seized by cleverness but received by falling at God's feet, and only that humble boldness brings you to the place where you are filled.
Krishna Leela
Poems celebrating Krishna's birth, childhood, and divine play.
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