A Discussion on Bhajagovindam : ( 19/01/2013. )

"The three divine exercises for spiritual unfoldment are being indicated in this 20th slokam:- 1. the study of the Bhagavad Gita, 2. the Ganga baptism, and 3. the worship of Murari( Lord). --------------------------------------------------------/ 1. Bhagavad Gita:- Srimad Bhagavad Gita, being the essence of all the Upanisads, a study of its eighteen chapters is an intellectual discipline by which we can come to understand what exactly is the goal of life, and what are the methods by which this Goal can be gained. 2. Akasa Ganga (the heavenly Ganges) :- Flowing so high above the human intellectual approach, was brought down to man's level of experience by the continuous efforts of King Bhagiratha, and today it is emerging out from the pure intellect of Lord Siva. Ganges stands for the "spiritual knowledge"for all Bharath nivasi. 3.Murari(Destroyer of Ego):-Worship Him- Mura means ego, until it is destroyed no hope of reaching the Truth (Lor...

"To one who has awakened to this Great Truth, it is immaterial thereafter whether he is in a crowd, or living all alone, in Bhoga ( materialism) or in Yoga ( spiritualism). In whatever condition he may live, his is the real joy." -------------------------------------------------------------/ "Having realised the Atma (Self), he has become Atma in all. He alone enjoys."      

"Renunciation alone is the seat of fearlessness":- ------------------------------------------------------/ If the previous slokam deals with a hypocrite, this one is a real renounced, who has truly relinquished all his inner thirst for enjoying the world out side. True dispassion brings real happiness to all. In the world outside, we find even emperors sorrowing, the rich worrying, the powerful man anxious, the man of accomplishment jealous...............................all are unhappy. Everyone points out the other man who, according to him, is happier. But the only one who has the courage to declare and truly feel that he is happy, is he who has relinquished all his passions and hungers from within. "Such an individual may have no shelter of his own than the shade of a tree in the courtyard of a temple. He may sleep there under it on the naked ground. He may wear nothing but a dear skin! or ( a piece of  cloth around his waist ).  Renouncing thus the entire...

Tat - Tvam - Asi (Tatvamasi):- ................................................../ This means "That thou art" ( Athu nee thanne  Agunnu)'that is you only. This slokam recalls the above Mahavakyam to us. Pilgrimage:- ................../ The pilgrimages to Kasi and Rameswaram will bring a lot of vivid experiences for a person who is doing it with faith, dedication, devotion, and sincerity, specially when it is undertaken on foot, as they used to do in the past. Observe vows (Vratham) or danam ( charity):- ......................................................................../ Educating the intellect to hold higher ideals, training the mind to obey will, sharpening one's will itself, are the achievement  gained by the practice of vows(vratham). Sharing intelligently what you have with others around you who are in need of it , is charity.  Pilgrimages, vows, and charity are all exercises to prepare the seeker's mind for the great pa...

The picture of a true ascetic is brought out here:- One may be having none of the elaborate comforts of life, and having renounced everything, including minimum necessities of life, one may come to live with no shelter, and with scarcely any food. Even such an individual may, to fight the inclemency's of weather, resort to warming up, on cloudy wintry days, near the fire. And in the clear and bright daytime he may back himself in the warmth of the sun. When at night the fire goes out, he may bend himself upon himself and, with his chin held tight to his own knees, spend rest of  the time of the cold night. He may not keep himself any possession--not even a begging bowl. He may accept what is given unto him in his own palm. For shelter he may choose to be under any wayside tree. Thus, an individual may come to leave even the utter necessities of life and, for all practical purposes, may look a real man of renunciation, and yet , says Swami Sankaracharya  in the 16th...

Man cannot get rid  of his heavy load of desires! They (desires) multiply as the body moves to the grave!! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------/ The 15th stanza shows the picture of a young man growing old is beautifully screened. The  sequence of the lines in the stanza is the very sequence in which age appears in man. First, the body becomes old; then grey hairs appear; then the teeth start falling off and, at last, the backbone has no more the strength to hold the body erect, and he takes the help of a walking stick to keep himself erect.  Leaning on his staff, painfully he drags himself on tottering legs---a sad and pitiable sight indeed. Desires grow in the mind as the body grows old:- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------/ And the dissipated body becomes more decrepit. The capacity for enjoyment leaves the body, but the mind, which has developed habits of immortality, cru...

Cheats and self-deceivers:- In this fourteenth verse Swami Sankaracharya looks around and sees to his own amazement that cheats and self-deceivers are often wearing the very uniform of the highest vocation in life, SANNYASA. Some of these samples of these cheats are being just hinted in this Slokam: "one with matted locks ( Jadadhari), one with shaven head, another one had laboriously plucked his hairs one by one, yet another in spectacularly coloured ochre cloths ( kashaya vastram/ coloured cloths)." Disguises:- These are fools who, though seeing, do not see( they are not conscious of the goal, to reach which they have taken the robe, nor are they striving in the right direction. These different disguises serve them, not for their philosophical seeking of Truth, but only for filling their belly. If this was true at the time of Swamiji, today, when more bellies are more often empty, it is the logic of life that more people should take to different types of disgu...

Slokam:-13.   The entire slokam is addressed to sensuous men, and the Acharya Sankara Swamikal here calls them, the best among fools who constantly waste themselves in lascivious thoughts( O Distracted  one! )     'Why worry about wife or wealth?'     Why dissipate mentally over the lips of your lady? To worry over anything will not pay in life. To worry means to waste your mental energies,  men fail, not because the world is strong enough to break them down, but it is always only because men become weaker and thus relatively the world-of-happenings is rendered more powerful. The weak must perish is the law of nature.   To consider wife  as only a chattel for your pleasure and sense-gratification is to pull down the institution of home and sanctity of the motherhood in her   Association with the good people:-     Satsangam is the remedy, this contact will develop in us a healthy atti...

Slokam-12. 1. Day and night, dawn and dusk, winter and spring, again and again come and depart.  2.Kala chakram ( the Time Wheel) is rolling fast forward passing, never stops for anybody or anything. 3.There is nothing permanent : "things born must die and perish away only to be born again." 4.Majority men and women are greedy, amass wealth by hook or crook, do all sorts of evils for their sense gratifications, make other's life miserable, as if they are permanently living for ever. 5.Finally death snatches away everything from them, they are compelled to leave everything back here and depart, sad and tragic! 6.Life steadily ebb away, but desire grows higher and higher, body decays and become infirm, no more strength to enjoy, but hunger for sense gratification persists.  7. Death crawls behind, disease and decay accompany them, leading to the grave. 8. Be Wise. Give up Desires. Seek the Lord....Bhaja Govindam, Bhaja Govindam.    ...

'My people', 'my things', my joys', 'my ideas' etc..:- -------------------------------------------------------------------/  These false vanities throw the man out of himself to suffer the storms of finitude and the floods of change. All these are the unavoidable contents of the objective world. Take no pride in your possession, in the people at your command, in the youthfulness that you have.  'Time loots away all these in a moment:- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wealth, social connections and family status, youth and vigour - these form the tottering pillars upon which is built the platform of sense-enjoyment. This drama of passion and lust can end only in utter dissipation and personality exhaustion. These have been already discussed and clearly shown in the early verses of Bhajagovindam.  Le aving aside all these, (after knowing their illusory nature) realise the state of Brahmam...

Slokam:-10. Swami Sankara : When age and its youthfulness have passed away, where is Lust and its play?  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------/ Th e maddening lust of blinding passion can remain with one only so long as the skin is tight, the muscles are hard, the blood is stormy, and the individual is young and hearty. Lust springs only from the youthfulness. When the cause is removed, the effects cannot remain all by themselves. When the water has evaporated, where is the Lake? ----------------------------------------------------------------------/   When the waters are dried up, the lake can no longer continue to exist. The dried up lake or tank can only express as the bed; only waters are there, can they express themselves as the lake or tank, and serve the world as such. So long as the waters of desire are playing in the mind, the passionate youth vigorously strives to fulfill them. But when once these desires h...