Bhaj Govindam 

Though written by another disciple, this verse is a direct continuation of the previous verses. It is like the last verses flows directly into this verse. They talk about the then prevalent exploitation and dominance of Sanathan Dharma by a few, and how people were being mislead. This glorious way of life was wrapped up in layers of blind rituals and taboos, to a great extent it still is. 

There goes a story - That during the prayer, a family had to tie a black cat which roamed around their house, to keep it away from the alter. However, generations later, because the true reason for tying the cat was lost, this actually became a part of the family ritual, they considered it not possible to complete the prayer without a black cat, believing that the cat is essential for this prayer, they would actually get a black cat specially for the occasion and tie it for the prayers. 

This is exactly what is happening today. When the masses behave like illiterates and find it beyond their ability to read the original scriptures and understand the deeper meanings, what else can be expected, but the downfall of this eternal way of life.

Guru Subodhaji is also saying just like old age (verse 15), coloured robes (verse 16), pilgrimage, penance and charity (Verse 17) do not directly translate into a desire free, liberated state.

Here, he is NOT against pilgrimages, fasting/penance or charity. Here, Karma Kandh is NOT being condemned, but the ignorance with which it is being done is being ridiculed. He is emphasising, that when these holy endeavours are under taken, a clarity is needed on;

• Who is doing this?
• Who should get the benefit?
• Why are we doing this?
• How this should be done?
• The Final Test

Verse 17

कुरुते गङ्गासागरगमनं, 

व्रतपरिपालनमथवा दानम्।

ज्ञानविहिनः सर्वमतेन, 

मुक्तिं न भजति जन्मशतेन॥१७॥

किसी भी धर्म के अनुसार ज्ञान रहित रह कर गंगासागर जाने से, व्रत रखने से और दान देने से सौ जन्मों में भी मुक्ति नहीं प्राप्त हो सकती है॥१७॥

Kurute Gangasagaragamanam

Vrataparipalanamathava Danam

Jnanavihinah Sarvamatena

Bhajati Na Muktim Janmasatena

The Seventeenth verse said to me - Shruti Says🌷

There is no point in going for pilgrimages, 

Or observing fast/penance nor giving Charity,

If one does these out of ignorant selfish reasons.

These pious acts done without true knowledge and pure intentions,

cannot give liberation even in a thousand years,

So say all dharms in unison. 

———————————————

Who is doing this? 

Who should get the benefit?

Till we are in Deh Buddhi or body consciousness and the feeling that I am the doer (Karta Bhav) and I am the beneficiary (Bhogta Bhav) is there, all the activities be it as noble as pilgrimage, penance or charity, will lead to only bondage and not liberation. The reason is simple, ‘I’ binds. 

The moment one sees God in his very self and others. When he starts seeing no second. That very moment the ‘Doer-ship and the I’ dissolve and the knot of ignorance in the heart is broken, all the doubts vanish and the entire stock of his karmas get dissolved. All activities of man mainly leads to transmigration, but the same, when offered to the Lord, lose their binding character.

We should also remember that, all that we are able to do is by the grace of the Lord, without his will moving even one leaf is not possible. We are but the puppet in the hand of God, we need to be just the flute in Krishna’s hand. Then remains no bhogta nor any Karta. 

Krishna and The Flute

Everyday Krishna would go in the garden and say to all the plants, “I love you”. The plants would respond back happily “Krishna, we love You, too”. 

One day Krishna rushed into the garden very alarmed. He went to the bamboo plant and the bamboo plant asked, “Krishna, whats wrong with you?” Krishna said “I have something to ask from you, but it is very difficult”. The bamboo said “Tell me: if I can, I will give it to you”. So Krishna said “I need your life. I need to cut you”. 

The bamboo thought for a while and then said “You don’t have any other choice. You don’t have any other way?” Krishna said, “No, no other way”. And it said “OK”. 

So Krishna cut the bamboo, made holes in it, and each time, while he was doing that, the bamboo was crying with pain, because he was hurting the bamboo so much. Krishna made a beautiful flute out of it. And this flute was with Krishna all the time.

Even the Gopis were jealous of the flute. They said, “Look, Krishna is our Lord, but yet we get to spend only some time with him. He wakes up with you, He sleeps with you, all the time you are with him”. So one day they asked the bamboo, “Tell us the secret of it. What secret do you have, that the Lord treasures you so much?” 

And the bamboo said, 

“The secret is that I’m empty inside. And the Lord does whatever he wants with me.”

Why are we doing this?

This we have discussed in great length in verse 16 (Sadhana vs Sadhan) - It is a means or the end. In Shrimad Bhagwat Mahapuran, when Bhagirath was urging Ma Ganga to descend to earth, she asked a prominent question, will quote directly from the Granth;

Ma Ganga: I am not inclined to go down to the terrestrial region (Mrtyu Lokh) for people will wash aways there sins into me. Where will I wash off that sin myself.

Bhagirath: Ma, pious souls who have given up attachment to actions as well as to their fruit, are pure of mind, foremost amongst the knower of Brahma and capable of purifying the whole world, shall wash off your sin through the very contact of their body while bathing in your water. For in them in their hearts dwells Sri Hari, the destroyer of sins.

We have to ask ourselves which category do we fall in, the purifier or the sinner. The same Pilgrimage, penance and Charity can be an end and the means, depending on who is doing it. We have to evaluate where we stand, and we have to be honest to ourself.

How this should be done?

In a nut shell: 

• pilgrimage + Divine Wisdom, Penance + Divine Wisdom and Charity + Divine Wisdom = Vigyan (True knowledge of the self)
• Pilgrimage + Ignorance, Penance + Ignorance and Charity + Ignorance = Manifold increase in Delusion 

Note: The rain water is pure, if it falls on the rose petal it is called dew drops, and if it falls in the drain it not fit for drinking. 

Lets delve deeper;

Pilgrimage (Tirath)

These days most people are just like tick mark tourist. They have to tick visiting a place in their spiritual tourist list. However, it is not only a place, but the company of a saint and also the amount of time spent with holy people on the tirath sthan, and contemplating on the divine on that spot. We need to become one with that place, and go like Ramji with an ‘Udasin Vrath’, where most comforts are given up. 

In olden days, when a person left on Tirath yatra it was never sure if that person would return. It was a journey taken even at the expense of ones own life. The yearning for the Lord and the belief that he is there, is the foundation stone of pilgrimage. 

If there is this kind of devotion towards the Triath, the person can not return with desires for the material world, they get burnt there and returns a pure individual who has felt the presence of Lord.

We can not and should not undermine the importance of these holy places. The question is not if we should visit, but how we should visit and post the visit what changes have to be made in our life.

Penance (Tapas)

Here there is no debate if Tapas is needed or not. Tapas and Penance is needed.

We all try to find an easy ways and quote people like Raja Janak and Gurus, who seem to be indulging. They had done their share of tapas to reach a stage where they could be in the midst of luxury and yet not get attached to it. It is a wrong comparison we make between them and us. 

If milk debate that just like butter, it can also be put into water and maintain its own identity, it is a funny state of affairs. Most wise people would just leave the fool alone, and not even indulge in a debate with the dim wit.

All Subodhaji is saying here is, be aware of where you are in your Sadhana (Refer to Sadhana Vs Sadhan in verse 16) 

• Be aware if it is a means or the end that you are working on?
• Is there effort or now one has reached a phase of effortless effort?
• The tapas is to gain from the Lord or to gain the Lord himself?

Dana (Charity)

What is Charity?

Charity is giving till it hurts, it pinches. Beyond what you need, is best used in charity. Most of us use charity as brownie points to cover our self indulgence, and give us a sense of comfort that we have also done something for the greater good.

“When god blesses you financially, don’t raise your standards of living, raise your standards of giving."

Charity is only fruitful when you have earned your money in the right way and you are giving it to the right person, with the right intention. 

Types of Chairty:

- Dhan - Donation in the form of money 

- Aana - Food/medicine/cloths etc (quality of charity - food fresh or left overs)

- Smaya -Time

- Gyana - Knowledge

- Abhaya - Fearlessness

Samay Dana - Giving time is bigger than giving money or food. The rest of it can be replenished, however our time when lost can never be recovered. It is precious limited resource. Not only this, we don’t even know how much of it we have left. 

Abhaya Dana - Gift of fearlessness. We have the capacity to give fearlessness to whatever we touch. Today, due to the lack of this, we have alienated ourself from the entire creation. Every other living thing fear the human being. 

Art of giving charity? - “Gupt Dana, Uttam Dana”

When you give charity, from your right hand, the left hand should not know about it. The motive of charity should not be name and fame, it should be greater good. Let’s take it a step forwards, we are just the ‘Nimit’.

Aabdurrahim Khan, popularly know as Raheem was one of the nine pearls (Navaratna) in the Darbar of Samrat Jalalluddin Mohammad Akbar.

Here are a few couplets written by Raheem on Giving(Dan, charity). 

Tabahi laun jeevo bhalo, deebo hoye na dheem;

Jag mein rahibo kuchit gati, uchit na hoye Raheem.

 Living is meaningful till one is able to give to others. 

A life without charity is useless and hence not justified.

Taruvar phal nahi khat hain, sarvar piyahin na pan;

Kahi Raheem parkaj hit, sampati sanchahin sujan.

Trees do not eat their fruits, ponds do not drink their water.

Those who know this, accumulate wealth for the use of others who really need it.

Ve Raheem nar dhanya hain, par upkari ang;

Bantanware ko lage, jyon  mehandi ko rang.

Blessed are those who give to others and live for others.

The one who grinds Mehandi for use of others can not avoid colouring of his own hands.

My favourite: 

Rahim Baba would not look at the people whom he would give to, his eyes would look aways or down. Those beggars who used to accept his donations were very amazed at this act of Rahim, and wondered why is Rahim ashamed of donating. Well, the word spread all over the North India, and Goswami Shree Tulasi Das heard of it. He wrote a little note to Rahim, which was as follows:

Aise deni den jyu'n chitt sikhe hosain

jyon jyon kar uncho kare taso'n niche nain

Tulsi Das basically summarized his practice of donation, and said that everybody should give donation in which your heart is pleased. And he suggests that as you raise your arms to donate your eyes look downward feeling shame. (Tulsi baba knew that Rahim ji was not ashamed, but he asked so that the world would also know how great a donor Rahim baba was.)

Well, when Rahim read this little note, he understood that Goswami ji is Omnipotent, yet he wants him(Rahim) to make a comment for the sake of those(us) who are new in donating. So this is what he wrote back:

Den haar koi aur hai bhejat jo din rain

Log bharam hum par kare'n taso'n niche nain 

Rahim says "he isn't the donor, there is somebody else who sends day and night" I'm only a medium through which he channels his donations. So for those who don't understand this ( which is most of us) will think of me as a great donor. And this is why I feel ashamed while donating.

The Final Test

"Can you sleep when the wind blows?"

Am quoting the following story, it is a super metaphorical exposition of the level of preparedness and a test if our trips to the pilgrimage, our penance and the act of charity has been fruitful or it has been a mere blind ritual done by the condition mind.

Years ago, a farmer owned land along the Atlantic seacoast. He constantly advertised for hired hands. Most people were reluctant to work on farms along the Atlantic. They dreaded the awful storms that raged across the Atlantic, wreaking havoc on the buildings and crops. As the farmer interviewed applicants for the job, he received a steady stream of refusals.

Finally, a short, thin man, well past middle age, approached the farmer. 'Are you a good farm hand?' the farmer asked him. 'Well, I can sleep when the wind blows,' answered the little man. Although puzzled by this answer, the farmer, desperate for help, hired him.

The little man worked well around the farm, busy from dawn to dusk, and the farmer felt satisfied with the man's work. Then one night the wind howled loudly in from offshore. Jumping out of bed, the farmer grabbed a lantern and rushed next door to the hired hand's sleeping quarters. He shook the little man and yelled, 'Get up! A storm is coming! Tie things down before they blow away!' The little man rolled over in bed and said firmly, 'No sir. I told you, I can sleep when the wind blows.'

Enraged by the response, the farmer was tempted to fire him on the spot. Instead, he hurried outside to prepare for the storm. To his amazement, he discovered that all of the haystacks had been covered with tarpaulins. The cows were in the barn, the chickens were in the coops, and the doors were barred. The shutters were tightly secured. Everything was tied down. Nothing could blow away. The farmer then understood what his hired hand meant, so he returned to his bed to also sleep while the wind blew.

When you're prepared, spiritually, mentally, and physically, you have nothing to fear. Can you sleep when the wind blows through your life? The above story goes on to talk about trials in life and if we do our best to understand, accept, and implement the principles learnt by us we will experience a deep sense of security, peace and joy from within. 

We will then be able to 'sleep when the wind blows.' This is truly our Litmus Test.

May our path be graced with the light of wisdom, 

May the darkness of our ignorance diminish.

Hari Om