Social criticism, the holy costume
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
टिळा टोपी माळा देवाचें गवाळें । वागवी वोंगळ पोटासाटीं ॥1॥
तुळसी खोवी कानीं दर्भ खोवी शेंडी । लटिकी धरी बोंडी नासिकाची ॥ध्रु.॥
कीर्तनाचे वेळे रडे पडे लोळे । प्रेमेंविण डोळे गळताती ॥2॥
तुका ह्मणे ऐसे मावेचे मइंद । त्यांपाशीं गोविंद नाहीं नाहीं ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
He wears the tilak, the cap, the garland, all the paraphernalia of God, but carries it all as a filthy pretense just to fill his belly. He tucks tulsi behind his ear and darbha grass in his topknot, and pinches his nose in a show of breath-control. At the time of kirtan, he weeps and falls and rolls on the ground, though tears pour from his eyes without any real love behind them. Says Tuka, such deceivers are frauds of illusion. Govinda is nowhere near them.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
He wears the tilak, the cap, the garland: all the gear of God. He carries it as a filthy disguise, just to fill his belly. He tucks tulsi behind his ear and darbha grass in his topknot. He pinches his nose to fake breath-control. At the time of kirtan he weeps, he falls, he rolls on the ground. The tears come, but there is no love behind them. Tuka says: such men are tricksters of illusion. Govinda is not near them. Govinda is not near them.
What it means
Tukaram is exposing the gap between religious display and the heart. He lists the whole costume of holiness, the marks, the beads, the grass, the staged tears in kirtan, and says it is worn for one reason: to feed the belly. The damning detail is the weeping without love behind it, devotion turned into performance. He calls this a fraud of Maya, an illusion dressed as piety. The pattern to watch is in oneself: religious props and even real tears prove nothing if there is no love; God does not come near a show put on for gain.
Social Criticism
Rebuke of hypocrisy, caste pride, false teachers, greed, and religious pretence.
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