The cowherds' artless dance, God in their midst
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
तुका ह्मणे सुख घेतलें गोपाळीं । नाचती कांबळीं करुनि ध्वजा ॥1॥
करूनियां टिरी आपुल्या मांदळ । वाजविती टाळ दगडाचे ॥2॥
दगडाचे टाळ कोण त्यांचा नाद । गीत गातां छंद ताल नाहीं ॥3॥
नाही ताळ गातां नाचतां गोपाळां । घननीळ सावळा तयामध्यें ॥4॥
मधीं जयां हरि तें सुख आगळें । देहभाव काळें नाहीं तयां ॥5॥
तयांसि आळंगी आपुलिया करीं । जाती भूमीवरी लोटांगणीं ॥6॥
निजभाव देखे जयांचिये अंगीं । तुका ह्मणे संगीं क्रीडे तयां ॥7॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Says Tuka, the cowherds tasted that bliss to the full. They danced, making flags of their blankets. They fashioned their own drums and clapped stones together for cymbals. What kind of rhythm did those stone cymbals produce? They sang without melody and danced without keeping time. The cowherds danced and sang without proper beat, yet the dark, beautiful Lord was in their midst. Those who have Hari in their midst have a joy beyond all others; body-consciousness does not exist for them. He embraces them in His own arms. They fall to the ground in ecstatic prostrations. He sees the sincerity in their being. Says Tuka, He plays in the company of such souls.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Tuka says: the cowherds tasted joy to the full, dancing with their blankets raised like flags. They slapped their thighs for drums and clashed stones for cymbals. What sound do stone cymbals make? They sang with no tune and danced with no beat. Yet there, among them, was the dark and beautiful Lord. Those who have Hari among them have a joy beyond all joys; body-sense is gone for them. He gathers them into his own arms. They throw themselves flat on the ground before him. He sees the honest love in their bodies. Tuka says: he plays in the company of such souls.
What it means
Tukaram celebrates worship that has no polish and lacks nothing. The cowherds drum on their own thighs, clash stones for cymbals, sing off-key and dance out of time, and Tukaram openly admits there is no skill in it. What makes it complete is that the dark Lord stands in their midst, so their bodies forget themselves in joy. He is saying that God answers the heart, not the technique: he embraces these unschooled cowherds and plays among them precisely because he sees the sincerity in them. The poem quietly rebukes any worship that prizes correctness over love.
Krishna Leela
Poems celebrating Krishna's birth, childhood, and divine play.
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