Longing, only show me Your feet
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
वांजा गाई दुभती । देवा ऐसी तुझी ख्याति ॥1॥
ऐसें मागत नाहीं तुज । चरण दाखवावे मज ॥ध्रु.॥
चातक पाखरूं। त्यासी वर्षे मेघधारु ॥ ॥
पक्षी राजहंस । अमोलिक मोतीं त्यास॥3॥
तुका ह्मणे देवा । कां गा खोचलासी जीवा ॥4॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
You are renowned for making even a barren cow yield milk, O God. Yet I do not ask that much of You; only show me Your feet. The rain-cloud pours down water for the chataka bird. The royal swan receives priceless pearls. Says Tuka, O God, why have You pierced my jiva and yet remain hidden?.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
You are famous, God, for making even a barren cow give milk. I do not ask You for so much. Only show me Your feet. The rain-cloud pours its water for the chataka bird. The royal swan is given priceless pearls. Tuka says: God, why have You pierced my heart and still stay hidden?
What it means
Tukaram is pressing a small, sharp request against God's huge reputation. He recalls that God is known for the impossible, even drawing milk from a barren cow, and then says he wants none of that abundance: he asks only for the sight of God's feet. He points to how each creature is met in its own way, the cloud raining for the chataka, the royal swan given pearls, as if to ask why he alone is left waiting. The poem ends on the ache of a wound without a healer: You have pierced my very life with longing, so why do You keep Yourself hidden?
Longing and Separation
Cries from the dark night of the soul: remonstrances, complaints, and desperate yearning.
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