The nature of God, He takes you whole
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
याचा तंव हा चि मोळा । देखिला डोळा उदंड॥1॥
नेदी मग फिरों मागें । अंगा अंगें संचरे ॥ध्रु.॥
कां गा याची नेणां खोडी । जीभा जोडी करितसां ॥2॥
पांघरे तें बहु काळें । घोंगडें ही ठायींचें ॥3॥
अंगीं वसे चि ना लाज । न ह्मणे भाज कोणाची॥4॥
सर्वसाक्षी अबोल्यानें । दुिश्चत कोणें नसावें ॥5॥
तुका ह्मणे धरिला हातीं । मग नििंश्चतीं हरीनें ॥6॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
This has always been His way; I have seen it abundantly with my own eyes. Once He enters, He does not let you turn back; He permeates you body and soul. Do you not know His ways? Why do you befriend Him then? What He wraps around you is a dark blanket from the start. He has neither shame nor regard for anyone. As the all-seeing witness, He remains silent, so that no one should feel anxious. Says Tuka, once Hari has taken you in hand, then rest in complete assurance.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
This has always been his way; I have seen it again and again with my own eyes. Once he enters, he will not let you turn back; he soaks through you, body and being. Do you not know his trick? Yet you go on making friends with him. The blanket he wraps you in is dark, and his from the start. He has no shame in him; he asks no one's leave. As the witness of all he stays silent, so that no one need feel afraid. Tuka says: once Hari has taken you by the hand, then rest, fully at ease, in him.
What it means
Tukaram half teases and half warns about the way God takes hold of a soul. He has watched it happen many times: once God enters a person, He does not allow a retreat, but seeps through them completely. With mock surprise he asks why anyone befriends such a one, knowing His habits; the dark blanket He throws over you was His all along, and He acts without shame or anyone's permission. Then the tone turns to comfort. That same God is the silent witness of everything, and His silence is so that no one should be anxious. The point lands in the last line: being seized like this is not a loss but a safety, so once Hari holds your hand, you can finally stop struggling and rest.
The Nature of God
Explorations of God's character, power, grace, and relationship to the world.
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