Only Three Things Are Worth Achieving In This Material World.

Jagadguru Adi Shankaracharya ji was a renowned Vedic scholar, an authority on Advaita Vedanta.

While going through His “Vivekachudamani”, I came across very beautiful lines (श्लोक) :

दुर्लभं त्रयमेवैतत् देवानुग्रहहेतुकम्,
मनुष्यत्वं मुमुक्षुत्वं महापुरूषसंश्रय:

According to Jagadguru Adi Shankaracharya ji, only three things are worth achieving.

Although these are difficult to achieve and one can get them only with the grace of the Almighty, even then one must strive hard for them :

(a) To be born as a human being.
(b) To have an aspiration for liberation (मोक्ष).
(c) To have an enlightened guru who can show the way to liberation.

Through our good deeds done in the previous birth and with the blessings of the Lord, we have got human bodies.

But very few of us want liberation from the painful cycle of births and deaths (संसार).

We are always obsessed with the material things and beings.

We do not realize that all the material objects have three defects, namely :

(a) They change frequently. In other words, they are non real (असत्).
(b) They are insentient (जड़).
(c) They only give sorrows (दुख).

How can anything that has the above mentioned defects give everlasting happiness!

Gautam Buddha realized this Truth. That’s why He declared :

“सर्वम दुखम, सर्वम अनित्यं.

(Everything in this world is painful.
Everything in this world is impermanent).

To obtain liberation (मोक्ष), it is necessary that one must annihilate one’s material desires.

I have found that the easiest way to get rid of them is जप (continuous repetition of a Mantra (click here to learn what is a mantra) or the Name of Lord).

One should however bear in mind that during the initial days one may not achieve perfect concentration.
Like a monkey, the mind wanders here and there.
But one shouldn’t worry and be calm, patient.
One should never despair and regularly do one’s जप.

Gradually the mind will turn towards the Lord.

I can assure that once the mind tastes the bliss of the Lord, nothing will be able to shake it.
It will not go back again to the “insipid” material things, beings.
Ultimately all one’s material cravings will melt away!

One then attains inner tranquility and a burning longing to merge with the Supersoul.

To guide the spiritual seeker on how to attain liberation, the Lord then arranges his meeting with an enlightened Master (गुरु).

~ Sanjay Gargish ~