*Bhaja Govindam of Adi Shankara*

Introduction and Translation by Balakrishna Kumthekar

Govindam Adi-Purusam?
Sankaracharya
Known as an incarnation and devotee of Lord Siva, Sankaracharya was undisputedly
among the greatest philosophers that India, or the world, has ever produced. He
is unique in the history of the world as he combined in himself the attributes
of a philosopher, a devotee, a mystic, a poet and a religious reformer. Though h
e lived twelve hundred years ago, India and the world feels the impact of the li
fe and work of this spiritual genius even today.
As per the promise given in the Bhagavad Gita that God would descend on earth wh
enever righteousness and all that is dependent upon Dharma is on the decline, Sa
nkaracharya appeared on the Indian scene at a time when moral and religious chao
s had overtaken the country.
Sankaracharya was born during the 8th century. By those times, Buddhism was wide
ly spread in the country, but it had changed very much from that of the pure and
simple ethical teachings of the Master; Jainism also had its influence and a wi
de following. Both the religions, as per common comprehension, i.e. as per layme
n's understanding, were bereft of the concept of God, with the result that athei
sm was becoming vogue and the general creed of the people. Hinduism itself was b
roken up into numberless sects and denominations, each opposed to and intolerant
of the other. The religious coherence in the land was lost and, besides, many u
nwholesome excrescences such as the vows of the Saivas, Saktas, Ganapatyas, Saur
as and Bhagawatas which crept in, were corrupting the purity and spirit of relig
ion. What the times needed was an integration of all thought so as to stop the w
aning of the eternal principles of Dharma, to arrest the religious decadence, di
sharmony, and discord mounting up among the various sects of the Hindus, and bri
nging about a moral, religious and spiritual harmony, integration and renaissanc
e in the land. Such a mighty and stupendous task only God could do.... and Sanka
ra came, undertook it and accomplished it too!
During the brief span of 32 years of life, Sankara established firmly the Advait
a Vedanta philosophy as the essential unifying basis of the Hindu religion. He b
rought about religious harmony, spiritual coherence and moral regeneration of th
e country.
Sankara's Life Profile
Sankaracharya was born towards the end of the eighth century A.D., at Kaladi, a
village in Central Kerala. He was the only son of a devout Nambudiri Brahmin cou
ple, Sivaguru and Aryamba. It is believed that he was born as a result of their
long prayers to Lord Siva of the famous Vrishabhachaleswara temple at Trichur. H
e was an infant prodigy and completed his Vedic studies by the age of eight. His
father died when was still young and it was his mother who brought him up with
loving care as he was her only source of consolation and support now. The boy ex
hibited ascetic tendencies and mother felt very upset. Yet, the divine mission f
or what that great genius had been born had to be fulfilled, and so something of
miracle had to happen to set Sankara free from worldly ties. So once when the s
on was bathing in the nearby Purna river, while the mother was standing on the b
ank, a crocodile caught hold of the boy's leg and was dragging him into deeper w
aters.
When death was (seemingly) near, Sankara asked permission of the mother to enter
the last 'ashrama of Sanyasa', which every Hindu was supposed to enter before h
is death. Formal renunciation at such a critical situation, *Apat-Sanyasa*, was
a common practice. Very reluctantly, Aryamba gave her consent and lo, mysterious
ly the crocodile let go the boy ! Emerging from the river, the bala-sanyasin dec
ided to become a wandering monk and soon left his village after consoling and as
suring his mother that he would be at her side during her last days and even per
form her funeral rites. Thus, Sankara set forth on his divine mission at the ver
y young age of eight, when most of the boys would not have even left their toy-t
rinkets.
After leaving Kaladi, the young sanyasin-scholar wandered through South India an
d ultimately reached the banks of Narmada in search of a Guru. There, he met Gov
inda Bhagavatpada, a prominent disciple of the great Gaudapada of Mandukya Karik
a reputation. Govindapada welcomingly accecpted this boy-sanyasin as his discipl
e and initiated him into the intricacies of Vedanta. After about seven years, wh
en Sankara had completed his Vedantic studies and Sadhana, his guru told him to
proceed to Kasi, the ancient city of learing and spirituality, and spread the me
ssage of Advaita Vedanta from there by writing commentaries on the Brahma Sutras
, the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita.
As instructed, he proceeded to Kasi and there, within a short time, established
himself as the greatest champion of Vedanta philosophy. He won many debates; and
disciples came to him in large numbers. Padmapada, Hastamalaka and Totaka were
the chief among them. Thus, by the age of sixteen, Sankara had established himse
lf as a great philosopher in the city of Varanasi, then the very heart of the in
tellectual and spiritual movements in India.
After establishing himself at Kasi as the invincible champion of Vedanta philoso
phy, Sankara started on tour of this vast country for a *Dig-Vijaya* or spiritua
l conquest, under specific instruction from sage Veda Vyasa who blessed him with
a vision while Sankara was writing the Brahma Sutra Bhashya. Wherever he went,
he won over eminent leaders of the other existing systems of philosophy and firm
ly established Advaita Vedanta. None could stand against his vast erudition, dia
lectical skill and spiritual insight. Amongst these debates, one was of great im
portance; his encounter with Mandana Misra, the great disciple of Kumarila Bhatt
a, a staunch protagonist of ritualism. The *Karma Kanda* portion of the Vedas ha
d much hold on Hindu religion at that time and this was largely due to the philo
sopher-leaders and religious authorities like Kumarila Bhatta and Mandan Misra.
In order to establish the truths of *Jnana Kanda*, Sankaracharya had to defeat a
nd win over these two intellectuals. Due to unavoidable circumstances, Kumarila
Bhatta could not undertake a debate with Sankaracharya and directed the Vedantin
to meet his disciple Mandan Misra. The debate with Mandan Misra took place with
Ubhaya Bharati, scholarly wife of Mandana Misra, acting as the Judge. After man
y days of discussion, Mandana Misra accepted defeat.
The condition of the debate was that he who would be defeated would become the o
ther's disciple and take up the victor's way of life. Thus, Mandana Misra became
a Sanyasi and was given the name Sureswara. This victory gave a new impetus to
Sankara's spiritual conquest. Sri Sankara and his disciples traveled all over th
e land refuting false doctrines and purifying objectionable practices which were
in vogue in the name of religion. He also established Maths in four places; in
Sringeri in the south; Badri in the north, Dwaraka in the west and Jagannath Pur
i in the east. He chose these places of beauty of their natural environments ami
dst snow-clad mountains, forests and rivers or on the shores of the ocean, place
s where heaven and earth meet and transport man's thoughts to sublime heights. H
e placed Sri Sureswaracharya at the head of the Math in Sringeri, Sri Padmapada
in Dwaraka, Sri Totaka in Badri and Sri Hastamalaka in Puri. The establishing of
these Mathas indicated Sri Sankara's realization of the physical and spiritual
unity of India. He wrote in Sanskrit, the lingua franca of cultured India of tho
se times, which alone could appeal to all the intellectuals all over the land.
After a pretty long stay in Sringeri, he hastened to the bed side of his dying m
other in his ancestral home at Kaladi and sped her soul to the 'immortal realms
of light' to the strains of mellifluous hymns in praise of Siva and Vishnu. Unde
terred by the opposition of his pharsaical (religious formalist) kinsmen, he cre
mated his mother's body on the riverbank behind the house and the spot had since
become hallowed as a place of pilgrimage. He visited all the sacred shrines of
the land around which have gathered the cultural traditions of the people, purif
ying the forms of worship and establishing the Sri Chakaras in many of them such
as Kamakshi temple of Kanchi, Nara Narayana temple of Badri and Guhyesvari temp
le in Nepal, etc.
This "best of peripatetic teachers" Sankara crowned his triumphal tours by vanqu
ishing the great scholars of Kashmir, and ascended the sarvajnapitha as the symb
ol of recognition by the world of his scholarship and undisputed mastery in all
the (then known) branches of learning.
During his last visit to Nepal, he had a vision of Sri Dattatreya and from there
he went to Kedarnath at which place, at the age of thirty two, he said to have
disappeared from his mortal existence. A spot not far from the shrine of Kedarna
th is said to be the place of his disappearance. (One version, however, is that
he merged in Mother Kamakshi at the Holy Kanchi, thus ending his earthly career)
.
Sankara made the edifice of Hindu religion strong by his rational and scientific
exposition of the Upanishadic philosophy so that Sanatana Dharma could face all
the challenges during the vicissitudes of history till modern times. His contri
bution to Indian philosophy is so great and lasting that all the later philosoph
ers have only tried to refute him or to elucidate his ideas. In foreign countrie
s, Indian philosophy has always come to be identified with Sankara's Advaita.
Sankara symbolises the great *Rishi-culture* whose greatest exponent he was. The
message of Sankara is a message of hope and optimism. He says that man is not f
inality, a finished product; he has divine potentiality in him that is to be dis
covered through self-conscious evolution. The kingdom of peace, fullness and joy
are within each one of us, says Advaita. We will have to realise it. Sankaracha
rya was one of the greatest benefactors of mankind because he expounded the Adva
ita Vedanta philosophy which is a pathway to Bliss and Immortality.
About Bhaja Govindam
Bhaja Govindam is one of the smaller Sanskrit compositions of Adi Sankaracharya,
compared to his monumental works called *Bhashyas*, commentaries on Indian Scri
ptures. Bhaja Govindam, along with Atma Bodha, etc., comes under the category of
*Prakarana Granthas*, introductory manuals for spiritual studies. They are like
primers, explaining the philosophical terms etc., for the spiritual initiates.
The elementary spiritual truths are brought to the fore in these booklets and ma
ke man think, " Ah, this is life; I must seek escape from this prison-hole and m
ay God guide and help me". Man is thus drawn out of miry by-lanes of life in whi
ch he is stuck in and put onto the royal road of spirituality and self-realizati
on.
A popular story describes the circumstances in which this great poem burst forth
the lips of Sankara. It is said that once in Banaras when he, together with his
fourteen disciples, was going along on his daily rounds, he overheard a very ol
d Pundit cramming Panini's grammer rules. Sankara was touched with pity at the i
gnorance and folly of the man to be wasting away the most precious 'dusk hours'
of his life for a mere intellectual accomplishment instead of spending them in c
ontemplation on the Lord, praying for spiritual enlightenment and for release fr
om the bondage of Samsara. He knew that this was not the state of that particula
r old man only, but was the general state of most of the men.
Sankara intimated that men waste and while away their lives in many (or most) fu
tile ways, groveling in the mire of earthly attachments forgetting God who is th
e only goal in life. In compassion for man's plight, he burst forth into these s
tanzas, famous as Moha Mudgara, now popularly known by the refrain of the song,
which is *Bhaja Govindam*.
"Oh, Mudha ! Oh, ignoramus ! Grammer rules (in fact all your secular learning) w
ill not come to your rescue when death knocks to snatch you away. Instead of was
ting away the precious span of your life in a futile manner, turn to and seek Go
vinda, who alone can save you from the jaws of life and death".
In thirty-one simple, sweet and lucid Slokas, giving homely analogies and illust
rations for our easy understanding, Sankara tells us about the fallacy and futil
ity of our life; and sloka by sloka he removes veil after veil, dispelling our i
gnorance, illusions and delusions (moha) and showing us where the remedy for all
our misery lies. The poem is, therefore also called "Moha Mudgara." He touches
all aspects of our life, how these blind and bind us, plunging us deeper and dee
per into the abyss of ignorance and misery. He wants each one of us to cultivate
 a discerning and discriminating eye (viveka) to distinguish the permanent from
the transitory, the real from the unreal, to practice dispassion (vairagya) for
worldly attractions and distractions, to cultivate devotion for realizing Govind
a, the abiding Absolute Truth and thus getting released from the misery and bond
age of this phenomenal existence.
Govindam Adi-Purusam?
*Bhaja Govindam of Adi Shankara*
Verse 1: ~~~~~~
BHAJA GOVINDAM, BHAJA GOVINDAM
GOVINDAM BHAJA MUDHAMATE
SAMPRAAPTE SANNIHITE KALE
NA HI NA HI RAKSHATI DUKRINKARANE
Seek Govinda! Seek Govinda! Seek Govinda! Oh ignoramus, at the time of death the
rules of grammer, which you are trying to cram and master, will not be able to
rescue you at all.
(Grammer rules mean all secular knowledge and earthly acquistitions. Mudhamati m
eans a materialist, wholely worldly-minded, who does not believe in God or the s
piritual entity that is in man)

Verse 2: ~~~~~~
MOODHA JAHEEHI DHANAAGAMATRISHNAAM
KURU SADBUDHIM MANASI VITRISHNAAM
YALLABHASE NIJAKARMOPAATHAM
VITHAM TENA VINODAYA CHITHAM
(refrain from Verse 1 to be sung after every verse...BHAJA GOVINDAM, BHAJA GOVIN
DAM..........)
Oh, Fool! give up your insatiable desire for earthly possessions; be sensible an
d develop serenity and contentment. Be satisfied and happy with whatever you may
earn by the sweat of your brow and whatever has destiny marked for your lot.

Verse 3: ~~~~~~
NAAREE STHANABHARA NABHEEDESAM
DHRISHTWA MAA GAA MOHAVESAM
YETAN MAAMSAVASAADI VIKAARAM
MANASI VICHINTHAYA VAARAM VAARAM
Enticed by the physical glamour of a woman, do not lose your senses; the body is
nothing but a conglomeration of flesh, do not forget this any time.

Verse 4: ~~~~~~
NALINEEDALAGATHA JALAMATITHARALAM
TADWAJJEEVITAMATHISHAYA CHAPALAM
VIDDHI VYADHYABHIMAANAGRASTAM
LOKAM SHOKAHATAM CHA SAMASTHAM
The water droplet on the lotus leaf is tremulous and unsteady. So too is life wh
ich is as uncertain. Know the body to be in the claws of disease, which may swal
low it at any moment. Life is ultimately nothing but worry, misery and grief.

Verse 5: ~~~~~~
YAAVADVITTOPAARJANA SAKTHAH
TAAVANNIJAPARIVAARO RAKTHAH
PASCHAAJJEEVATI JARJARADEHE
VAARTHAM KOPI NA PRICHCHATHI GEHE
As long as you are fit to make an earning, so long will your kith and kin be sol
icitous about you, but no sooner your limbs become infirm and your earnings ceas
e, none will care for you, not even your own home-folk.

Verse 6: ~~~~~~
YAAVATPAVANO NIVASATI DEHE
TAAVATPRICHCHATI KUSHALAM GEHE
GATAVATI VAAYO DEHAAPAAYE
BHAARYA BIBHYATI TASMINKAAYE
As long as there is life in your body, your people may have concern for you, but
once the life-breath ebbs out of your body, even your own wife will run away fr
om you.

Verse 7: ~~~~~~
BAALASTAAVAT KREEDAA SAKTHAH
THARUNASTAAVAT THARUNEESAKTHAH
VRIDDHASTAAVAT CHINTHAASAKTHAH
PARASE BRAHMANI KOPI NA SAKTHA
Childhood skips off on sport and play. Youth flies off in pursuits of love-makin
g. As one grows older he is drowned in worry about the security and future of hi
s wife and children. One's whole life gets spent in some kind of worry or other.
And at no stage does man find time to lift his thoughts to God.

Verse 8: ~~~~~~
KAA TE KAANTAA KASTE PUTHRAH
SAMSAROYAMATEEVA VICHITRAH
KASYA TWAM KAH KUTHA AAYAATAH
TATWAM CHINTHAYA TADIHA BHARATAH
Who indeed is your beloved and who indeed is your son? Strange indeed are these
family bonds; who belongs to you and to whom you belong? Whence did you come, Oh
brother! Reflect on the truth of it all.

Verse 9: ~~~~~~
SATSANGATWE NISSANGATWAM
NISSANGATWE NIRMOHATWAM
NIRMOHATWE NISCHALATATWAM
NISCHALATATWE JEEVANMUKTHIH
The company of the good weans one away from false attachments; when attachment i
s lost, delusion ends; when delusion ends, the mind becomes unwavering and stead
y. An unwavering and steady mind is merited for Jeevan Mukti (liberation even in
this life).

Verse 10: ~~~~~~~

VAYASI GATE KAH KAMAVIKARAH
SHUSHKE NEERE, KAH KAASAARAH
KSHEENE VITHE KAH PARIVARO
GYNATE TATWE KAH SAMASARAH
When youth is gone, where is lust and its play? Where is the lake when its water
s have dried up? Where are the kinsfolk when riches are gone ? When Truth is rea
lised, where is the snare of Samsara?

Verse 11: ~~~~~~~

MAA KURU DHANAJANAYOUVANAGARVAM
HARATI NIMESHAATKAALAH SARWAM
MAAYAAMAYAMIDAMAKHILAM HITHWA
BRAHMAPADAM TWAM PRAVISHA VIDITWA
The pleasures and riches of worldly life are deceptive appearances. Understandin
g that they are all but a passing-show, be detached and dispassionate, cultivate
renunciation and seek Brahman.

Verse 12: ~~~~~~~

DINAYAAMINYOU SAAYAM PRAATAH
SHISHIRAVASANTOW PUNARAAYAATAH
KAALAH KREEDATI GACHCHATYAAYUH
TADAPI NA MUNCHATHYAASAAVAAYUH
Day and night, dawn and dusk, winter and spring, all these are flitting across t
he stage of the world. While time thus is frolicking and befooling us, our life
span is also running out; yet we do not, even a little, give up the clinging to
our desires, nor do we let the desires loosen their grip on us.

Verse 13: ~~~~~~~

KAA TE KAANTAA DHANAGATACHINTAA
VAATULA KIM TAVA NAASTI NIYANTAA
TRIJAGATI SAJJANASANGATIREKAA
BHAVATI BHAVAARNAVATARANE NOUKAA
Crazy man ! Why do you worry so much about your wife and property? Why don't you
seek out the Truth? Know that in these three worlds it is only the association
with the good and holy that can help you in crossing safely the ocean of life.

Verse 14: ~~~~~~~

JATILO MUNDI LUNCHITAKESHAH
KAASHAAYAAMBARA BAHUKRITAVESHAH
PASYANNAPI CHA NA PASYATI MOODHO
HIUDARANIMITAM BAHUKRITAVESHAH
The ascetic with matted locks, the man with the shaven head or one with hair pul
led out, or the man parading in the ochre robes -- they all have eyes but yet do
not see. All these are but deceptions for cheating the world, for filling their
bellies. (Renunciation does not lie in external appearance, but in inward thoug
ht, attitude and feeling).

Verse 15: ~~~~~~~

ANGAM GALITAM PALITAM MUNDAM
DASANAVIHEENAM JAATAM TUNDAM
VRIDHDHO YAATI GRIHEETWA DANDAM
TADAPI NA MUNCHATYAASHAAPINDAM
The body has become decrepit, the hair on the head has turned completely gray; t
he mouth has become totally toothless; the back is bent down and the old man can
not take even a step witout the aid of his stick; yet he does not loosen even a
bit, his hold on the bundle of desires.

Verse 16: ~~~~~~~

AGRE VAHNIH PRISHTE BHAANUH
RAATHROW CHUBUKASAMARPITAJAANUH
KARATALABHIKASHAS TARUTALAVAASAH
TADAPI NA MUNCHATYAASHAAPAASAH
Homeless he is; his back is bent down with age. His body has lost its heat and h
e has to warm himself before a fire or in the sun. Tree is his only shelter; he
lives by begging and by the crumbs thrown into his palms by others; in the night
he sleeps by holding his chin on his knee (because the back is bent and he cann
ot stretch himself and lie down). Yet, he does not let and allow the grip of des
ires on him loosen even a bit.
Verse 17: ~~~~~~~
KURUTE GANGAASAAGARAGAMANAM
VRATAPARIPAALANAMATHAVAA DAANAM
JNANAVIHEENAH SARVAMATENA
MUKTIM NA BHAJATI JANMASATENA
One may have bathed in the holy Ganges or even in the Ganga Sagar; he may have p
erformed many charities and observed many vows; yet unless one has glimpsed the
Truth (God), he will not gain release even after a hundred lives.

Verse 18: ~~~~~~~

SURAMANDIRA TARUMOOLA NIVAASAH
SAIYAA BHOOTALAMAJINAM VAASAH
SARVAPARIGRAHA BHOGATYAAGAH
KASYA SUKHAM NA KAROTI VIRAAGAH
Who can disturb the peace and happiness of a man if he has the true spirit of re
nunciation and has controlled his desires, even if he be the poorest, sleeping o
nly in the temple halls and choultries or under trees or on the bare ground and
just with a deer skin to cover.

Verse 19: ~~~~~~~

YOGARATO VAA BHOGARATO VAA
SANGARATO VAA SANGAVIHEENAH
YASYA BRAHMANI RAMATE CHITHAM
NANDATI NANDATI NANDATYEVA
Whether one is immersed in yoga or is revelling in bhoga (i.e, outward enjoyment
), whether he is enjoying himself in social company or has retired into solitude
, true happiness certainly cannot be his; but who alone is revelling inwardly in
Brahman, (wherever he be), he alone will be truly happy and will verily enjoy.

Verse 20: ~~~~~~~

BHAGAVADGEETA KINCHIDADHEETAA
GANGAAJALALAVAKANIKAA PEETAA
SAKRIDAPI YENA MURARISAMARCHAA
KRIYATE TASYA YAMENA NA CHARCHA
Even a little study and understanding of the Bhagawad Gita, or sipping of even a
tiny drop of the waters of the holy Ganges or even a little worship of Murari -
- these will surely save one from confrontation with death!

Verse 21: ~~~~~~~

PUNARAPI JANANAM PUNARAPI MARANAM
PUNARAPI JANANEE JATARE SAYANAM
IHA SAMSAARE BAHUDUSTAARE
KRIPAYAA(A)PAARE PAAHI MURARE
Undergoing the pangs of birth again and again, passing through the throes of dea
th again and again, lying in the mother's womb over and over again, this process
of samsara is hard to cross over. Save me from it, Oh merciful Lord !

Verse 22: ~~~~~~~

RATHYAACHARPATA VIRACHITAKANTHAH
PUNYAAPUNYA VIVARJITAPANTHAH
YOGEE YOGANIYOJITACHITHO
RAMATE BAALONMATTAVADEVA
Clad in stray rags, treading the path beyond good and evil, caring for neither e
arning merit by taking to good deeds nor stooping to do any evil, and lost in me
ditation the yogi revels in the Supreme always, lost to all outward norms and de
corum -- his behaviour may look prankish like that of a child or may be even que
er like that of a lunatic.

Verse 23: ~~~~~~~

KASTWAM KOHAM KUTA AAYAATAH
KAA ME JANANEE KO ME TAATAH
ITI PARIBHAVAYA SARVAMASAARAM
VISWAM TYAKTWAA SWAPNAVICHAARAM
Who are you ? Who am I ? From Where did I come? Who is my mother, who is my fath
er? -- enquire thus and you will then realise that the entire world of experienc
e, all the worries and problems are but a dream, a mere hallucination, born of i
magination and delusion. With such a realisation, you will be freed from the del
usions of the world.

Verse 24: ~~~~~~~

TWAYI MAYI CHAANYATRAIKO VISHNUH
VYARTHAM KUPYASI MAYYASAHISHNUH
BHAVA SAMACHITTAH SARVATRA TWAM
VANCHHASYASHIRAADYADI VISHNUTWA
In you, in me and everywhere, there is but the one Vishnu. Mistakenly viewing me
with a sense of difference, you are ill-disposed towards me. Try to see in all
beings only the Vishnu who is your own self. Give up your false and egoistic sen
se of separateness from other beings. Cultivate a sense of kinship, unity and on
eness with all.

Verse 25: ~~~~~~~

SATROU MITRE PUTRE BANDHOU
MAA KURU YATNAM VIGRAHASANDHOU
SARVASMINNAPI PASYAATMAANAM
SARVATROTSRIJA BHEDAAJNYANA
Do not look at anybody in terms of friend or foe, brother or cousin; do not frit
ter away your mental energies in thoughts of friendship or enemity. Seeking the
Self everywhere, be amiable and equal-minded towards all, treating all alike.

Verse 26: ~~~~~~~

KAAMAM KRODHAM LOBHAM MOHAM
TYAKTWAA TMAANAM PASHYATI SOHAM
AATMAJNANA VIHEENAA MUDAAH
TE PASYANTE NARAKANIGOODAAH
Free yourself from lust, anger, greed and delusion. Contemplate on 'who you are'
. Enquire within yourself, who am I? The fools who fail to apprehend the Self ar
e caught in hell-fire even here and now itself and suffer torture.

Verse 27: ~~~~~~~

GEYAM GEETAANAAMASAHASRAM
DHYEYAM SHREEPATIROOPAMAJASRAM
NEYAM SAJJANASANGE CHITTAM
DEYAM DEENAJANAAYA CHA VITTAM
Recite the Gita; chant the thousand Names of the lord (Vishnu Sahasranama), medi
tate ceaselessly on the Consort and Lord of Lakshmi; lead the mind towards assoc
iation with the good. Give away your wealth in charity to those in need and who
are poor.
Verse 28: ~~~~~~~
SUKHATAH KRIYATE RAAMAABHOGAH
PASCHADDHANTA SHAREERE ROGAH
YADYAPI LOKE MARANAM SARANAM
TADAPI NA MUNJCHATI PAAPAACHARANAM
As readily as one takes to indulging in carnal pleasures, with the same readines
s, alas, he is taken over by disease too. Even seeing death as the inevitable an
d only end of all, man does not refrain from sinful ways.

Verse 29: ~~~~~~~

ARTHAMANARTHAM BHAAVAYA NITHYAM
NAASTI TATAH SUKHALESAH SATHYAM
PUTHRAADAPI DHANABHAAJAAM BHEETIH
SARVATRAISHA VIHITA REETIH
It is wealth only that causes all harm and brings about one's ruin. Bear this tr
uth in mind always. Know that the pursuit of wealth does not lead one to happine
ss at all. The rich fear and are even afraid of their own sons. This is the outc
ome of riches anywhere and ever.

Verse 30: ~~~~~~~

PRAANAAYAAMAM PRATYAAHAARAM
NITYAANITYA VIVEKAVICHAARAM
JAAPYASAMETA SAMAADHIVIDHAANAM
KURVAVADHAANAM MAHADAVADHAANAM
Regulated breathing and sense control, discrimination between the Enduring and t
he fleeting, the Eternal and the transcient, Japa and meditation, and submerging
of the bodily and mental consciousness in the Consciousness of the Spirit, merg
ing oneself into the total Inner Silence -- one must practice these with unrelen
ting fervour.

Verse 31: ~~~~~~~

GURUCHARANAAMBUJA NIRBHARABHAKTHAH
SAMSAARAADACHIRAADHAVA MUKTHAH
SENDRIYA MAANASA NIYAMAADEVAM
DRAKSHYASI NIJAHRIDAYASTHAM DEVAM
Surrender yourself to the Lotus Feet of the Guru; with your senses and mind disc
iplined, and freed from the shackles of Samsara you will behold the Lord who is
seated in your heart.
********