give up ill gotten wealth..

महान्तमप्यधर्मयुक्तं य सन्त्यजत्यनुपाकृष्ट एव।

सुखं स दुःखानवमुच्य शेते जीर्णां त्वचं सर्प इवावमुच्य॥

श्रीमहाभारते उद्योगपर्वणि प्रजागरणपर्वणि विदुरनीतिवाक्ये॥४०-२॥

mahāntamapyadharmayuktaṁ ya santyajatyanupākṛṣṭa eva|

sukham sa duḥkhānavamucya śete jīrṇāṁ tvacaṁ sarpa ivāvamucya||

śrīmahābhārate udyogaparvaṇi prajāgaraṇaparvani viduranītivākye ||40-2||

This is from Vidura neeti of Mahabharatham

Vidura's parting advice to his vacillating elder brother Dhritarashtra who is maniacally holding on to the wealth that is the rightful share of the Pandavas.

"A person, if he has to live with a peaceful mind should be able to give up even immense wealth which he knows has come to his possession through unfair means, and this should be done without any regret.

If such complete surrender of illegally earned riches is effected the man can live with great ease like a snake who was struggling with its slough for some time but had ultimately managed to wriggle out of it".

We have seen and heard about many voluntary disclosure schemes of Unaccounted Income and Wealth by Income-taxmen as also by the law enforcers of other wings of the government to give up booty illegally earned.

Yes, if one is rid of the ill gotten booties he can live peacefully.

One has to really watch in person how a snake struggles to just wriggle out of its slough but then glow with a new shiny outer skin

Our desires and expectations make us miserable for ever.

खलालापाः सोढाः कथमपि तदाराधनपरै-

र्निगृह्यान्तर्बाष्पं हसितमपि शून्येन मनसा।

कृतो वित्तस्तम्भप्रतिहतधियामञ्जलिरपि

त्वमाशे मोघाशेकिमप्रमतो नर्तयति माम्॥

भर्तृहरेः वैराग्यशतके॥

khalālāpāḥ soḍhāḥ kathamapi tadārādhanaparai-

rnigṛhyāntarbāṣpaṁ hasitamapi śūnyena manasā|

kṛto vittastambhapratihatadhiyāmañjalirapi

tvamāśe moghāśekimapramato nartayati mām||

bhartṛhareḥ vairāgyaśatake||

A great Slokam from the Vairaghyashatakam of the philosopher poet king Bhartruharai.

Our desires and expectations make us look like pathetic clowns dancing before cruel and inconsiderate people who wield power 

.=================

meaning

------------

( The slokam is addressed to the trait "desire" itself)

While serving the evil minded masters and bosses, I have silently suffered and tolerated their vile abuses and accusations.

I have suffered such insults quietly checking the tears of agony flowing like a torrent inside me

I have endured quietly with emptied mind, their loud laughter signifying insult and lack of concern fpr the servant

I have managed to join my hands in supplication and seeking favours in front of persons whose minds and intellects have been stunted and sullied through possession and enjoyment of excessive wealth they have,

You, my desire, and expectation,

you the desire and expectations arising within me in vain,

why are you making me the poor and innocent fellow, to dance like this?

--------------

Just to survived and to be in the good books of bosses and potential benefactors, we take all insults from them, we praise them even whenn they are idiots, we check out tears and emotions, and we even sing and dance to get favours..

And often in spite of all suffering and insults, we may be driven away empty handed and bruised..

What a pity..

Our desires and expectations make us miserable for ever.

Vairagya dindimam

शङ्कराचार्यविरचितं वैराग्य डिण्डिमम्

-----------------------------------------

Vairagya dindimam

---------------------------------

The clarion call..for renunciation..

Wake up, keep awake

by Shankara BagavadpadaaH..

------------------

माता नास्ति पिता नास्ति नास्ति बन्धुः सहोदरः।

अर्थं नास्ति गृहं नास्ति तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥१

जन्म दुःखं जरा दुःखं जाया दुःखं पुनः पुनः।

संसारसागरं दुःखं तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥२

कामः क्रोधश्च लोभश्च देहे तिष्ठन्ति तस्कराः।

ज्ञानरत्नापहाराय तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥३

आशया बध्यते जन्तुः कर्मणा बहुचिन्तया।

आयुः क्षीणं न जानाति तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥४

क्षणं वित्तं क्षणं चित्तं क्षणं जीवितमावयोः।

यमस्य कर्णा नास्ति तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥५

यावत् कालं भवेत् कर्म तावत् तिष्ठन्ति जन्तवः।

तस्मिन् क्षीणे विनश्यन्ति तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥६

ऋणानुबन्धरूपेण पशुपत्निसुतादयः।

ऋणक्षये क्षयं यान्ति तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥७

संपदः स्वप्नसङ्ख़ाशाः यौवनं कुसुमोपमं।

विद्युत् चञ्चलं आयुष्यं तस्मात् जाग्रत जाग्रत॥८

पक्वानि तरुपर्णानि पतन्ति क्रमशो यथा।

तथैव जन्तवः काले तत्र का परिदेवना॥९

एकवृक्षसमारूढाः नानाजाति विहङ्गमाः।

प्रभाते क्रमशो यान्ति तत्र का परिदेवना॥१०

śaṅkarācāryaviracitaṁ vairāgya ḍiṇḍimam

mātā nāsti pitā nāsti nāsti bandhuḥ sahodaraḥ|

arthaṁ nāsti gṛhaṁ nāsti tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||1

janma duḥkhaṁ jarā duḥkhaṁ jāyā duḥkhaṁ punaḥ punaḥ|

saṁsārasāgaraṁ duḥkhaṁ tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||2

kāmaḥ krodhaśca lobhaśca dehe tiṣṭhanti taskarāḥ|

jñānaratnāpahārāya tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||3

āśayā badhyate jantuḥ karmaṇā bahucintayā|

āyuḥ kṣīṇaṁ na jānāti tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||4

kṣaṇaṁ vittaṁ kṣaṇaṁ cittaṁ kṣaṇaṁ jīvitamāvayoḥ|

yamasya karṇā nāsti tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||5

yāvat kālaṁ bhavet karma tāvat tiṣṭhanti jantavaḥ|

tasmin kṣīṇe vinaśyanti tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||6

ṛṇānubandharūpeṇa paśupatnisutādayaḥ|

ṛṇakṣaye kṣayaṁ yānti tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||7

saṁpadaḥ svapnasaṅāśāḥ yauvanaṁ kusumopamaṁ|

vidyut cañcalaṁ āyuṣyaṁ tasmāt jāgrata jāgrata||8

pakvāni taruparṇāni patanti kramaśo yathā|

tathaiva jantavaḥ kāle tatra kā paridevanā||9

ekavṛkṣasamārūḍhāḥ nānājāti vihaṅgamāḥ|

prabhāte kramaśo yānti tatra kā paridevanā||10

------------

Meaning...

====================================

1 Your mother will not be with you eternally, nor your father

Your relatives will not give you company for ever nor your brothers

Your wealth might get depleted, you may become homeless,

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man, and keep alert.

2. Your birth is filled with sorrow.

Your sorrow gets worse as you are caught by old age..

And the responsibilities of a family life with your wife can bring sorrow again and again

The ocean of life of worldly woes is filled to the brim with sorrow..

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man, and keep alert.

3. To burgle away the gem of knowledge and discretion earned by you, the wily thieves lust, rage and avariciousness are lurking around you biding for their time.

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man and keep alert.

4. The living animal you are, you are bound by desires and expectations, your are bound by your past deeds or karmas, you are cowed down by worries and stress, and you are not really aware of the fact that your life and longevity are getting depleted.

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man, and keep alert.

5. Your money, earned over long periods can get depleted within a small moment,

your stability of mind can tumble and you can lose balance of mind within a short time,

and our earthly lives are too temporary and can cease in a moment.

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man, and keep alert.

6. As long as it is necessary for the living being to wear off his Karmas, he lives in this world..

Once the the effects of past deeds or Karmas are over, he is called back and faces destruction and removal from this world

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man, and keep alert.

7. The cattle, wives, offspring are all attached to you as if they are appendages or annexures to your debt of Karma or past deeds.

Once your Karma is over, the debt is also cleared off and they becocme non existent in your life.

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man, and keep alert.

8 Your wealth and money are unreal like dream.

It can just disappear when you wake up to reality..

Your youth is just like a flower which blooms for a day and then shrinks and fades for ever.

Your life is just like a flash which happens similar to the eruption of a lighting and a thunderbolt.

So be aware of these facts and wake up, Oh man, and keep alert.

9. The yellowed leaves of a tree fall down from the tree in the course of time..

Just like that living beings also fall down and die as time takes its course..

There is little that we can do about it by getting worried.

10.Birds of various types and various feathers, gather around the same branches of a tree overnight, but when the morning comes, all of them fly away in different directions..

Life of people too is like that.

There little that we can do about it by getting worried.

========================================

in full strength to be a nuisance

अतिमलिने कर्तव्ये भवति खलानामतीव निपुणता।

तिमिरे हि कौशिकानां रूपं प्रतिपद्यते चक्षुः॥

सुभाषितमञ्जरी ५-४

कादंबरी पूर्वभागे

सुबन्धुविरचिते वासवदत्तायाम्॥

atimaline kartavye bhavati khalānāmatīva nipuṇatā|

timire hi kauśikānāṁ rūpaṁ pratipadyate cakṣuḥ||

subhāṣitamañjarī 5-4

kādaṁbarī pūrvabhāge

subandhuviracite vāsavadattāyām||

People of evil mind have extra efficiency when engaged in destructive and dirty work..

The quote above from many texts.. prominent among them, Banabhattas Kadambari, Subandhus Vasavadatta, Subhashita manjari, Subhashita ratna kosha and so on

( This is a case where the sloka which was in circulation as a popular adage has been used in their work by many authors according to the context occurring in their stories )

The meaning of the Sloka is

==========

When some very dirty task is to be executed, the cruel and evil people assume extra efficiency to perform such work

The owls could get a clear perception of things around it only in pitch darkness since its eyesight become acute then alone and enables it to perceive the forms of the things around in great clarity..

==========

Normally good people would be enthusiastic when they are entrusted with tasks which will be of great benefit to one an all..

But people with evil and perverted mind get the kicks only when dirty tasks are assigned to them.. This is known as Sadism.

Normal living beings gain more and more eyesight as the light increases.. But owls would see clearly only in darkness..

Owls are somehow ad libbed with evil in almost all societies.. Apart from their fearsome eyes, are they really that bad..? we do not know.. Owl is a nocturnal bird.. So it has to see in darkness or in limited light if they have to move around, catch prey and survive..

(Sadism is a type of behaviour in which a person obtains pleasure from hurting other people and making them suffer physically or mentally.)

all pervading Rudra

यो रुद्रो अग्नौ यो अफ्सु य ओषधीषु यो रुद्रो विश्वा भुवनाविवेश तस्मै रुद्राय नमो अस्तु॥

कृष्ण यजुर्वेदे

yo rudro agnau yo aphsu ya oṣadhīṣu yo rudro viśvā bhuvanāviveśa tasmai rudrāya namo astu||

kṛṣṇa yajurvede

Pranams to that Rudra the Shankara

who has entered and resides in fire

who has entered and resides in waters

who has entered and resides in all medicinal herbs

who has entered and resides in the whole universe.

vishnu, shiva and brahmin

अलङ्कारप्रियो विष्णुः अभिषेकप्रियः शिवः

नमस्कारप्रियो भानुः ब्राह्मणो भोजनप्रियः

alankaarapriyo vishnuaH abhishekapriyaH shivaH

namaskaarapriyo BhaanuH braahmano bhojanapriyaH

അലങ്കാരപ്രിയോ വിഷ്ണു അഭിഷേകപ്രിയ ശിവഃ

നമസ്കാരപ്രിയോ ഭാനുഃ ബ്രാഹ്മണോ ഭോജനപ്രിയഃ

Lord Vishnu is delighted when he is decorated with flowers clothes and ornaments

Lord Shiva is immensely pleased when lots and lots of water is poured over his head and body without interruption (by way of abhishekam)

The Bhagavan Surya (Sun) is in the seventh heaven of happiness when people offer Him prostration by way of Sooryanamaskarams

And last but not the least, the brahmins whom some call as gods on earth, can be satisfied with nothing less than a gourmet meal

Today religion in any form is big business..

Today religion in any form is big business..

And every day new rituals, new gurus, new methods are appearing..

This happens in Hinduism especially in the worship of Ayyappa or Shasta and later Gods..

Maybe the persons who drew up rules and procedures for sacrifices, havans, worship of Sun, Shakthi, Shiva, Vishnu, Ganesha, Subrahmanya etc had traditional and strict rules.. and agamas or shrutis and Smritis.. which were binding in absolute terms.

So, even if those authors and preceptors in those times might not have understood and considered the modern scientific thoughts, they were at least completely rule-bound for years. Therefore there was order and discipline of sorts...

These days in the worship of Ayyappa and many demi gods and man gods, each one calls his rules.. I have watched with interest how some young self proclaimed devotees of Ayyappa just device new types of lore, worship etc, drawing parts from old scriptures drawing part from local and vernacular practices, and adding many things from their own fertile imagination, with crass commercial interests..

Another thing we find is that Kalasams and Kumbhabhishekams are conducted with lots of pomp and many people collect money from the public even through emotional or physical extortion,, and use all the money for purposes other than the upkeep of the temple and maintaining regular poojas and naivedyams as prescribed.. And I am sure, the group, whatever way it is called..committee, samooham, governing body..., which organizes religious feats, have their square meals and comfortable existence assured out of public money for a few years preceding the function, and at the end of the function the remaining funds are used to enrich themselves..Of course many maintain accounts, but no one really scrutinzes the relevance, adequacy and the genuineness of the account for the purpose for which such funds are collected..

So, it is real big business.. mean business, without much capital but with lots of profit..

This issue calls for a lot of discussion

on krishna

On Lord Krishna

You Thief! You were born in a Jail where your parents were bound with very heavy chains, but you stole out of there and cuddled innocently beside a sleeping herds-woman

and your equally cunning sister exchanged places for you.

Though born in a prison, You were born to free this world of all bondages

.You scoundrel! You ate away tons and tons of butter and drank away litres of sweet milk, all stolen from the neighbourhood which fostered you.

But how else could you have fed the whole universe which you carried in your belly?.

Your liar! You promised that you will never wield any weapon during Mahabharatha War but you shamelessly broke the promise and charged against Bheeshma threatening to attack him with the wheel of a Chariot.

Had you any choice?

Your staunch devotee had promised that he will force you to take weapon during the war and saving his promise was dearer to you than keeping your own glory!

You roamed in the banks of Kalindi and the precincts of Brindaban dancing with innocent girls who forgot all proprieties in life.

But that was the union of the Jeevatman withParamatman.

Krishna,you, the darkest, craftiest, ugliest boy,

you taught Geetha, teaching a brother to kill his own brothers

but in truth this Geetha is the most sublime treatise on the meaning of human existence transcending the limits of caste, creed, religion,nationality and more than anything else, time.

The greatest tattwa given by this Bharath is Krishna and Krishna alone.

I love you Krishna.

never go slow on personal exertion..

न दैवं अपि सञ्चिन्त्य त्यजेत् उद्योगमात्मनः।

अनुद्योगेन तैलानि तिलेभ्यो नाप्तुमर्हति॥

हितोपदेशे॥

na daivaṁ api sañcintya tyajet udyogamātmanaḥ|

anudyogena tailāni tilebhyo nāptumarhati||

hitopadeśe||

A serious warning against fatalism and laziness.. from Narayana kavi's Hitopadesham

Meaning

=========

One should never give up his own enthusiastic attempts in reaching his target by thinking that the matters of life are controlled by fate.

Even if one has a huge stock of sesame or til, and if he is not making any attempts to crush them and gain oil, he will never get oil.. Sitting idle over bagfuls of sesame would be of no use..

=========

Often luck or material circumstances put people either in affluence or in tight spots..

If one sits over the patch of good fortune and enjoys thinking that such state of affairs is a gift from god or fate, and lives on without any thoughts of the future, sooner or later realities of life would overtake him..

Alternately if one is encountering a bad patch in life , and accepts such fall in fortune as caused by fate.. and does nothing to improve.. then he is lost for ever..Any amount of luck visiting him later would not substitute for the time and energy he has lost in crying and fretting..

Every journey will end.. That is the law of nature.. And the path we negotiate would be tough most of the time.. If we keep quiet and expect fate to act... we would be losing even small battles even before the swords are drawn..

It is just our choice..

bad tendencies to be given up

आलस्यं त्यक्तव्यं त्यक्तव्यं लौल्यं लोभः परापवादश्च।

अस्थानेषु कोपस्तथाऽतिमनश्च पुरुषेण॥

सुभाषितसाहस्र्याम्॥॥

ālasyaṁ tyaktavyaṁ tyaktavyaṁ laulyaṁ lobhaḥ parāpavādaśca|

asthāneṣu kopastathā'timanaśca puruṣeṇa||

subhaṣitasāhasryām||||

A simple Subhashitam.. but with great message.

===============

A person ( if he desires to be worthy)

should abandon, steer clear of, laziness

should give up tendency to trivialize issue, trivialize the views of others

should never entertain avariciousness

should give up the tendency to talk ill of, or talking about the scandals of, others

should never become angry unnecessariy and in the wrong place and for the wrong issue

should never have excessive sense of pride, a feeling that he is too important than others with whom interacts.. in one word he should give up mealomania and should see himself for whatever he is really worth..

=============

पुरुषेण by man

आलस्यं laziness

त्यक्तव्यं should be given up

लौल्यं lack of seriosity,

लोभं avariciousness

परापवादश्च and scandalous talk about others

त्यक्तव्यं should be given up

अस्थानेषु कोपः anger in the inappropriate place

अतिमानश्च excessive sense of pride

त्यक्तव्यं should be given up.

Note.. Man includes women and others too for this..

powerless rage

स्वस्योन्नतेषु जनितं हृदि कोपवेगं

निघ्ने प्रदर्शयति भृत्यजने मनुष्यः।

श्वश्रूगतं हृदयवर्धितमात्मकोपं

भाण्डे प्रदर्शयति हस्तगते वधूटी॥

सूक्तिमुक्तावल्याम्॥

svasyonnateṣu janitaṁ hṛdi kopavegaṁ

nighne pradarśayati bhṛtyajane manuṣyaḥ|

śvaśrūgataṁ hṛdayavardhitamātmakopaṁ

bhāṇḍe pradarśayati hastagate vadhūṭī||

sūktimuktāvalyām||

Another down to earth Subhashitam.. found in the compilation Sookthimukthaavali.

============

When a man is seething in anger against someone who is superior to him and who is so powerful that he could not be offended, then the fellow gives vent to his anger on his servants who are dependent on him and could not retaliate.

When a daughter in law is angry with her mother in law she shows the anger by kicking the pots that are ready at hand in the kitchen, and if possible by breaking the earthen pots..

===============

of course, the chemistry between mother in law and daughter in law has undergone a reversal.. Now if at all it is the mother in law who will have to break the pot.. If the daughter in law is angry, the place of the mother in law will be either in the open street of if the son is somewhat kind, the mother in law would find herself in an old age home..

====

Analysis

मनुष्यः man

स्वस्योन्नतेषु in respect of person who are superior to them

हृदि जनितं arising in the heart, mind

कोपवेगं intensity of anger

निघ्ने who are harmless, unable to retaliate

भृत्यजने towards the sevant folk

प्रदर्शयति show

वधूटी the daughter in law of the house

श्वश्रूगतं generated towards mother in law

ह्रुदयवर्धितं seething in the hear

आत्मकोपं own anger

हस्तगते what is available on hand

भाण्डे on the pot

प्रदर्शयति. shows.

how vishnu became a dwarf

तृष्णे देवि नमस्तुभ्यं कृतकृत्यासि साम्प्रतम्।

अनतनाम यद्रूपम् तत्त्वया वामनीकृतम्॥

विद्यापतिप्रणीते पुरुषपरीक्षायाम्॥

tṛṣṇe devi namastubhyaṁ kṛtakṛtyāsi sāmpratam|

anatanāma yadrūpam tattvayā vāmanīkṛtam||

vidyāpatipraṇīte puruṣaparīkṣāyām||

The quote is from the work Purushapareeksha by the author Vidyapati.

------------------

The poet is trying to bring home the fact that when a person is intensely craving to get something, his stature, however lofty is would be reduced to dwarfish, Lilliputan dimensions in the presence of the one who is capable of fulfilling that craving either fully or partially.

Here the allusion is to the great incarnation of Vishnu as Vamana too.

To regain the lost kingdom of his elder brother Indra the leader of Gods from the chieftain of Asuras, Lord Vamana, Vishnu himself incarnate as a young dwarfish brahmin boy, visits the hallowed land in the banks of Narmada where King of Asuras, is conducting a great yajna or Sacrifice..

The Asura king, who is generous to a fault, offers almost anything for the the visiting dwarf..

The dwarf Vamana begs for just three measures of land with is feet, but when the gift is concluded, the dwarf grows into Trivikrama who pervades the whole universe.. The whole earth and other worlds are not large enough to cover even His two steps.. And the third step was placed on the head of Bali.. That is the story..

But the real form of Lord Vishnu is infinite.. and the poet says that he became dwarf becauase he felt so ashamed before the demon king when he begged for something..

Yes, when we approach someone for some favours, our stature, however tall, gets diminished..

The dwarf Vamana grew to Thrivikrama who pervaded the whole universe, just in form.

But the Lord had become dwarf for even when he begged..

So desire converted the Lord of Infinite glory to a dwarf..

And this exactly is the purpose for which desire, greed, avariciouness.. all are created..

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The meaning of the Slokam is

Oh Goddess desire and want, my pranams in utter supplication to you.. Now, You are the one who has achieved whatever you desired.

The form which is normally found as of infinite spread, has been reduced to a tiny dwarf by you.

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Analyasis

देवी तृष्णे तुभ्यं नमः I prostrate befor you, oh Goddess Desire,

साम्प्रतं now कृतकृत्या असि You have accomplished now what you wanted

यद्रूपं which form

अनन्तनाम is considered as of infinitely huge

तद् that form

त्वया by you

वामनीकृतं converted or reduced to a dwarf.

very productive qualities

शास्त्रेषु निष्ठा सहजश्च बोधः

प्रागल्भ्यमभ्यस्तगुणा च वाणी॥

कालानुरोधः प्रतिभानवत्व-

मेते गुणाः कामदुघाः क्रियासु॥

मालतीमाधवे॥३-११

śāstreṣu niṣṭhā sahajaśca bodhaḥ

prāgalbhyamabhyastaguṇā ca vāṇī||

kālānurodhaḥ pratibhānavatva-

mete guṇāḥ kāmadughāḥ kriyāsu||

mālatīmādhave||3-11

Extracted from the great drama Malatheemadhavam written by Bhavabhuthi.

Though a love story ostensibly presented for the enjoyment of the audience, the play is rich in many lifestyle lessons

The words are presented by the dramatist through the hero of the play Madhava..

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The following qualities present in a person serves as if they are just spontaneous fountains which produce in abundance rich results for that man when he sets out to perform some action.

1. Steadfastness in studying and applying the principles and methodolgy given in established sciences and scriptures.

2. Inborn or intuitive sense of propriety, sense of what is right and what is wrong.

3. Trained efficiency of the highest order

4 Skill in articulation of words, and in effective communication.

5. Capacity to adopt to the times

6. The capacity of the intense intellect to adapt and respond to situtations, especially when novel ideas and unexplored paths are presented..

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it is apparent that Bhavabhuti has followed the tenets of Arthashastram of Chanakya in presenting his lessons in lifestyle management..

Anyway, the lesson is valid and relevant, and is applicable to almost all irrespective of the times they lives in..