Hinduism

Tukaram, Poem 3547

In a village full of impious men, what can a saint do? He is like a cow shut up in a tiger’s den.
In a street full of butchers, if you swear by a bull and offer that as an assurance, what is it worth?
Plantain trees and thorn bushes may grow near each other, but what intercourse can there be between them?
Tuka says, If you make pottage of bitter seeds, how can it be sweet or wholesome.

Source The Poems of Tukârâma, trad. J. Nelson Fraser et K. B. Marathe, 3 vol., 1909-1915, archive.org · Contents