Surrender, led by the thread of love
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
प्रेमसूत्र दोरी । नेतो तिकडे जातों हरी ॥1॥
सत्ता सकळ तया हातीं। माझी कींव काकुलती ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे ठेवी तैसें । आह्मी राहों त्याचे इच्छे ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Hari leads me by the thread of love; wherever He pulls, I follow. All authority rests in His hands; my pleading and supplication are His to answer. Says Tuka, however He places us, we remain content with His will.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Hari leads me by a thread of love; wherever He pulls, I go. All power is in His hands; my pleading, my crying out, are for Him to answer. Tuka says: however He sets us down, we stay content in His will.
What it means
Tukaram is describing total surrender as being tied to God by love rather than driven by force. The thread of love means he goes wherever Hari draws him, not as a captive but as one bound by affection. He hands over all control: every authority rests with God, and his own role is reduced to pleading and crying out, which God alone can answer. The closing line completes the giving-up: wherever God places him, in whatever condition, he rests content in that will. The poem holds up a peace that comes not from getting one's way but from wanting only what the Beloved wants.
Surrender and Acceptance
The conditions of spiritual receptivity and the letting go of the separate self.
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