The Name, kirtan is enough
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
जप तप ध्यान न लगे धारणा । विठ्ठलकीर्त्तनामाजी सर्व ॥1॥
राहें माझ्या मना दृढ या वचनीं । आणिक तें मनीं न धरावें ॥ध्रु.॥
कीर्तनसमाधि साधन ते मुद्रा । राहतील थारा धरोनियां॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे मुक्ति हरिदासांच्या घरीं । वोळगती चारी ॠिद्धसििद्ध ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
No japa, austerity, meditation, or concentration is needed; everything is contained within Vitthal's kirtan. O my mind, remain firm in this truth and entertain no other thought. Kirtan is the true samadhi, the true practice, the true seal; all other pursuits will settle down of their own accord. Says Tuka, liberation itself dwells in the home of Hari's devotees, and all four forms of supernatural power wait upon them.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
No japa, no austerity, no meditation, no holding the mind still is needed; everything is held inside the kirtan of Vitthal. Stay firm in this word, my mind, and keep no other thought. Kirtan is the true samadhi, the true practice, the true seal; all other things settle down on their own. Tuka says: liberation lives in the house of Hari's servants, and all four powers wait upon them.
What it means
Tukaram sweeps aside the whole ladder of disciplines, japa, penance, meditation, breath control, and says one practice contains them all: singing Vitthal's praise. He is not dismissing the disciplines as worthless but claiming kirtan already holds whatever they were reaching for. He calls it the true samadhi and the true seal, the thing the other methods only point at. Then he raises the stakes: in the home of Hari's devotees, liberation is not pursued but simply present, and the supernatural powers that others strain for come and wait at the door. The devotee who sings has already arrived where the others are still climbing.
The Power of the Name
The supremacy of nama-smarana: God's name as the highest practice.
More in this theme →