The Name through the lineage, the servant enthroned
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
शोधूनि अन्वय वंश वंशावळी । परस्परा कुळीं उच्चारण ॥1॥
ह्मणविलें मागें पुढें चाले कैसें । केला सामरस्यें अभिषेक ॥ध्रु.॥
एकछत्र झळके उन्मनी निशाणी । अनुहाताच्या ध्वनी गगन गर्जे ॥2॥
तुकया स्वामी स्थापी निजपदीं दासा । करूनि उल्हासा सप्रेमता ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Tracing the lineage from one generation to the next, the Name is uttered through each family line. What was proclaimed in the past, how does it continue forward? The anointing was performed in the spirit of complete oneness. A single royal canopy gleams with the banner of the transcendent state. The unstruck sound reverberates through the sky. The Master of Tuka establishes His servant on the highest seat, with joyful and loving exuberance.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Tracing the line, the family and the long descent, the Name is spoken from house to house in turn. What was handed down before, how does it carry on ahead? The anointing was done in pure oneness. A single canopy shines with the banner of the mind beyond mind. The unstruck sound roars through the sky. Tuka says: the Master of Tuka seats his servant on the highest place, doing it with joy and with love.
What it means
Tukaram sees the Name passed down a living lineage of teachers and devotees, spoken from household to household across the generations. He wonders at how that inheritance keeps moving forward, and answers that the consecration is sealed not by blood but by complete inner oneness. The royal canopy and the banner stand for the transcendent state of mind beyond mind, with the inner unstruck sound filling the sky like thunder. The close turns personal: the Master crowns his servant on the highest seat, and does it gladly, out of love, so that the lineage of grace lands on Tuka himself.
The Power of the Name
The supremacy of nama-smarana: God's name as the highest practice.
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