Original Marathi from the Tukaram Gatha
मराठी मूळ
मुसळाचें धनु नव्हे हो सर्वथा । पाषाण पििळतां रस कैंचा ॥1॥
वांझे बाळा जैसें दुध नाहीं स्तनीं । गारा त्या अधणीं न सिजती ॥ध्रु.॥
नवखंड पृथ्वी पिके मृगजळें । डोंगर भेटे बळें असमानासी ॥2॥
नैश्वर ब्रह्म तेव्हां होय ब्रह्म । तुका ह्मणे श्रम करुनी काय ॥3॥
Tukaram Gatha (Marathi Wikisource)
English Translation
A pestle can never become a bow. You cannot extract juice by crushing a stone. A barren woman has no milk in her breasts; pebbles will not soften in boiling water. The whole earth will not be irrigated by a mirage, nor will a mountain meet the sky by force. When the perishable body becomes Brahman, then it truly becomes Brahman. Says Tuka, until then, what is the use of laboring?
This translation is auto-generated and may contain errors. We ask forgiveness for any inaccuracies in rendering Tukaram’s original Marathi.
Worldly Metaphors
Poems using images from games, occupations, and daily life as spiritual teaching.
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