Social criticism, the false holy man
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
डोई वाढवूनि केश । भूतें आणिती अंगास ॥1॥
तरी ते नव्हति संतजन । तेथें नाहीं आत्मखुण ॥ध्रु.॥
मेळवूनि नरनारी। शकुन सांगती नानापरी ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे मैंद । नाहीं त्यापासीं गोविंद ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Those who grow long matted hair and invite spirits into their bodies are not true saints. The mark of the Self is not found in them. They gather men and women together and tell fortunes of every kind. Says Tuka, such charlatans have no connection to Govinda.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
They grow their hair long and matted. They call spirits down into their bodies. But these are not true saints. The mark of the Self is not in them. They gather men and women together and tell fortunes of every kind. Tuka says: such tricksters do not have Govinda with them.
What it means
Tukaram is exposing a pattern of fake spirituality and naming the test that unmasks it. The long matted hair and the spirit-possession look like signs of holiness, and crowds are impressed, but the outward show proves nothing. The one mark that matters is atmakhun, the sign of having known the Self, and that is exactly what these performers lack. He points to the fortune-telling done before mixed crowds as proof: this is a trade in spectacle, not a life turned toward God. The warning is for the listener too, to test a teacher by the inner mark and not be drawn in by display, for where Govinda is absent the rest is only theater.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
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