Surrender, the bold beggar
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
घालूनियां कास । बळें आलों मागायास ॥1॥
प्रेमें देई पाठवूनि । पांडुरंगा सेवाॠणी ॥ध्रु.॥
होई रे शाहाणा । कळों नेदावें या जना ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे पायीं । जडलों मग उरलें काई॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Girding my loins, I have come with force to beg. O Panduranga, grant me Your service and discharge my debt. Be wise about it, and do not let the world know. Says Tuka, once I am rooted at Your feet, what else remains?.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Girding my loins, I have come by force to beg from You. Send me out filled with love, Panduranga; pay off the debt of my service. Be clever about it, and do not let the world find out. Tuka says: once I am fixed at Your feet, what is left to do?
What it means
Tukaram comes to God like a determined beggar who will not be turned away, asking to be sent back full of love rather than empty. He even claims a debt: he has served, so God owes him. There is a wink in the prayer, asking God to settle it quietly, away from the crowd, as if the two of them share a private arrangement. The whole transaction collapses into one thing: once he is rooted at the Lord's feet, nothing further remains to be sought.
Prayers
Direct appeals to God: for protection, guidance, strength, and mercy.
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