Surrender, the noblest birth
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
उत्तम त्या याति । देवा शरण अनन्यगति ॥1॥
नाहीं दुजा ठाव । कांहीं उत्तम मध्यम भाव ॥ध्रु.॥
उमटती ठसे । ब्रह्मप्रािप्त अंगीं दिसे ॥2॥
भाविक विश्वासी।तुका ह्मणे नमन त्यांसी॥3॥ ॥10॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
The noblest of all is one who surrenders to God with single-pointed devotion, holding no other refuge, whether high, middling, or low. The marks of Brahman shine forth on such a one's person. Says Tuka, to such a faithful, trusting soul I offer my salutation.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
The noblest of all births is this: to take refuge in God with nothing else to turn to. There is no second place to go. There is no high, no middling, no low. The marks of it begin to show. The reaching of Brahman is seen on his very body. Tuka says: to such a one, faithful and trusting, I bow.
What it means
Tukaram redefines what makes a life noble. It is not caste or station; it is single-pointed refuge in God when you hold no other shelter at all. Once that surrender is real, distinctions of high, middling, and low simply fall away, because there is no second place left to stand. The proof is not in talk but in the person: the marks of reaching Brahman begin to show plainly on the one who has surrendered. To such a faithful, trusting soul Tukaram offers his own salutation.
Surrender and Acceptance
The conditions of spiritual receptivity and the letting go of the separate self.
More in this theme →