Faith, no fear for Hari's servants
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
पाटीं पोटीं देव । कैचा हरिदासां भेव ॥1॥
करा आनंदें कीर्तन । नका आशंकितमन ॥ध्रु.॥
एथें कोठें काळ । करील देवापाशीं बळ ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे धनी । सपुरता काय वाणी ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
God is behind them and before them; what fear can touch the devotees of Hari? Perform kirtan with joy; do not let the mind be apprehensive. Where can Death exert power against God? Says Tuka, is the master so weak that His word fails?
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
God is behind them and before them. So what fear can the servants of Hari have? Do kirtan with joy. Do not let your mind grow afraid. Here, where can Death use any force against God? Tuka says: is the master so poor that His word would fall short?
What it means
Tukaram speaks to frighten away fear itself. God stands both behind and in front of His devotees, so there is no gap left for dread to enter; the servants of Hari have nothing to be afraid of. From that he gives a plain instruction: sing kirtan gladly and refuse the anxious, second-guessing mind. He presses it with two questions: how could Death exert any power in the place where God already stands, and is the Lord such a poor master that His given word would ever fail to hold? The faith he calls for rests on God's nearness and reliability, not on the devotee's own strength.
Faith and Trust
The boldness of faith, steadfastness, and the security of trusting in God.
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