Faith, God becomes what the devotee believes
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
धन्य भावशीळ । ज्याचें हृदय निर्मळ ॥1॥
पूजी प्रतिमेचे देव । संत ह्मणती तेथें भाव ॥ध्रु.॥
विधिनिषेध नेणती । एक निष्ठा धरुनी चित्तीं ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे तैसें देवा । होणें लागे त्यांच्या भावा ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
Blessed is the simple devotee whose heart is pure and clean. He worships the deity in the image; the saints say true feeling resides there. He knows nothing of scriptural prescriptions and prohibitions but holds one single-pointed faith in his heart. Says Tuka, God must become whatever such devotees believe Him to be.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
Blessed is the simple devotee whose heart is clean. He worships the god in the image, and the saints say true feeling lives there. He knows nothing of what is allowed and what is forbidden; he holds one single faith in his heart. Tuka says: God must become for them whatever they believe Him to be.
What it means
Tukaram is exalting pure-hearted simplicity over learned correctness. The devotee who worships God in an image, knowing nothing of scriptural dos and don'ts, is called blessed, because the saints locate the truth not in the form but in the bhava, the feeling, that is present there. His ignorance of the rules is not a defect here; it leaves room for one undivided faith. The strong closing claim is that God is bound by such faith: He must show up as whatever the sincere heart believes Him to be. The teaching lifts up the unlearned lover of God and warns the listener that purity of feeling outweighs ritual expertise.
Faith and Trust
The boldness of faith, steadfastness, and the security of trusting in God.
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