Longing, God will save His own
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
काळावरि घालूं तरि तो सरिसा । न पुरतां इच्छा दास कैसे ॥1॥
आतां नाहीं कांहीं उसिराचें काम । न खंडावें प्रेम नारायणा ॥ध्रु.॥
देणें लागे मग विलंब कां आड । गोड तरि गोड आदि अंत ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे होइल दरुषणें नििंश्चती । गाईन तें गीतीं ध्यान मग ॥3॥
याजसाटीं असें योजिलें श्रीपति । संकल्पाचे हातीं सर्व जोडा॥ध्रु.॥
परपीडे ज्याची जिव्हा मुंडताळे । यमदूत डाळे करिती पूजा ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे अंबॠषी दुयाौधना । काय झालें नेणां दुर्वासया ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
If we battle against Time, he matches us blow for blow; how can we be servants when our desires are not fulfilled? There is no room for delay now; do not let our love be interrupted, O Narayana. If the gift must come, why this obstacle of postponement? If it is sweet, let it be sweet from beginning to end. Says Tuka, once I have Your vision, certainty will come, and then I shall sing in meditation.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
If we wrestle with Time, he matches us blow for blow. With our wish unmet, what kind of servant am I? There is no room for delay now. Do not break off Your love, Narayana. If the gift must come, why this obstacle of delay? If it is sweet, let it be sweet from start to end. Tuka says: with Your sight, certainty will come; then I shall sing You in song and meditation. For this, Shripati has arranged it so: by His will, everything is set in place. The one who harms others has his tongue cut off; the messengers of Yama honor that. Tuka says: do you not know what happened to Ambarisha, to Duryodhana, to Durvasa?
What it means
Tukaram first presses his case as a servant: against Time alone he is outmatched, and an unanswered servant is no servant at all, so he begs Narayana not to break off His love or postpone the gift. Once he has God's sight, he says, certainty and song will follow on their own. Then he widens out: it is Shripati who arranges all this, and by His will everything falls into place. He recalls the old pattern that those who harm others are punished while God shields His devotees, pointing to Ambarisha, Duryodhana, and Durvasa, asking whether we have forgotten how that turned out.
Longing and Separation
Cries from the dark night of the soul: remonstrances, complaints, and desperate yearning.
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