Social criticism, religion for the belly
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
पोटाचे ते नट पाहों नये छंद । विषयांचे भेद विषयरूप ॥१॥
अर्थ परमार्थ कैसा घडों सके । चित्त लोभी भीके सोंग वांयां ॥ध्रु.॥
देवाचीं चरित्रें दाखविती लीळा । लाघवाच्या कळा मोहावया ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे चित्तीं राहे अभिळास । दोघां नरकवास सारिखा चि ॥३॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Performers who act for their belly are not worth watching; their art is shaped by the senses and leads back to the senses. How can spiritual truth flourish when the mind is greedy and the show of begging is hollow? They enact the stories of God's deeds as clever tricks to enchant people. Says Tuka, when desire lingers in the heart, both performer and audience share the same road to ruin.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Do not watch performers who act for their belly. Their art is shaped by the senses and leads back to the senses. How can spiritual truth grow when the mind is greedy and the begging is a hollow act? They act out the deeds of God as clever tricks, to enchant people. Tuka says: when desire stays in the heart, the performer and the watcher walk the same road to ruin.
What it means
Tukaram is attacking the use of sacred stories as a livelihood, a performance staged to win an audience and fill a stomach. When the mind behind the show is greedy, the senses both drive it and feed it, so no spiritual truth can take root; even the holy deeds of God become tricks to charm a crowd. The sharp turn comes at the end: the audience is not innocent. If desire lingers in your own heart, watching such a show feeds the same hunger, and performer and spectator share the same fall. The verse asks the listener to examine what they have come for.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
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