Saints as holy thieves, a warning in jest
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
आणिकांची सेवा करावी शरीरें । तीं येथें उत्तरे कोरडीं च ॥1॥
ऐसा पांडुरंग सुलभ सोपारा । नेघे येरझारा सेवकाच्या ॥ध्रु.॥
आणिकांचे भेटी आडकाठी पडे । येथें तें न घडे वचन ही ॥2॥
आणिकांचे देणें काळीं पोट भरे । येथील न सरे कल्पांतीं ही ॥3॥
आणिकें दंडिती चुकलिया सेवा । येथें सोस हेवा नाहीं दोन्ही ॥4॥
तुका ह्मणे करी आपण्यासारिखें । उद्धरी पारिखें उंच निंच ॥5॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
To serve other masters requires bodily labor, and their words are hollow. But Panduranga is so easy and accessible; He does not make His servants run back and forth. Other masters place obstacles before a meeting; here, not even a word of barrier exists. Other masters fill the belly only occasionally; the bounty here never runs out, not even at the end of the ages. Other masters punish for any lapse in service; here, there is neither jealousy nor resentment. Says Tuka, He transforms others into His own likeness, uplifting both the high and the low.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
I hear the uproar of certain people growing loud. Do not trust them any further. They are robbers of the body's comforts. This alone is their treasure: they are always bare and open, holding nothing. Tuka says: they will carry off what is yours, and you will not even know it.
What it means
This poem continues the playful image of the saints as thieves, now warning against trusting them if you mean to keep your comforts. They are robbers of the body's ease, because what they take is exactly the attachment a person wants to protect. Their own wealth is their nakedness: they keep nothing and hide nothing, which is why they can give everything away. The sly closing line says they will carry off what is yours so quietly that you will not even notice your bondage has gone.
Devotion to Vitthal
Poems of praise, invocation, and intimate address to Lord Vitthal at Pandharpur.
More in this theme →