Bhaja Govindam Part 5 (from Gopi Krishna)

[Guest guest]

==Continuing with the Bhaja Govindam Commentary from Gopi Krishna==

========part 5========

 

Sloka 1

Bhajagovindam Bhajagovindam

Govindam Bhaja Moodhamathe

Samprapte Sannihite Kaale

Nahi Nahi Rakshati Dukrinkarane

 

Meaning:

 

Bhaja - Seek, Govinda - The Lord Govinda, Moodhamathe - O Fool, O Ignoramus,

Samprapte - (When) comes, Sannihite - appointed, Kaale - Time, Nahi - Surely

never, Rakshati - Saves, Dukrinkarane - Grammar rule.

 

Substance:

 

Seek or Worship Govinda, Seek Govinda, Seek Govinda, O Fool or ignoramus.

When the death comes at the appointed time, grammar rules will not save or

rescue you.

 

Commentary:

 

By repeating the words " Bhaga Govindam " thrice in the very first two lines

of the first sloka itself, Jagatguru Sri Adi Sankaracharya is trying to

bring home the point that human being has no other escape except immersing

oneself in the thoughts of Lord, and praying with utmost sincerity, reciting

the Divine Namas of the Lord rather than getting engrossed in anxieties to

possess wealth or acquire social status or achievements. Here the rules of

grammar mean all secular knowledge and earthly acquisitions or possessions.

The one who runs after materialistic gains is Moodhamathi.

 

The purport of these words is that any amount of knowledge cannot save the

soul when death knocks at the door of this limited body. At that time, one

has to leave behind one's material benefits and social status. These

acquisitions will not help one gain the knowledge of the Soul, which is

permanent, when the impermanent body withers, it turns out to be a

dead-wood.

 

It does not mean that one should shun away the pursuit of living for

knowledge, but, at the same time, one should understand its limited

capacity, and one should seriously try to acquire that knowledge which alone

can save a person from the slavery of imperfections. We should remember the

truth that it is a manifested world and it is impermanent. Other than God or

Soul, everything else is temporary. Death will snatch away the existence of

the body and the manifested world. What is the use of all the acquisitions

and secural knowledge then? So, while living in this secular world, or

materialistic world, one should endeavour to understand and master the

secret of purposeful life. One should identify oneself with the Lord, who

can only give solace to the parched materialistic lives. One should progress

spiritually after each death, instead of getting deeper and deeper into

mundane pleasures. It is rather sad that quite a few of us are of the

opinion that spirituality is for those who retired from employment or aged

people. The intellect, which has not been trained to remember God till one

attains sixty years, will never resort to spirituality after that. Even if

it does, for argument sake, what is guarantee that the cruel hands of death

will not embrace one before that. So, one should understand the fallacy of

this argument and train the mind from the childhood itself to start

practicing recitation of the Lord's name with every breath that one inhales

and exhales, otherwise it is just impossible to remember God's name at the

time of death. It is, therefore, imperative that one should keep repeating

the Divine Namas of Lord at every possible moment.

 

======to be continued=======