Prayer, remembrance and life's moisture
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
वारंवार हा चि न पडावा विसर । वसावें अंतर तुमच्या गुणीं ॥1॥
इच्छेचा ये दाता तूं एक समर्था । अगा कृपावंता मायबापा ॥ध्रु.॥
लाभाचिये वोढी उताविळें मन । त्यापरि चिंतन चरणाचें ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे जीवी जीवन ओलावा । पांडुरंगे दावा शीघ्र आतां ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Again and again, let me not forget You. Let my chitta dwell in Your qualities. You alone are the giver of all desires, O mighty one, O compassionate mother and father. As eagerly as the mind rushes toward gain, so let it contemplate Your feet. Says Tuka, may my jiva find the moisture of life within. O Panduranga, reveal Yourself swiftly now.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Again and again, let me never forget this. Let my heart live inside Your qualities. You alone are the giver of what is desired, O mighty one; O merciful mother and father. As eagerly as the mind rushes after gain, let it dwell that way on Your feet. Tuka says: let my soul find the moisture of life. O Panduranga, show Yourself quickly now.
What it means
Tukaram is praying for the one thing he keeps losing, steady remembrance, asking that he never forget and that his heart take up residence inside God's qualities. He addresses Panduranga as the only giver of what is desired and as mother and father at once, leaning on both power and tenderness. Then he names the honest gap between how he is and how he wants to be: the mind chases worldly gain with real eagerness, and he begs that the same eagerness be turned toward God's feet. The closing image is dryness longing for water. Let the soul find the moisture of life, and let God reveal Himself quickly, now, not someday.
Prayers
Direct appeals to God: for protection, guidance, strength, and mercy.
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