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Sant Tukaram was an extraordinary saint in 17th-century Maharashtra,India. He composed close to 4,500 devotional poems, called Abhangs, devoted to Lord Vitthal of Pandharpur. Lord Vitthal is the form by which Sri Krishna is worshipped in Maharashtra. The other names for the Lord are Panduranga, Vithoba and Pandharinatha.
Tukaram was born in the year 1608 at a village called Dehu in Poona district of Maharashtra. His family deity was Lord Vithoba of Pandharpur. Tukaram lost his parents at the age of 17. He tried his hand in several ventures of trade, but failed. He would give away everything he had, including borrowed money to poor people in need.
During the famine of 1629, his first wife, son and the few remaining cattle died. He was so much disgusted with life that he left his house and village and disappeared into the nearby Bhamnath forest. For 15 days he stayed there concentrating on the Almighty without food, water or sleep. After the 15th day, he realised his oneness with the Supreme Consciousness, and Lord Vithoba visited him in His true form.
After this Tukaram had no love for his household, wife or relations. He reconstructed the family temple which had fallen into disrepair and began to spend his life— day and night — in Bhajan and Kirtan. As a result of his whole-hearted devotion, Bhajan and Kirtan, Tukaram was rewarded with Guru Upadesh. The Guru visited him in a dream. Tukaram said “ His name was Babaji Chaitanya, and he advised me to do Japa of Ramakrishna Hari”. Babaji Chaitanya was the fourth generation disciple of Sant Namdev.
Tukaram now began to spend his life in devotional practices. One day, he had a dream in which Sant Namdev appeared with Lord Panduranga, woke him and advised him to make devotional songs. The divine art of making poems came naturally to Tukaram. People started getting attracted to him.
His fame was resented by some people, and they told him to stop making poems, and as for the poems he had already made, they should be drowned in the Indrayani river. Tukaram brought all the poems, bound them together, tied a big stone round the bundle, and threw it into the river. Tukaram then sat on the bank of the river Indrayani in constant prayer to Lord Panduranga to show him the correct path. For 13 days he thus sat unmoved, without water, food or sleep. On the last day, the bundle of poems were found floating in the river and were brought back to Tukaram.
After this incident, Tukaram's name and fame spread far and wide. He was always doing Bhajan and Kirtan and earned nothing. The burden of maintaining the family consisting of himself, wife and children fell on his poor wife. Tukaram was so absorbed in his Bhajan that he generally forgot food. Tukaram's wife had to undergo many difficulties in maintaining the family. Tukaram himself acknowledged her devotion and purity.
One of Tukaram's admirers promised him some grain every day if he would look after his fields of corn and protect them from birds. Tukaram agreed and when he went to the fields, all the birds flew away. He was so upset that the poor birds were deprived of their food. In a few days, however, the birds lost their shyness and fear and began to feed regularly on the corn. The owner of the fields hauled up Tukaram. But Tukaram believed in kindness to God's creatures and duty to allow them to feed freely. He was made to give a promissory note to the owner for the loss. After the harvest, however, it was found that the farmer, instead of losing, had got double the expected quantity. The farmer was so overjoyed that he sent Tukaram the excess quantity to Tukaram which he distributed to the poor.
One day the great Maratha chief Shivaji Maharaj came to meet Tukaram and stayed with him for several days. Shivaji Maharaj was so much impressed and moved by the Bhajans of Tukaram that he wanted to give up his kingdom and take to Bhajan and follow Tukaram. But Tukaram dissuaded him from doing so. He reminded Shivaji of his duty to his subjects . Shivaji returned to his court a happier and a more contented man. Tukaram knew intuitively that Samarth Swami Ramdas would be Shivaji Maharaj's Guru, and it was Tukaram who introduced Swami Ramdas to Shivaji Maharaj.
Tukaram always advocated Bhakti in the form of repeating His Name and in the form of Bhajan, singing His praises. He would spend many days and nights doing Bhajan. He used to get invitations from nearby villages to go over there and do Bhajan with the villagers.
Once, he was performing Kirtan. There was a large concourse of people doing Bhajan with him. Among them was a Brahmin named Joshi who had come to the Bhajan leaving his only dying child with its mother. The child died and the mother became very miserable. She came to where Tukaram was sitting in the Bhajan and upbraided him that he was the cause of making her husband indifferent to the dying child and thus responsible for the child's death. Tukaram immediately began to pray to God to grant life to the child and began singing bhajan. Lord Pandharinath granted his prayer and the child came to life and joined in the Bhajan.
When Tukaram's end was near, he told his friends that he would be going away in a few days. The night before his departure, he performed a Kirtan which was memorable in many respects. The subject was Hari katha ( The story of Lord Vishnu). Tukaram Maharaj said, "Hari katha is like the union of three holy rivers—God, the devotee and His Name. By listening to it, all one's sins are burnt off and one is purified." On hearing that his death was nearing, the people of the whole village assembled round him and he exhorted them thus:
"Fulfil responsibilities of family life, never forget Panduranga. The Name of the Lord alone will save you at the time of death. Never forget the Name of the Lord. Always do Kirtan and Bhajan of Lord Narayana. Do not worry about your material welfare. The Lord will look to it. This is all ephemeral. The Lord's Name is eternal. Do Japa of Ramakrishna Hari."
Thus passed away one of the greatest saints of Maharashtra with God's Name on his lips, singing praises of Him. Sant Tukaram Maharaj left this world in the year 1649 when he was 41 years old. Lord Vishnu sent His own chariot and servants to bring Tukaram to His abode. The spot from where Tukaram was taken to Vaikuntha is now the site of Vaikunth Gaman Sthan temple.
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