True worship, treasure in Vaikuntha
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
येथीचिया अळंकारें । काय खरें पूजन ॥१॥
वैकुंठींच्या लावूं वाटा । सर्व साटा ते ठायीं ॥ध्रु.॥
येथीचिया नाशवंतें । काय रितें चाळवूं ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे वैष्णव जेन । माझे गण समुदाय ॥३॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
What true worship can be done with the perishable ornaments of this world? Let us set our sights on the path to Vaikuntha; all our real wealth lies there. Why be deceived by these perishable things? Says Tuka, the Vaishnavas are my people, my community.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
What real worship can be done with the perishing ornaments of this world? Let us set out on the road to Vaikuntha; all our wealth is stored there. Why let these perishing things deceive us for nothing? Tuka says: the Vaishnavas are my people, my own company.
What it means
Tukaram asks what kind of worship can rest on things that rot, and answers that none can. Real worship and real wealth belong in Vaikuntha, God's own realm, so that is where the heart should travel. To be fooled by perishable goods is to be cheated of nothing for nothing. He closes by naming where he truly belongs: among the Vaishnavas, the devotees of God, who are his people and his company.
True Worship
What genuine worship looks like, beyond outward observances and images.
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