True worship, the marks of an empty life
Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha · About Sant Tukaram
मराठी मूळ
कंठीं कृष्णमणी । नाहीं अशुभ ते वाणी ॥१॥
हो का नर अथवा नारी । रांड तयें नावें खरी ॥ध्रु.॥
नाहीं हातीं दान । शूरपणाचें कांकण ॥२॥
वाळियेली संतीं । केली बोडोनि फजिती ॥३॥
तुका म्हणे ताळा । नाहीं त्याची अवकळा ॥४॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
No Krishna-mani at the throat, no auspicious word on the tongue. Whether man or woman, such a one is truly a wretch by name. No generosity in the hand, no bangle of heroism. The saints have cast such a one out, shaved bald in disgrace. Says Tuka, one who has no balance within, his is only degradation.
We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram ji’s original Marathi.
In Plain Words
No Krishna-bead at the throat, no auspicious word on the tongue: whether the person is a man or a woman, the only true name for such a one is wretch. No giving in the hand, no bangle of courage on the wrist. The saints have cast such a person out and shamed him. Tuka says: one who has no inner balance has nothing but degradation.
What it means
Tukaram lists the marks of a life with no devotion in it: no sign of God worn or remembered, no good word on the lips, no generosity, no courage. Man or woman, he says, such a person has earned only a hard name. The harshness is his usual shock-treatment, but the real point is in the last line: the missing thing is inner balance, the steadiness that comes from a life oriented toward God. Without it, whatever the outward circumstances, the result is only degradation. The ornaments he names, bead, word, gift, courage, are all the outward signs of an inward orientation that is simply not there.
True Worship
What genuine worship looks like, beyond outward observances and images.
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