Bhaja Govindam - Post 28

Verse 27

गेयं गीतानामसहस्रं ध्येयं श्रीपतिरूपमजस्रम् ।

नेयं सज्जनसङ्गे चित्तं देयं दीनजनाय च वित्तम् ॥२७॥

Geyaṁ gītā nāma sahasraṁ

dhyeyaṁ śrīpati rūpamajasram,

Neyaṁ sajjana sange cittaṁ

deyaṁ dīnajanāya ca vittam.

The Bhagavad gītā should be sung, and the Sahasranāma should be chanted; always the form of the Lord Nārāyaṇā is to be meditated upon; the mind is to be led towards the company of the good; wealth is to be distributed to the needy.

The verse lays out a 4-point program of Sadhana.

Beginners on the spiritual path would receive this as some solace and assurance to them. Just by doing these four simple spiritual exercises, our negative qualities like anger, lust and greed, can get dissolved. Dedication can win God, not greatness. We are called upon to say to God, “I seek You alone, nothing else!” 

The Four Starting Sadhanas: 

In these simple instructions we see that he is asking the beginner to practice the basic Sadhanas. There is no bigotry in these instructions. They are for all aspirants, from any cultural background. 

The Bhava of the heart is more important than the outer actions or the words uttered in prayer. The Sadhanas given in this verse: 

1 Scriptural Study or Recitation:

2 Worship of one’s Deity or meditation on the Lord;

3 Satsang or good company;

4 Charity to the poor and needy. 

He prescribes the sadhaka, Bhagavad Gita in hand, the Name of Hari on his lips, surrounds him with good company, and fills his heart with compassion and generosity towards the

needy. 

In this verse, as though, Sankara has brought in the essence of all the three path for God realization.

While worship of deity and satsang form part of Bhakti Yoga, Scriptural study indicates the path of Jnana yoga and charity to the poor indicates Karma yoga. 

While these may just be treated as indicators / pointers, the essence is far beyond the simple indicators like worship, satsangh etc.

Sankara brings in a beautiful blend of all the three paths towards God realization.

The sequence often is to start with Karma or selfless action so as to reduce our ego, move towards upasana or devotion to intensify our focus or concentration and then to finally take up Jnana marga for meditation, contemplation, absorption and ultimately to realize the divinity within.

Endowments of good qualities in life have to be treasured. The human birth, a good family, a Guru – these are blessed conditions; we must not waste them. If we use all these well, liberation cannot be too far. 

Let our heart have charity and compassion. Let our hands be engaged in acts of charity and service. Let our mind always meditate upon the form of the Lord. Let our thoughts always be in the company of the wise, and good and thinking people. 

May we always recite the scriptures and the name of God. Thus, your entire being or the entire personality is engaged or focused upon God, which is the goal that you are seeking.

This is a process of tuning-up. When we observe a very small particle under a microscope, I tune the microscope to focus on the particle. Or when I want to look at a distant object through a telescope, I tune the telescope in order to focus on that object. 

Similarly, our entire life is an attempt to focus on God or Brahman, the Self, which is what I want to attain or know. Thus, all the aspects of my personality are aimed in that direction. This verse tells us beautifully how to do that. Your speech, your mind, your intellect, and your actions, let all of these be focused upon the Lord.

In most people achievement is linked with some action. So they do not take easily to Vedanta, which asks of us nothing in the field of action but everything in the field of BEING. This is not easily understood by many people. 

The simple, inner life of silence and contemplation appears very difficult to practice because the average person’s mind is highly strung with activity. Therefore, Sankara suggests in this verse some simple things which the man of the world can DO, and thereby get started on the path. 

Love.