Bhaja Govindam

Verses 11 to 15

Verse 11 

maa kuru dhana jana yauvana garvaM

harati nimeshhaat kaalaH sarvam.h .

maayaamayamidamakhilaM buddhvaa

brahmapadaM tvaM pravisha viditvaa 

 

(maa = do not; kuru = do / act; dhana = wealth; jana = people; yauvana = youth; garvaM = arrogance / haughtiness; harati = takes away / steals away; nimeshhaat.h = in the twinkling of the eye; kaalaH = Time; sarvaM = all; maayaa = delusion; mayaM = full of / completely filled; idaM = this; akhilaM = whole / entire; buddhvaa = having convinced; brahmapadaM = the state / position of Brahma / God-realized state; tvaM = you; pravisha  = enter; viditvaa  = having known / realized.)

 

(dhana jana yauvana garvaM maa kuru = do not boast of wealth, youth and friends (because); kaalaH nimeshhaat.h sarvaM harati = In a moment Time steals everything; idaM akhilaM maayaa mayaM = all this is just delusion (Maya); buddhva = having convinced; tvaM brahmapadaM viditvaa, pravisha = know the Brahman and enter into It and merge in It.)

 

Do not take pride in wealth, friends, and youth.  Time takes away all of these in a minute; give them up having known that all these things are nothing but delusion, and enter the state of God realization and merge in Brahman.

 

The false sense of security provided by youth, wealth, one’s relatives, friends and other worldly possessions often make a man proud and egoistic.  Such people are so arrogant because of their wealth or influence in the society that they refuse to believe there will be a change to this status later. They do not hesitate to insult others and harm innocent people. With money power, they build a fortress of strength around them. Unfortunately, there is a very powerful army who can break into this seemingly impenetrable citadel: the all-destroying Time.  It sealthily comes and steals away all this in a moment.

 

Sri Sankara cautions against this wrong attitude of man, which causes a lot of avoidable misery later for him and those around him.  For him, he will soon understand that the great destroyer Time changes the whole situation overnight. Youth is not everlasting. Neither is wealth.  It doesn’t take long for a poor man to get rich or a rich man to reduce to rags.  Wealth doesn’t remain constant with anybody.  Money can be lost in many ways: misfortune, theft, cheating, quarrels, ill-health, etc.  With money gone, relatives and friends desert. Most relatives and friends surround us only for our money, hoping to enjoy a little of the good fortune.  If the purse is empty, no friend or relative will stay with us for long.  Fortune and misfortune come and go.  What we experience is not permanent. 

 

The transitory nature of the world and its pleasures should awaken us from our slumber. We must apply our intelligence and know that these things are in essence just illusions (Maya). “What is Maya? It is none other than the desire that obstructs the spiritual growth of an aspirant”, says Sri Ramakrishna.

      

Our goal should be to know the Supreme principle Brahman and to merge our little consciousness in It. The Atman, which resides inside us is the true and everlasting principle. 

 

Verse 12 

dinayaaminyau saayaM praataH

shishiravasantau punaraayaataH .

kaalaH kriiDati gachchhatyaayuH

tadapi na muJNchatyaashaavaayuH 

 

(dinayaaminyau = dina + yAminI, day + night; saayaM = evening; praataH = morning; shishira = winter; vasantau = (and) Spring season; punaH = again; aayaataH = have arrived; kaalaH = Time; kriiDati = plays; gachchhati = goes (away); aayuH = lifespan / age; tadapi = tat.h + api, then even; na = not; muJNchati = releases; aashaa = desire; vaayuH = air (meaning craze) (the wind of desire does not let off its hold.)

 

(dinayaaminyau =  day and night; saayaM praataH = evening and morning; shishiravasantau = winter and spring; punaraayaataH = come again (and again); kaalaH kriiDati = Time plays; aayuH gachchhati = lifespan goes away (wasted); tadapi = yet;  aashaa vaayuH muJNchati = the wind of desire is not released.)

 

Day and night, dawn and dusk, spring and winter, come and go again and again; Time plays and life goes in vain; Yet the fire of desire doesn’t quench.

 

The wheel of Time is always rotating.  Days and nights; mornings and evenings; spring and winter; months and years roll by. With this great rotation, our lifetime also flies.  It is as if Time plays like a small child unmindful of what happens around. In spite of advancing in age, we do not make an effort to get out of the clutches of desire.  

 

Man is so engrossed in his daily routine that the passage of time is hardly noticed.  The flight of days into nights, dawn into dusk and winter into spring is rarely observed.  The worldly man is so preoccupied to wonder how Time goes away and he is not any nearer to realising Truth.  The chain of desire has bound him and there is no escape.  Unless he releases himself from this bondage, there is no freedom for him.  Unfortunately, he too busy for that. 

 

In spite of rapid passing of time, man fails to look inward and try to improve himself.  He blames fate, God’s wish or past karma instead of admitting his own failure: the real culprit is his own selfish mind which refuses to abandon the desire to enjoy things of the world.

 

Verse 13

kaate kaantaa dhana gatachintaa

vaatula kiM tava naasti niyantaa .

trijagati sajjanasangatirekaa

bhavati bhavaarNavataraNe naukaa 

 

(kaate = kA + te, who + your; kaantaa = wife; dhana = wealth; gatachintaa = thinking of; vaatula = hey fool immersed in sensual pleasures!; kim = Isn’t  it? ; tava = your; naasti = na + asti, not there; niyantaa = controller; trijagati = in the (legendary) three worlds (Bhooloka, The Earth; Bhuvarloka; Swarloka, the Heaven); sajjana = good people; sa.ngatirekaa = sa.ngatiH + ekA, company + (only) one (way); bhavati = becomes; bhavaarNava = bhava + arNava, birth & death + ocean; taraNe = in crossing; naukaa = boat / ship.)

 

(kaate kaantaa = who is your wife ? (kaa) dhana gatachintaa = why you are worried about money ? vaatula = hey fool! tava niyantaa naasti kim ? = don’t you have a controller ? trijagati = in the three worlds; sajjana sa.ngati ekA = satsanga alone; bhavaarNava taraNe naukaa bhavati = becomes the boat to cross the ocean of samsara (worldly life of birth and death).)

 

Oh fool! Who is your wife ? Why are you so worried about wealth ? Do you think you have nobody above to guide you ? In all the three worlds, satsanga is the only thing which acts as the boat to cross the samsara (the worldly life of birth and death).

 

People behave as if there is no higher power above them.  Most of the time, man is worried about “kamini kanchana”, woman and wealth.  This takes away almost all of their energy.  Worrying about such things will not help anything.  The mind which attaches itself to money and lust will be weakened in no time.  It will fail when  faced with  critical problems.  The weak cannot survive in the world. “This is the great fact: strength is life, weakness is death.  Strength is felicity; life eternal, immortal; weakness is constant strain and misery: weakness is death.”, says Swami Vivekananda (Lecture on Work and its Secret).  

 

When the mind constantly dwells on things such as one’s wife’s beauty and ways to increase wealth, this develops into attachment.  It soon forms a habit.  It is extremely difficult to change habits.  In this age of consumerism, men and women are constantly lured into forming habits from which they have no hope of escape:  TV channels, serial episodes, newspapers, magazines, cinemas - even radios do this trick.  All this external influence binds us to the world.  All time and creative energy is diverted to negative and counter-productive aspects. People forget that there is some higher power above them that controls their destiny.  What is the way out ? The Acharya prescribes a unique remedy here:  Satsanga.  Keep the company of the good, the holy, the people who are traveling along the path to God, the realized souls: there is no other way - even in the three (legendary) worlds (Bhooloka, Bhuvarloka, Swarloka). 

 

We have to conquer base desires with the help of holy ones.  Negatives thoughts have to be erased by positive ones.  This is the way.  “The only remedy for bad habits is counter habits; all the bad habits that have left their impressions are to be controlled by good habits.”, says Swami Vivekananda (Raja Yoga).  Not only at the start of his sadhana, but also throughout its entire course, satsanga leads the way for the sincere sadhaka.  Hence “sajjana sanga” serves as the only boat which helps us cross the ocean of samsara, the worldly life, the bondage of birth and death.

 

“Mind is the main factor in you.  As is your mind, so are you.  It may be compared to a washed white cloth which is capable of taking any dye dipped in.  When you have learnt a new language you cannot help uttering a few words from it in your conversation.  Contact with the undesirables contaminates the mind.  Holy company on the other hand elevates it”.

         

“Lust and greed have immersed people in sin. If you behold women as the embodiments of the Divine Mother, you will escape from the snares of lust and its aftermath, misery.”                                                                                            - Sri Ramakrishna.

 

Verse 14 

jaTilo muNDii luJNchhitakeshaH

kaashhaayaambara bahukR^itaveshhaH .

pashyannapi cha na pashyati muuDhaH

udaranimittaM bahukR^itaveshhaH 

 

(jaTilaH = with knotted hair; muNDii = shaven head; luJNchhita kesha = hair cut here and there; kaashhaaya = saffron; ambara = cloth; bahukR^ita = variously done / made-up; veshhaH = make-ups / garbs / roles; pashyannapi = even after seeing; chana = cha + na, and + not; pashyati = sees; muuDhaH = the fool; udaranimittaM = for the sake of the belly / for satisfying hunger / living; bahukR^ita veshhaH = various make-ups / roles.)

 

(jaTilaH = (one is) with knotted hair; muNDii = (another) with shaved head; luJNchhitakesha = (yet another) with plucked hair; kaashhaaya ambara bahukR^ita veshhaH =  (yet another) dressed in saffron cloth; (in this manner) in various disguises; muuDhaH = fool; pashyannapi = even though he “sees”; na pashyati cha = (really) he doesn’t “see”; udaranimittaM bahukR^itaveshhaH = all this make-up is just for the sake of the belly)

 

One is with knotted hair, another with shaven head; there are others with plucked hair and wearing saffron cloth; The fools variously disguised in this manner “see”, but in reality, don’t “see”; All this is just a pretension for easy livelihood. 

 

In the previous sloka, the Acharya said that ‘satsanga’, the company of the good and holy alone will help us out of the worldly bondage.  But beware! There are fake ones; don’t get duped by them.  There are wolves clothed as sheep! Many people wear the garb of religion only for the sake of livelihood, because it is easy and respected. They dress up variously: matted locks or shaven head; hair plucked here and there. These men, though clad in saffron symbolizing renunciation, dress variously in order to fool real devotees. Innocent men and women are easily attracted to such fake monks who exhibit great show of devotion and sometimes powers also.  This tactics to dupe unsuspecting public was invented long back.  Sita was kidnapped by the demon (Rakshasa) Ravana, who came to her wearing the guise of a sanyasi. It is clear this was the case at the time of Sri Sankara also.  Such people make a mockery of religion and harm it immensely. Hence the Acharya ridicules them rather severely and condemns this as a mere ploy to satisfy hunger.

 

There are fakes in all walks of life; religion is not an exception. However, their presence in religious domain can be especially harmful.  They can do severe injury to individual aspirants, the community as a whole and pave way to the distortion of religious ideas. The situation is all the more complicated because such people are not entirely ‘blind’ to truth.  They ‘see’ the truth, but pretend they don’t, thus deceiving themselves as well as others. When real devotees bow to them, when the holy scriptures are recited, when they are forced to give elaborate lectures on life and spirituality, they should be conscious of the truth. Yes, then they ‘see’ the thruth (pashyannapi); but they fail to live a life which they preach.  They do not practice the lofty spiritual principles which they advocate. They don’t see the real thruth (na pashyati): because, they have shut their eyes to it.  The quest for easy livelihod and other interests take precedence. 

 

Some of them perhaps started earnestly with good intentions, but went astray later. Some willingly dressed themselves to make a ridicule of religion. In their hearts they should be feeling the guilt; but for the sake of an easy livelihood and for many other evil purposes, they adhere to their ill-conceived ways. The Acharya here warns sadhakas to beware of such counterfeits.  

 

The fake monks thus guised during Sri Sankara’s lifetime were doing this for a livelihood; but today the number of people who pretend to be great externally and do all sorts of mischief behind the scenes is growing alarmingly.  In India, the crime is much more organised today and has spread into many critical walks of life: administratin, politics, social work, service, etc.  With great care, they make a show of sincerity for the casuse and offer lengthy lip-service. The real aim of making money, misusing one’s position and enjoying the spoils of this dirty game, is hidden. 

 

Verse 15

aN^gaM galitaM palitaM muNDaM

dashanavihiinaM jaataM tuNDam.h .

vR^iddho yaati gR^ihiitvaa daNDaM

tadapi na muJNchatyaashaapiNDam.h 

 

(aN^gaM = limb(s); galitaM = weakened; palitaM = ripened (gray); muNDaM = head; dashanavihiinaM = dashana + vihInaM, teeth + bereft; jaataM = having become; tuNDaM = jaws / mouth; vR^iddhaH = the old man; yaati = goes; gR^ihiitvaa = holding the; daNDaM = (walking) stick; tadapi = then even; na = not; muJNchati = lets go / releases / gives up; aashaapiNDaM = AshA + pindaM, desire + lump (piNDaM also means rice-ball given; as oblation for the dead)

 

(aN^gaM galitaM = with weak body; palitaM muNDaM = with gray head; dashanavihiinaM jaataM tuNDaM = with jaws having no teeth; daNDaM gR^ihiitvaa yaati = walks holding a stick; tadapi = even then; aashaapiNDaM na muJNchati = the bundle of desires is not given up.)

 

The body is old and worn; head is gray; teeth have gone; he walks holding a stick; yet he hasn’t abandoned the bundle of desires.

 

Will advancing age calm dowm the rampant fire of desire ? Will white hair, teehless mouth and an infirm body ensure the presence of an elevated mind ? Will man ever learn a lesson with the passage of time ?  Look at this piteous portrait of an old man.  He has passed well his prime; the body is now weak and not much useful; hair has turned white; There is no teeth left. To walk, he needs the support of a stick.  We may think he must have reached a stage in which desire towards sense objects no longer bother him and his mind is above such mundane matters.  But the truth is something else.  In spite of his age and inability, the poor man is carrying something on his back: A huge unsightly bundle of desires! He is unable to get rid of them.  The body must have failed him; but the wretched mind which kept all those filthy things intact tortures the ailing body.  The situation is really pathetic: The mind wants and the body cannot!  Even if objects of desire are available, the body is not in a condition to enjoy them. It is comparable to prison life: The prisoner wishes to meet his near and dear, but has no means!  This old man is also a prisoner in his own body.  It is as if the desires reached youth as the body ripened to old age.  

 

The delusive power of Maya is immense.  The desire to enjoy sense pleasures is very powerful and doesn’t recede easily, even with age.  Only solution is to cultivate good habits during younger days. This old man didn’t attempt to have a check on his habits and bridle his desires.  Now it is too late.  As he totters towards the grave, his mind is constantly afflicting the body. 

 

This sloka emphasizes the importance of developing attitude of non–attachment in the youth, before it is too late. 

 

“However long a stone may remain immersed in a river, it does not allow even a small particle of water to percolate into it.  Even so the man steeped in worldliness does not permit any ethical or spiritual feelings gain access to his heart”    -Sri Ramakrishna.