Social criticism, the fallen Brahmin
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
जातीचा ब्राह्मण । न करितां संध्यास्नान ॥1॥
सांडुनियां शािळग्राम । नित्य वेश्येचा समागम ॥2॥
नेघे संतांचें जो तीर्थ । अखंड वेश्येचा जो आर्थ ॥3॥
तुका ह्मणे ऐसे पापी । पाहूं नका पुनरपि ॥4॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
A Brahmin by birth who does not perform his daily prayers and ablutions, who abandons the sacred Shaligrama stone and constantly frequents the courtesan, who will not take the sacred water of the saints but forever pursues the company of the faithless. Says Tuka, do not look upon such wrongdoers ever again.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
A Brahmin by birth who does not do his daily prayers and bathing, who throws aside the Shaligrama stone and keeps the constant company of the courtesan, who will not take the saints' holy water but forever chases the company of the faithless. Tuka says: such wrongdoers, do not look upon them again.
What it means
Tukaram measures a man not by the rank he was born into but by what he actually does. He draws a sharp portrait of one who carries the name Brahmin yet drops every sacred duty, casts away worship of God, and binds himself instead to whatever degrades him. The point is not contempt for one person but a warning about a way of living: a holy name means nothing where holy practice has been abandoned. He counsels keeping such an example out of sight, lest its pull catch us too.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
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