Address to the mind, keep holy company
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
सांवळें सुंदर पाहे दृिष्टभरि । ऐसें कांहीं करीं मन माझें ॥1॥
मना तुज ठाव दिला त्याचे पायीं । राहें विठाबाईसवें सदा ॥ध्रु.॥
मना नको धरूं आणिकांचा संग । नाहीं पांडुरंग जयां मनीं ॥2॥
वरपंग भाव नको ह्मणे तुका । करीं प्राणसखा नारायणा॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
O my mind, gaze upon that beautiful dark form until your eyes are filled. I have given you a place at His feet; stay always with Vitthabai. O mind, do not keep the company of those who do not hold Panduranga in their minds. Says Tuka, do not settle for shallow devotion; make Narayana the beloved friend of your very life.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Gaze on that beautiful dark form until your eyes are full. Do this for me, my mind. O mind, I have given you a place at His feet. Stay always with Vithabai. O mind, do not keep the company of others, of those who do not hold Panduranga in their hearts. Tuka says: do not settle for surface devotion. Make Narayana the friend of your very life.
What it means
Tukaram turns and instructs his own mind, treating it as a wayward companion he must direct. He tells it to drink in the dark beautiful form of Vitthal until satisfied, and reminds it that he has already lodged it at the Lord's feet, so it should stay there always. The warning is about company: do not consort with people who have no place for Panduranga in their hearts, since their company pulls the mind away. The closing demand raises the standard from outward, show devotion to inward bond, asking the mind to make Narayana not a habit but the dearest friend of one's life.
Appeals and Exhortations
Direct calls to action: wake up, seek God, do not waste this human birth.
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