Prayer, asking for an heir to the vow
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
कृपा करावी भगवंतें । ऐसा शिष्य द्यावा मातें ॥१॥
माझें व्रत जो चालवी । त्यासि द्यावें त्वां पालवी ॥ध्रु.॥
व्हावा ब्रम्हज्ञानी गुंडा । तिहीं लोकीं ज्याचा झेंडा ॥२॥
तुका तुका हाका मारी । माझ्या विठोबाच्या द्वारीं ॥३॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
May the Lord be gracious and grant me such a disciple who will carry forward my vow; may you shelter him under your wing. May he become a knower of Brahman, with his banner raised across the three worlds. Says Tuka, let him call out my name at the door of my Vitthoba.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
May the Lord be gracious and give me such a disciple. Give me one who will carry my vow forward. Shelter him under your wing. Let him become a knower of Brahman, with his banner raised across the three worlds. Tuka says: let him call out my name at the door of my Vithoba.
What it means
Tukaram is not asking for a reward but for someone to come after him and carry on his vow of devotion. He asks the Lord both to grant such a disciple and to protect him, since the gift and its keeping both belong to grace. He wants this heir to be no small figure but a true knower of Brahman, his banner raised across all three worlds. The last line is the tenderest part: that the disciple, having risen so high, will still stand at Vithoba's door and call out the name of his own teacher.
Prayers
Direct appeals to God: for protection, guidance, strength, and mercy.
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