Gokul's joy, captivated by Govinda
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
गोकुळीच्या सुखा । अंतपार नाहीं लेखा ॥1॥
बाळकृष्ण नंदा घरीं । आनंदल्या नरनारी ॥ध्रु.॥
गुढिया तोरणें । करिती कथा गाती गाणें ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे छंदें । येणें वेधिलीं गोविंदें ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
The joy of Gokul is beyond count or measure. The child Krishna is in Nanda's home; men and women are filled with delight. They raise festive banners and arches, tell stories, and sing songs. Says Tuka, by this charm Govinda has captivated them all.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
The joy of Gokul has no end, no measure that can count it. The child Krishna is in Nanda's house; the men and women are full of delight. They raise festive poles and arches, they tell the story, they sing the song. Tuka says: by this play Govinda has caught them all.
What it means
Tukaram describes the whole village swept into a joy too large to count, all of it gathered around the child Krishna in Nanda's home. The festival banners, the arches, the storytelling and singing are the outward shape of a delight that has no edge. The deeper note is in the last line: this is not ordinary celebration but capture. By his charm and play Govinda has taken hold of every one of them, so their joy is really his pull on them.
Krishna Leela
Poems celebrating Krishna's birth, childhood, and divine play.
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