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Bakth
Tukaram
The name of Tukaram brings to one’s mind the murti
of Panduranga Vithal (Krishna) of Pandharpur. They are inseparable. In one of
the thousands of abhangas (the word means ‘indestructible’) or bhajans by
Tukaram, he has written, “To praise anyone except Panduranga is to me a crime
equivalent to killing a Brahmin… If I swerve from my single-minded devotion to
Vishnu, may my tongue be torn into thousands of pieces.’’ In another abhanga,
he proclaims, “I am an inhabitant of Vaikuntha, I have come here from
Vaikuntha.” The reason for his coming from Vaikuntha is explained in the
following words, “(I have come here) to sound the drum of Dharma, to destroy
Kaliyuga, so as to make devotees take the name of Bhagwan amid acclamations of
‘Victory, victory’.”
The murti of Panduranga Vithal in Pandharpur
stands on a brick with arms resting on his hips. It is said Bhagwan Krishna
once visited his devotee, Pundarika. Since he was busy serving his parents,
Pundarika offered a brick to the Lord to stand on; which he did. When the
devotee was through with his filial service, he met Bhagwan Krishna. He asked
the Lord to stay at Pandharpur permanently, hence the posture.
Family Heritage
Tukaram (1608-1649 CE) inherited his love for
Vithal as a proud family heritage from his ancestor, Vishvambhar Buva, who
preceded him by several generations, and his parents, Bolhoba and Kankai, who
lived in Dehu, near Pune in Maharashtra. The followers of Tukaram claim a
glorious descent for the saint. They insist he had previously been born as
Prahlad, who was protected by Lord Nrusinha, Angad during the time of Bhagwan
Ram and Uddhav, who served Bhagwan Krishna. He is also believed to be an incarnation
of Namdev (1270-1320 CE).
Tukaram’s birth was also special. According to
legend, Lord Hari, addressing his devotees in Vaikuntha, said, “In the family
of Vishvambhar there is now a saint name Bolhoba; I am resolved to present him
with a son who shall be a world saviour and world teacher.” Hari then led
Namdev aside and reminded him that he had never finished the 1000 million
abhangas he had promised to write; this then would be his “opportunity to
assume the flesh again and finish the task”. That is the story regarding the
birth of the saint.
Tukaram’s predecessors treated their spiritual
legacy as a priceless one, but the saint surpassed all of them in this respect.
He gave up everything for Bhagwan Vithal, including a prosperous business, so
that he could serve him better. Even when his business declined and collapsed,
Tukaram’s faith in Hari remained as firm as ever. His eighth ancestor,
Vishvambhar, who following his mother’s advice, visited Pandharpur every
fortnight for nine months, used to go to the shrine with a glad heart but felt
very sad on the return trip. Vishvambhar was friendly to sadhus and Brahmins
whom he would feed on a regular basis. He was an honest businessman, a trait
inherited by Tukaram. On his first visit Vishvambhar was accompanied by four
companions. They walked to Pandharpur singing bhajans. When Vishvambhar had
darshan of Panduranga Vithal in the mandir he recalled the lives and lilas of
mahatmas like Pundarik, Namdev and Chokhamela (a Mahar (lower caste) devotee of
Vithal), and lost bodily consciousness. Such had been his ecstasy on seeing the
serene murti of Vithal.
Vithal's Promise
When Vithal realized his devotee’s difficulty in
coming to Pandharpur every two weeks, he appeared to Vishvambhar in a dream and
told him that he would himself come to Dehu, so that the devotee could worship
with ease. According to legend, Vishvambhar went to a mango grove on the
outskirts of Dehu with 50 to 100 villagers as directed in the dream. At the
indicated spot the group found fragrant flowers, herbal plants and tulsi
leaves. They started digging and found a beautiful murti of Vithal clad in
pitambar, with a tulsi garland round the neck and also a murti of Rukmini. The
devotees started shouting ‘Jai’ out of sheer joy. Vishvambhar took the murtis
to the village and installed Vithal with great enthusiasm. This is how Vithal
came to Dehu and it became an important centre of pilgrimage.
Early Life
Mahipati is reputed to be a highly reliable
biographer of Tukaram. His Bhakta Vijaya and Bhakta Lilamrita contain the story
of the saint’s life.
According to Mahipati, Tukaram Bolhoba Ambile, to
give the saint his full name, was born in 1608 in Dehu on the right bank of the
Indrayani River in present-day Maharashtra. Other sources mention different years
for the saint’s birth: 1568, 1577, 1588, while Marathi authorities maintain it
was 1598. A temple dedicated to Tukaram stands where his house had once stood.
The family was known for its piety. Tukaram’s parents were great devotees of
Vithal. For forty years both of them used to visit Pandharpur in the months of
Ashadh (June- July) and Kartik (October-November). The father, who managed the
family business, never believed in making money through dishonest deals.
Despite being a very good businessman, he was honest to his finger tips.
It is said that when Tukaram was born there was an
incredible lustre on his face, which dazzled his mother’s eyes. She took her
newborn son and placed him at the feet of Panduranga. Legend has it, following
a divine revelation, she named the child Tukaram.
Tukaram was the second of three sons, the other
two being Savaji and Kanhoba. At the time of Tukaram’s birth his normally
religious mother became much more so and showed signs of extreme renunciation.
It was to be so as she was to deliver a great bhakta. It is well said that
coming events cast their shadow. She would not speak to anyone and showed great
indifference to day-to-day affairs. But as the saint grew up he showed a strong
inclination towards religion; a strong sign that he had been chosen by
Panduranga himself. The saint inherited this trait from his mother in full
measure.
As a child, Tukaram was fond of games. He had
several playmates. Even in his abhangas he wrote a lot about Krishna’s
childhood lilas. As he grew up the seeds of bhakti for Hari, sown by his
parents, took root and flourished. A stage came when he became totally absorbed
in Krishna. This remained so till the end.
He cared little for birth status and caste. He
brushed aside distinctions based on them. He recognized only one caste – that
of the devotees of Hari.
He talks of his utter dependence on Hari in these
words:
“As
the stream to fishes thou,
As
is to the calf the cow,
To
a faithful wife how dear
Tidings
of her Lord to hear!
How
a miser’s heart is set
On
the wealth he hopes to get!
Such,
says Tuka, such am I!
But
for thee, I’d surely die.”
Family
Business
Tukaram entered business in 1621, at the age of
13, when his elder brother Savji expressed his inability as he was interested
more in the spiritual world.
Like other members of the family, he did not
consider business to be a means of making money by hook or by crook. In fact,
Tukaram ran the business like a sarvodaya enterprise where the buyer could take
whatever he wanted, sometimes even without paying for it!
Tukaram says that as he followed the profession of
a merchant it might create the impression that he is a vaishya. It is not so.
He further says about birth that that family is pure and that country is sacred
where Hari’s servants are born.
In one of his compositions, Tukaram says:
“Between
the low and lofty, God knows no difference.
Still
to the faithful He shows All His glory.”
The business prospered for a few years, then troubles
followed. Even then he did not give up his honest ways. His faith in Hari was
as steadfast as ever. He laughed away the taunts of other businessmen and
well-meaning friends: “Look what your Hari has done. This is what happens in
placing too much faith in Hari.” He met with failure in everything he
undertook. Despite their taunts others were convinced of Tukaram’s goodness and
helped him with money. But the new ventures turned out to be no better than the
previous ones. The family was reduced to dire straits. The following is a
chronology of Tukaram’s woes: death of Tukaram’s parents in 1625 and elder
brother, Savji, becomes a sannyasi; in 1629 his business fails; in the worst
ever famine in 1630 his elder wife, Rukhma, dies of hunger along with his eldest
son. These were landmarks in the saint’s life, not that they in any way
affected his spiritual life. If anything, these tragedies only reinforced his
faith in Panduranga.
SECOND MARRIAGE
By the time the business prospered and went bust
Tukaram had already married twice.
When he was 14 Tukaram was married, as was the
custom in those days. First, he was married to Rukhmabai. She turned out to be
a devoted wife but was constantly dogged by ill health due to chronic asthma.
So his parents decided that Tukaram should take a second wife. That is how
Avalibai, also called Jijabai, came into his life. She was the daughter of a
rich shopkeeper of Pune. Despite her nagging nature, she stood by her husband
when he faced difficulties on the business front. By that time Rukhmabai had
died of starvation along with her son in a terrible famine. Tukaram had also
lost his eldest sister-in-law in an earlier famine. Four years after he entered
business, Tukaram lost his parents. In the same year his eldest brother became
a mendicant.
Tukaram had six children: three daughters –
Kashibai, Bhagirathi and Gangabai – and three sons – Mahadev, Vithoba and
Narayan. Narayan was born four months after Tukaram’s death. The girls were
married in a miraculous manner. When they came of marriageable age the saint
was under pressure to find suitable bridegrooms. One day he found three boys
belonging to his community playing in the street. He brought them home, married
off his daughters to them and later held a wedding feast! Not a whimper of
protest was raised by anyone. Bhagwan Vithal, undoubtedly, had a hand in the
whole affair.
GOD TO HIS RESCUE
Misfortunes do not come singly. Tukaram put his
shoulder to the wheel and soldiered on. One night a great storm broke out while
Tukaram was driving an ox cart with a sack of grain. His companions had gone
ahead. The saint cried in anguish, “The filthy world! I have embraced it! Hence
my troubles! My father is dead; my brother has abandoned everything; I am
bankrupt; hence my shame. Here I am; my companions have left me; no one will
lend me a hand with this sack! O Hari, God of gods, I have no friend but thee!
Run to help me!” As he spoke he saw a wayfaring man beside him. “It was Hari
who had come to help him,” says Mahipati. “Who are you?” asked the stranger,
“Blocking the road in this way?” “I am a dealer in grain,” said Tukaram, “and
my companions have gone ahead.” Then the sympathetic stranger put forth his
hand and in a moment laid the sack on the ox. After that he stepped forward and
showed Tukaram the way, till they came to the Indrayani River which was high in
flood. But the stranger led the way and they crossed safely. Tukaram stood
amazed. “Suddenly,” says Mahipati triumphantly, “a flash of lightning showed
Tukaram that his companion was wearing a pitambar (the usual yellow silk robe
of Vishnu), had a sparkling kaustubh jewel round his throat, and wore a rosary
of tulsi beads round his neck.”
After the storm and rains it was the turn of
drought. Hari once again came to the rescue of his devotee. In the hope of
making money, Tukaram set out with bags of chillies for the Konkan region. On
the way he constantly chanted the name of Hari. After reaching the sea, he
unloaded his oxen under a pipal tree near a Shiva mandir. The villagers came
and asked his price. He answered, “You know the usual price, don’t you? Take
what you want,” and he let them fill the measure themselves. At first they
feared he would check them, but his thoughts were far away, and he never
interfered with them. The news spread through the village, and people came
tumbling over each other. “We will pay you later on,” they said. “Very good,”
said Tukaram. Some took handfuls, others kilos, according to their strength,
and at last one rascal said, “I have plenty of money at home, I want a sack of
chillies.” “I will trust you,” said Tukaram. Pious men understand God’s
purposes, but not the hard hearts of the wicked.
Pay up the Dues
Meanwhile, the kind-hearted stranger who helped
Tukaram with the bag came on the scene. He went to the villagers and introduced
himself as Tukaram’s agent. He said those people who had taken chillies on
credit should pay up the dues. The villagers said, “We do not know how much he
gave.” Then the stranger told them the exact quantity of chillies they had taken
and the amounts due. They were left with no option but to pay the amount. Then
remained only the rascal who had taken the whole sack of chillies. Tukaram’s
unknown helper then said, after taking a rope in his hand, “Pay me or I will
hang myself and ruin your whole village!” Then the villagers fell on the
rascal, kicked him and cursed him. The latter had no option but to pay the
whole amount as the others had done.
Meanwhile, the struggle between this naive
businessman and unscrupulous elements continued unabated. Once, a cheat palmed
off fake bracelets to him as gold ones. Tukaram had no money so at first he
declined the offer. But the trickster convinced him for part payment and gave
him the bracelets. When Tukaram went to his debtors and presented the bracelets
there was loud laughter all around, as the simple saint had once again been
cheated.
But Avalibai could not let down her husband
despite his reckless spending to help those in need. She pledged her ornaments
and raised two hundred pieces of silver. She advised her husband to use the
amount carefully and not waste it on beggars. Tukaram bought salt with the
amount and went to Baleghat to sell the commodity and buy sugar with the money
and sell it for cash again.
Punishment for ‘madness’
When Tukaram was returning home he found it
difficult not to help a poor Brahmin who was sorely in need of two hundred and
fifty rupees to ward off debtors. The saint took pity on him and gave him the
two hundred and fifty rupees he was carrying. When Tukaram returned to Dehu,
the people were convinced that he was ‘mad’. They garlanded him with onions,
seated him on a donkey and paraded him through the streets.
Now Tukaram had had enough. He was disgusted with
the affairs of the world. He decided to bid goodbye to business. He was 21
then. By then he had lost his wife and son to a famine; both died crying for
food. He sought solitude and the companionship of Hari more than ever. He sat
in meditation for seven days. Then, according to Mahipati the saint heard a
divine voice. Finally, he withdrew to a hill called Bhambhanath and had a
vision of Vithal. His brother Kanhoba brought him home. But he lived as a
recluse, returning to Dehu in the evening and going back to the hill for the
rest of the day to worship Vitthal.
Tukaram’s fame reached the ears of Shivaji. He
wanted to hear Tukaram's kirtans. He sent a caparisoned horse, an umbrella and
other paraphernalia to make the saint come to him. The saint was greatly
saddened at the sight of gold coins and the horse sent to welcome him to
Shivaji’s presence. He declined the invitation and advised Shivaji to call
himself the servant of Vithoba. Then Shivaji himself went to Lohogaon to listen
to Tukaram’s kirtans. Shivaji offered to give up everything to enjoy the bliss
of the saint’s company. But Tukaram advised Shivaji to carry on his duties.
Tukaram and Ramdas were contemporaries; they were
born in the same year. It is not clear whether they had ever met.
It is widely believed that Tukaram took jalsamadhi
to meet his Hari. It is believed that one day, he walked into the Indrayani
River. His rug, the cymbals in his hand and tambura fell down and he was never
seen again. Thus ended the earthly existence of a saint who endured so many
sufferings in the service of God and to make others happy.
Guruji. A. Sivaguru Swamy
Whatsapp Skype IMO 9963334337 Facetime 9346346956
Skype – sivaguruswamy29
45/2, Opp.Railway Station, Sirkali Tq, Vaitheeswaran Koil,
Naagai Dist, Tamilnadu–609 117
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