Prayer, keep me singing to the end
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
कथेची सामुग्री । देह अवसानावरी ॥१॥
नको जाऊं देऊं भंगा । गात्रें माझीं पांडुरंगा ॥ध्रु.॥
आयुष्य करीं उणें । परी मज आवडो कीर्तन ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे हाणी । या वेगळी मना नाणीं ॥३॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Let the materials for the sacred story last as long as this body endures. Do not let my limbs give way, O Panduranga. Shorten my lifespan if you must, but let me love the singing of your glory until the end. Says Tuka, apart from this one longing, let nothing else enter my mind.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Let the things I need for telling your story last as long as this body lasts. Do not let my limbs fail me, Panduranga. Cut my life short if you must, but let me keep loving the singing of your praise. Tuka says: strike that down, but bring nothing into my mind but this.
What it means
Tukaram prays not for long life or comfort but for the capacity to keep praising God to the very end. He asks that his body and limbs hold together only so far as they serve the telling of the sacred story; their worth is measured by that use. He will even trade away length of life, asking God to shorten his days if need be, as long as the love of kirtan stays with him. The single petition is that nothing else be allowed to enter his mind, that no other desire crowd out this one. It is a request to be kept single-pointed, with devotion as the one thing he refuses to lose.
Prayers
Direct appeals to God: for protection, guidance, strength, and mercy.
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