Feeling extremely sorry for the foolish person reciting the grammar sutra in his terminal stage of life, compassionate Sankara disabuses his mind and tries to turn his attention to God and spirituality! The man was memorizing the term “Dukrunkarane” blindly! Sankara advises him to not while away his precious time in useless pursuits especially in the evening of his existence! The plight of this man, a typical representative of mundane world, triggers various thoughts in the advocate of Advaita! The essence of Vedas, Upanishads and how man should live and derive the fulfilment of his stay on earth is meticulously described in simple style in the Bhajagovinda stotra.The fear of death chases man like a shadow. But no man wants to die! The material and illusory world is so dear to him that he does not want to leave it! In fact, knowing full well that life is impermanent, he wants to perpetuate his stay on earth! Very cleverly, in his own inimitable way, Sankara suggests ways to win over death! Is it possible to overcome death which is inevitable and inexorable? Yes, says Sankara, if man, in the midst of his multifarious duties and involvements, finds time to turn at least a few pages of the Celestial Song, the Bhagavad-Gita that dispelled the doubts of the great Pandava warrior, Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra!
The second means of escaping the never ending cycle of birth and death is to taste at least a few drops of the sacred Ganga water! The third and the most important device is to worship the enemy of Mura -Lord Krishna! Though man cannot avoid physical death by these ways, he can become immortal in spirit to be remembered for ever! In very rare cases when God showers his benevolent grace on the bhaktha, he literally wins over death like the child star Dhruva and the Siva bhakta Markandeya! Gita asserts that the body is different from the soul or Atma! We should not identify the body with the Soul.The body is perishable while the Soul is indestructible! Sorrow is the result of ‘mamakara’--attachment and hence it has to be curtailed.
Desire is the root cause of all human trouble and it is insatiable. Fulfilment of one desire leads to another. Easiest way to reach God is through bhakti or devotion. Man is only an instrument in the hands of God! Perform ‘Nishkama karma’--rewardless action! Karma leads to bhakthi or devotion and that leads to Jnana or knowledge. Surrender yourself totally to the will of God when he happily takes over all your responsibilities! While jnani is like a husband, bhakta is a child dearer or even dearest to God!
Why does Sankara recommend tasting at least a few drops of water from the Ganges? She is called ’Vishnu pada’ emanating from the Lord’s feet! She is the holiest of the rivers in our nation and is believed to cleanse all sins and purify human beings! She was brought down to earth by the herculean effort of Bhagiratha, of the Ikshvaku clan and the ancestor of Sri Rama, hero of the Ramayana. Bhagiratha performed severe penance to please goddess Ganga first and later did tapas to propitiate Lord Siva, the only one who could receive the fury of the river while descending down to earth! Bhagiratha had to bring the river to earth for the salvation of his forefathers who were reduced to ashes by the angry look of the great sage Kapila! Thus a few drops of the Ganges can remove the bodily and mental impurities of man and can direct him to the spiritual path for mukti or liberation! Though the river is an eternal purifier, it remains as pure as ever unaffected by the sins and impurities of the millions that bathe in her waters! Sankara wants man to be free from all his sins by taking a dip in the waters of the river.
While reading scriptures like the Bhagavad-Gita is important, it is no less important to have a dip in the holy waters of the Ganges and other rivers. Of the nine types of bhakthi like Sravanam and others 'archanam’ or worship of God is a step that takes the devotee nearer to God. Having an idol of the chosen God and offering Him the ”shodasopacharas'”- the sixteen types like dhyana, avahana, asana and others, the bhaktha revels in the company of the deity thinking that he is really in the immediate presence of the Lord and offering Him his hospitality! We can never ignore the worship and devotion of bhakta Ramadas- Gopanna for his Lord Rama and how he was rewarded for the sincere worship!
Sankara declares with authority that mankind can get salvation through either of the three ways described above! Nama smarana- chanting His name shall keep the God of Death away! In the same way ‘Archanam’ when done sincerely is capable of driving away Yama! The severe and sincere tapas of child Markandeya did not allow Yama to come near him! When he dared, the Lord kicked him out and severely warned him not to approach his bhaktas! Sankara, on the pretext of advising the foolish man, tells mankind to read scriptures,take holy dip in the Ganga and offer Archanam- worship to the supreme Being. Will it be too much for us to follow the large hearted recommendation of the distinguished philosopher, Sankara??
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