Worship Govinda, Worship Govinda, Worship Govinda, O fool! The rules of grammar will not save you at the time of your death. O, fool! Give up your desire to amass wealth, devote your mind to dispassion and thoughts of the Real. Be content with what comes to you through actions performed by your own work.
Bhaja Govindam, translation of Verse 1 & 2
Note: Govinda is often used for Lord Krishna. Govinda can be translated to "the all-pervading, omnipresent ruler of the sense organs, or 'Indryas' " or "Protector of Cows". Govinda is a supreme being that can be known through study of the Vedas (ancient Hindu scripture) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Govinda#:~:text=In%20the%20word%20%22Govinda%22%2C,as%20%22protector%20of%20cows%22. It s
What is this all about, crazy lady?
I am sitting here on a Monday morning wondering what to write about. For some reason the "Bhaja Govindam" keeps coming up as a topic.
What The Fork?
I started practicing the Isha Kriya meditation offered by Sadhguru...and at the end of that guided meditation is a chant sung by Sadhguru in Sanskrit. I wanted to know what it was/what it meant and upon some research discovered he was singing verses from this famous Hindu poem, Bhaja Govindam or the Moha Mudgara, as it is sometimes called. From my understanding, the poem was written by a Jnana Yogi Guru (scholarly type) called Shankara upon hearing a student trying to learn grammar rules through rote knowledge. The basic premise of the poem is a plea to surrender ourselves to worship of Govini (the Lord Krishna?) because grammar rules ( and all worldly things, even knowledge) won't matter when we are dying. It was basically saying that Jnana yoga (the study of scripture etc), though important, is not as important as devotion ( Bhakti Yoga).
I further researched to discover that this surrender could be to a guru as well. And for some reason, that did not sit well with me. The full devotion to a guru does not feel comfortable. I tend to resist it ...(watched too may shows on cult leadership even in ashrams, I guess, to feel comfortable with such surrender, even though I know it is a well established component of the tradition of yoga). For that reason I will never be an initiated yogi and will probably never be seen as a true yogi to those heaped in the tradition and culture of yoga...but I still think of myself as a yogi, just the same, a sloppily put together western model. :)
If I were to describe myself as a particular type of yogi, I would call myself a Jnana, like the student the poem is addressed to (though concern for grammar perfection is obviously not a priority for me :) and a karma yogi. Hmm! I still feel great devotion to God...especially when I am out in nature or find myself in the moment. Conceptualizing God, however, is a problem for me. In prayers of past, I was conditioned to visualize God in a certain way and devotion became something concrete and ritualistic. I did not "experience" God in that way. It wasn't complete and honest devotion for me. So,my ways of devotion are changing. I want to experience God. I am not yet a true Bhakti yogi.
I really do not know what I am. I just feel pulled in this direction. I am just going along this ride, not sure where I will end up as a yogi or as a person. I know so little.
All is well in my world.
Sadhguru (2021) Isha Kriya: A Guided Meditation for Health and Well Being. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwQkfoKxRvo
Shlokam (n.d.) Bhaja Govindam. https://shlokam.org/bhajagovindam/
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