Social criticism, the renunciant for fame
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
जगीं कीतिन व्हावी । ह्मणोनी जालासी गोसावी॥1॥
बहुत केलें पाठांतर । वर्म राहिलेंसे दूर ॥ध्रु.॥
चित्तीं नाहीं अनुताप। लटिकें भगवें स्वरूप ॥2॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
You became a renunciant so that you might gain fame in the world. You have memorized much, but the essence remains far away. There is no remorse in your chitta; your saffron robes are a lie.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
You became a renunciant so the world would give you fame. You memorized a great deal, but the heart of it stayed far away. There is no remorse in your mind. Your saffron robe is a lie.
What it means
Tukaram is confronting the person who took up renunciation as a way to be admired. He says it plainly: you put on the holy life for fame, not for God. You have memorized scriptures and recitations by the heap, yet the essence, the inner point of it all, has stayed far from you. Without true remorse in the mind, the outer dress means nothing. So he calls the saffron robe itself a lie, because the costume of holiness is worn over an unchanged heart. The reproach asks each of us whether our outer marks of devotion match anything inside.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
More in this theme →