Bhaja Govindam Verse- 3

नारीस्तनभर नाभीदेशं

दृष्ट्वा मागामोहावेशम् ।

एतन्मांसवसादि विकारं

मनसि विचिन्तय वारं वारम् ॥ ३॥

naariistanabhara naabhiideshaM
dRishhTvaa maagaamohaavesham.
etanmaaMsaavasaadi vikaaraM
manasi vichintaya vaaraM vaaram. .. (3)

(naarii = woman; stana = breasts; bhara =full; naabhiideshaM = nAbhI + deshaM, navel + region; dR^ishhTvaa = having seen; maagaa = mA + gaa, Don't + go; mohaaveshaM = infatuated state (moha + AveshaM - seizure); etan.h = this; maa.nsavasaadi = mAmsa+ vasa + Adi, flesh, fat, etc. vikaaraM = appearance (generally, grotesque / ugly); manasi = in the mind; vichintaya = think well; vaaraM = again; vaaraM = and again)

 (naariistanabhara naabhiideshaM dR^ishhTvaa = Seeing the full breasts and the navel area of women; mohaaveshaM maagaa = don’t lust after; etat maamsa vasaadi vikaaraM = these are mere derivatives of flesh, fat and the like; vaaraM vaaraM manasi vichintaya = think (this) again and again.)

After tackling the issue of limiting the greed for wealth, Sri Sankara now turns his attention to the issue of sex. Don’t be carried away by the sight of full breasts and the belly of a beautiful woman! Think of it again and again as mere flesh, fat and the like covered in skin. A very difficult advice indeed! This perhaps would not be accepted by the worldly minded people. But this advice is for spiritual aspirant.

Beauty is but skin deep. The Acharya points to this fact. If the spiritual aspirant is stuck with such diverting things, his progress will be stalled. So the caution. The mental picture of such beautiful objects as mere combination of flesh, fat and other undesirable matter (for the sadhaka), will slowly develop a vairagya (renunciation) in the sadhaka’s mind. The reality behind many attractive things in life will often be shocking. This shock is necessary to develop ‘vairagya’ to cross the river of ‘maya’. But it is not easy. Lust is not easy to give up, because it is our animal nature. Hence the thought as explained has to be reinforced again and again (vaaram, vaaram).

Sri Sankara has often been criticized for writing this verse; the sanyasi discusses explicit sexual details, they accuse. But sex is part and parcel of life. It is a basic instinct of man, who is after all an animal. There is no escape from this fact. Closing our eyes on it will not help. Sexual urge is quite natural and it is hence very difficult to control it. The spiritual aspirant needs solid advice to tackle the problem. Hence Sri Sankara boldly attacks the subject and suggests solution also. It should be remembered that the Acharya doesn’t condemn either dhana or sexual urge. Objects are neither ugly nor beautiful; But the mind colours them as such; the trouble starts there. Spiritual aspirant’s mind has to be free from attachment to such things. He or she should see the truth and then turn their mind to the Real.

The spiritual aspirant’s life is not an easy one. He has to conquer the thirst for unlimited wealth and also his insatiable urge for the opposite sex. It may sound very demanding. True; but to realize a higher truth and to reach a state of infinite pleasure in the discovery of the Self, this sacrifice is necessary. The Acharya only tries to help the situation by offering practical suggestions.

Though the Acharya addresses men here, by explaining about female anatomy, the advice is, needless to say, for women also to think twice on attraction for men. The Acharyas were certainly not biased against women.