Ecstasy, fed on God
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
देवें जीव धाला । संसार तो कडू झाला ॥१॥
ते चि येतील ढेंकर । आनंदाचे हरिहर ॥ध्रु.॥.
वेधी आणिकांस । ऐसा जया अंगीं कस ॥२॥
तुका म्हणे भुक । येणें न लगे आणीक ॥३॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
My soul is sated with God, and worldly life has turned bitter. The belches that arise are belches of bliss from Hari. One whose very being carries this quality inspires others as well. Says Tuka, once this hunger is satisfied, no other craving remains.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
My soul is full of God, and worldly life has turned bitter. The belches that rise up are belches of bliss from Hari. One whose body holds this quality draws others in too. Tuka says: once this hunger is fed, no other craving is left.
What it means
Tukaram uses the plain image of a satisfied eater to describe a soul fed on God. He has eaten his fill of God, and so the world has gone bitter in his mouth; the belches that rise are not of food but of bliss from Hari. He adds that this fullness is contagious: a person whose very being carries it pulls others toward the same table. The closing line names the result. When this one hunger is satisfied, every other craving simply ends, because nothing else can compete with being full of God.
Ecstasy and Joy
Triumphant happiness: poems written from the far side of the struggle.
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