Social criticism, the empty show without inner truth
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
अनुभवावांचून सोंग संपादणें । नव्हे हें करणें स्वहिताचें॥1॥
तैसा नको भुलों बाहिरल्या रंगें । हित तें चि वेगें करूनि घेई ॥ध्रु.॥
बहुरूपी रूपें नटला नारायण । सोंग संपादून जैसा तैसा ॥2॥
पाषाणाचें नाव ठेविलें देव । आणिका तारी भाव परि तो तैसा ॥3॥
कनक झाड ह्म वंदिलें माथां । परिं तें अर्था न मिळे माजी ॥4॥
तुका ह्मणे त्याचा भाव तारी त्यास । अहंभावीं नास तो चि पावे ॥5॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Putting on a show without real inner experience is not the path to one's own good. Do not be deceived by outward appearances; pursue your true welfare quickly. Narayana Himself plays many roles in many forms, yet after the performance He is exactly as He always was. A stone is called God, and through others' faith it can save them, yet the stone remains the same. One may bow one's head to a tree made of gold, yet one cannot extract real wealth from it. Says Tuka, it is one's own devotion that saves; the one puffed up with ego meets only with ruin.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
To keep up a show with no real experience is not doing yourself any good. So do not be fooled by outward color; take up your real good, and quickly. Narayana himself dresses in many forms and parts, yet after the act he is just as he was. A stone is named God, and by another's faith it can save him, yet the stone stays the same. A tree of gold is bowed to and honored, yet you cannot draw real wealth out of it. Tuka says: a person's own faith saves him; the one swollen with ego meets only ruin.
What it means
Tukaram attacks the habit of religious performance without inner realization. Putting on the costume of piety with no living experience behind it does nothing for your true welfare, so do not be taken in by outward show, your own or anyone's. He grants that appearances can carry power: Narayana plays many forms yet stays unchanged; a mere stone called God can save through a worshipper's faith, though the stone is still only stone; a golden tree is honored yet yields no usable wealth. The point lands on self-examination: what saves a person is their own genuine faith, while the one inflated by ego, mistaking the show for the substance, is the one who is destroyed.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
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