Tukaram met Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj – a leader who founded the Maratha Empire;[11][12][13][14] Their continued interaction is the subject of legends.

[14][15] Eleanor Zelliot states that Bhakti movement poets including Tukaram were influential in Shivaji's rise to power.

[2][16] In his work of Abhangas, Tukarama repeatedly refers to four people who had a primary influence on his spiritual development, namely the earlier Bhakti Sants Namdev, Dnyaneshwar, Kabir and Eknath.

He oscillates between a Dvaitist [Vedanta] and an Advaitist view of God and the world, leaning now to a pantheistic scheme of things, now to a distinctly Providential, and he does not harmonize them.

[19] Scholars note the often discussed controversy, particularly among Marathi people, whether Tukaram subscribed to the monistic Vedanta philosophy of Adi Shankara.

[20][21] Bhandarkar notes that Abhanga 300, 1992 and 2482 attributed to Tukaram are in style and philosophy of Adi Shankara:[20] When salt is dissolved in water, what is it that remains distinct?

However, scholars also note that other Abhangas attributed to Tukaram criticize monism, and favor dualistic Vedanta philosophy of the Indian philosophers Madhvacharya and Ramanuja.

"[20] Tukaram denounced mechanical rites, rituals, sacrifices, vows and instead encouraged direct form of bhakti (devotion).

One of his celebrated devotees was Bahina Bai, a Brahmin woman, who faced anger and abuse of her husband when she chose Bhakti marga and Tukaram as her guru.

[26] Fraser and Edwards, in their 1921 review of Tukaram, stated that this is not necessarily so, because people in the West too generally prefer relatives to marry those of their own economic and social strata.

[26] David Lorenzen states that the acceptance, efforts and reform role of Tukaram in the Varakari-sampraday follows the diverse caste and gender distributions found in Bhakti movements across India.

Tukaram's effort at social reforms within Varakari-sampraday must be viewed in this historical context and as part of the overall movement, states Lorenzen.

[27] Tukaram composed Abhanga poetry, a Marathi genre of literature which is metrical (traditionally the ovi meter), simple, direct, and it fuses folk stories with deeper spiritual themes.

The poems considered authentic cover a wide range of human emotions and life experiences, some autobiographical, and places them in a spiritual context.

[29] He includes a discussion about the conflict between Pravritti – having passion for life, family, business, and Nivritti – the desire to renounce, leave everything behind for individual liberation, moksha.

[9] Tukaram's literary works, along with those of sants Dnyandev, Namdev and Eknath, states Mohan Lal, are credited to have propelled Varkari tradition into pan-Indian Bhakti literature.

[43] According to Richard Eaton, from early 14th-century when Maharashtra region came under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate, down to the 17th-century, the legacy of Tukaram and his poet-predecessors, "gave voice to a deep-rooted collective identity among Marathi-speakers".

One such letter dated April 6, 1940 bore the quote "Daya tiche nanwa bhutanche palan, aanik nirdalan kantkache", meaning compassion is not only the welfare of all living beings, but also includes protecting them from harm's way.

These include: Tukaram's life was the subject of the 68th issue of Amar Chitra Katha, India's largest comic book series.

[50] Balbharti has included a poem of Tukaram in a Marathi school textbook The government of India had issued a 100 rupee Silver commemorative coin in 2002.