Social criticism, the hollow preacher
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
ब्रह्मज्ञानाची भरोवरी । पुढिला सांगे आपण न करी॥1॥
थू थू त्याच्या तोंडावरी । व्यर्थ सिणवी वैखरी ॥ध्रु.॥
कथा करी वरिवरी । प्रेम नसे चि अंतरीं ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे कवित्व करी । मान वस्तु हे आदरी ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
One who forces the knowledge of Brahman upon others yet does not practice it himself deserves contempt. He tires his own tongue in vain. He narrates sacred stories only on the surface, but no love resides within. Says Tuka, he composes clever verses, but what he truly covets is honor and material gain.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
He pushes the knowledge of Brahman onto others but does not practice it himself. Shame on his face; he wears out his tongue for nothing. He tells the sacred stories on the surface, but there is no love inside him. Tuka says: he composes clever verses, yet what he really wants is honor and gain.
What it means
Tukaram attacks the pattern of preaching one does not live. The man teaches the highest truth to others while doing none of it himself, so his eloquence is empty effort. He recites holy stories with his mouth but carries no love in his heart, and his fine verses are aimed at applause and profit, not at God. The point is not to despise the person but to expose the gap between the spoken teaching and the unlived life, a gap each listener can check in himself.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
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