Aah water - अजीर्णे भेषजं वारि

water is curative in indigestion, water is nourishing after digestion;water is appetizing during food, and ill-affects immediately after food.

ajIrNe bheShajam vAri, jIrNe vAri balapradam |
bhojane chAmRitam vAri, bhojanAnte viShapradam ||

अजीर्णे भेषजं वारि, जीर्णे वारि बलप्रदम् ।
भोजने चामृतं वारि, भोजनान्ते विषप्रदम् ॥
Water - the least appreciated thing, right before air. We just take it for granted. There was a time, not too long ago, when you could drink water from pretty much any tap in india, or a well, river. There would be water sheds called 'pyaaoo' on road sides, sponsored by local businessman or charitable person, manned by local hands. You would get some of sweetest natural water, along with some jaggery and roasted grams (at least in hot and dry Rajasthan), easing your travel-related travails. Thanks to recent decades of industrial progress, even in india it is difficult to find drinkable water from free natural resources. And the rivers, the life line of any civilization, are terribly polluted as well like the gangA (गङ्गा) and yamunA (यमुना).

Water - different effects on the same body, depending upon how or when it is consumed.

Medicinal -
Sometimes, we get food poisoning, or an upset stomach and can't eat anything. We should not eat in such times but take enough of water. Today, there are electrolytes, earlier they had salt and sweet lime water or such home made drink that would act as electrolyte as well keep you hydrated. In such condition of upset stomach, drinking plenty of water flushes out the toxins, keeps the stomach light, and helps recover faster, almost like a medicine, a medicine that washes inside out!

One of the reasons for weekly fasting is to give the stomach some rest. The spiritual, religious meanings are also attached, but there is simple medicinal purpose as well. Various kinds of fasting are observed - fruits only, fruits and milk, only water. And then the modern exceptions added like tea, coffee, roasted peanuts etc. which ultimately defeat the purpose of fasting itself.

Appetizer -
During the meal, it is very nice to take a sip of some drink, maybe water or juice. Instead of cold juices, or cold water or cold drinks, one should sip water. It enhances the sense of eating, between two different tastes, a sip of water is great. Throat doesn't feel dry, or choking with a small sip in between. But this should be a sip.

Thanks to the incessant marketing by carbonated drinks, water is considered useless in many 'developed' countries, specially US. In all my long stay in US, I rarely saw any born-American drinking water at restaurants, it was always large coke or pepsi or sprite or something like that. Carbonated drinks upset the digestion, contrary to what advertisements make you believe, and they rot the teeth as well. Kids who get this habit early on at home, suffer from bad stomach and bad teeth, and consequently bad health. A simple solution is to not have it at home at all, don't stack the refrigerator with 12 pack of coke, just because it is cheap. Drink water when you need a drink. And that too not too cold.

Harmful -
If we drink a lot of water during the meal or immediately after a meal, then we are inviting for trouble. Stomach upset, indigestion (and subsequent gastro problems) is a common lament these days, next only to back-aches and cell-phone-induced ear-aches. What is the cause of this? Stress, lack of sleep, fast food, lack of exercise, lack of water in diet, and addition of carbonated drinks to add just a few.

But it is interesting that many people don't realize that drinking water immediately after meal is also bad for digestion. The reason is simple. Like a chemistry lab experiment, drinking water after meal, and that too cold, dampens the digestive juices and hinders proper digestion. Over the long run, the habit causes bad metabolism, bad digestion, bad absorption of nutrients.



Nourishing -
So when should we drink water? After a couple of hours of eating the full meal, is the best time to drink to your fill! That time water will actually help the body by not interfering with digestion and helping the movement as well.

So next time you see water, greet it with glee, and know when to drink and when not to, so it aids the body naturally.

Some more useful links about modern statements on the benefits of water -
https://bodyfitnesshealth.com/importance-and-benefits-of-drinking-water/
https://www.coquiwater.com/Water_Facts.html
https://www.ec.gc.ca/eau-water/default.asp?lang=En&n=B97AED14-1



And now the language aspects of the shloka -

This shloka appears in vRiddha-chANakya.

ajIrNe = अजीर्णे = a- prefix + jIrNa + -e suffix
jIrNa = old, broken down (structure), tattered (cloths), ruined (building), digested (food)
jIrNe = in (-e suffix) digestion
a-jIrNe = in indigestion

bheShajam = भेषजं = medicine.
the etymology for this word is - "bheSham rogamayaM jayati" which means one that wins over the fear of the sick.

vAri = वारि = water

jIrNe = जीर्णे = in digestion
balapradam = बलप्रदम् = strengthening, nourishing (for food)
bala = strength
pradam = that which gives. root 'da' (to give)

bhojane = भोजने = literally in food (i.e. during meal)
bhojanam = meal, food

chAmRitam = चामृतं = cha + amRitam = and nectar
appetizer, nourisher (and not literally nectar, ambrosia)

bhojanAnte = भोजनान्ते = in the end of the meal
bhojanam = food
anta = end; ante = in the end

viShapradam = विषप्रदम् = poison giving
viSha = poison. here ill effects, not fatal poison, but bad digestion
pradam = that which gives





(c) Shashikant Joshi । शशिकांत जोशी । ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः ।

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Four types of blinds - न पश्यति जन्मान्धः

The birth-blind doesn't see (physical world), but the ones blinded by desire, intoxication or wealth don't see any flaws (in doing things to get their goals).   na pashyati janmAndhaH, kAmAndho naiva pashyati | na pashyati madonmatto, hyarthI doShAnna pashyati ||   न पश्यति जन्मान्धः कामान्धो नैव पश्यति । न पश्यति मदोन्मत्तो ह्यर्थी दोषान्न पश्यति ॥

One who is blind by birth is ridiculed for not being able to see the physical world. But there are greater blinds than him or her. There are people blinded by lust, ego, or avarice—three of the six internal enemies, Ṣhaḍripu (षड्रिपु—ṣhaṭ = six and ripu = enemy). The other three are krodha (anger), moha (delusion, [illusion of] attachment), and matsara (jealousy).

The blindness caused by burning lust, ego, greed (or anger, jealousy, attachment) makes us blind to what is good or bad, right or wrong. We don’t care about the means at all, nor even about the goal—whether our own goal is even a worthy one or not!

Indra, blind in lust, seduced Ahalyā. Rāvaṇa, blind in ego, kidnapped Sītā. Just as a glutton does not care about the quality of food but only about quantity, those blinded by lust, ego, or greed do not care whether their means or ends are right. It becomes a self-fanning fire that never subsides. No matter how much ghee (clarified butter) of gratification is poured into the fire of the senses, the fire only blazes more.

The third eye of Śhiva is the eye of awakening, of true knowledge, of truth. When we meet ourselves without the masks of social status or mutual egos, we are able to see the truth. Deep down, we all know what is ultimately right and wrong.

But without self-restraint, some people never meet themselves. They never find an appointment with the self in their busy days of running after blinding pursuits.

We have seen another śhloka with a similar meaning, which says that science (knowledge) is the true eye and that one without it is truly blind. Both knowledge of the outer world and the inner world are important—one without the other is incomplete.

Similarly, Śhiva’s third eye opens and removes all darkness caused by the six inner enemies. Pārvatī wanted to marry Śhiva and tried to woo him by working at his āśhrama as an attendant, hoping to find a place in his heart through dedicated service. Śiva, completely lost in penance after his first wife Satī’s death, paid little attention to her.

Tārakāsura waged war against the devas and unleashed havoc. That is what happens when the Lord closes His eyes to the world. The only solution was the son of Śhiva and Pārvatī, who could lead the gods to victory. But Śhiva remained aloof from the world.

Kāmadeva was sent by Indra to seduce Śhiva toward Pārvatī.

At the appropriate moment, when Pārvatī offered prayer flowers collected from the āśhrama nursery, Kāmadeva shot his arrow. For a moment, Śhiva admired Pārvatī’s beauty. But immediately, he realized a turbulence in his chitta (consciousness). Where did this come from?

The yoga authority Patañjali defines yoga as:

"yogaśh-chitta-vṛitti-nirodhaḥ"

"Yoga is the stopping of the fluctuations of consciousness."

And Śhiva is Yogīśhvara = yogī + īśhvara = Lord, Master of the Yogīs. (This should not be confused with Yogeśhvara; see language section.)

So, the Lord of the Yogīs wondered—how come there was vṛitti (change) in his chitta? In simple words—who broke his concentration?

Kālidāsa masterfully creates a profoundly dramatic, pathos-filled scene in his great work Kumārasambhavam. Śhiva sees Kāmadeva, hidden behind the bushes, with his friend Vasantā (spring), carrying a quiver of five arrows—each representing a different stage of the "love-flu" illness. Śhiva, realizing the cause of his distraction, opens his third eye and burns Kāmadeva to ashes.

Since that day, Kāmadeva is called Ananga (an + aṅga = "without body"). The Rati-Vilāpa (mourning of Rati, Kāmadeva’s wife) section of Kumārasambhavam is one of Kālidāsa’s most romantic and tear-jerking creations.

But here lies an important lesson in dealing with Sanskrit works, spirituality, and esoteric topics.

What does this ultimately mean? Did a body called Śhiva actually burn a body called Kāma by opening a laser-operated third eye? How does one interpret this?

We all have Śhiva-ness within us. We all have a third eye—the eye of knowledge and discrimination (viveka).

This alone can burn our desires—whether they be lust, ego, wealth, power, etc.

By presenting this wisdom in the form of a story, with real characters and detailed descriptions, Kālidāsa makes it a captivating read. But we must step back and understand the deeper meaning.

This kind of personification of internal concepts is abundant and must be understood—whether one follows the path of jñāna (knowledge) or bhakti (devotion) yoga.

So, whether you have physical eyesight or not, make sure your eyes of knowledge are 20/20!

---

And now the language aspects of the shloka -

• na = न = not 
• pashyai = पश्यति = sees (third person, singular) 
• janmAndhaH = जन्मान्धः = janma (birth) + andhaH (blind) = blind by birth 
• kAmAndho = कामान्धो = kAma (desire, usually sexual) + andhaH (blind) = blinded by desire  
• naiva = नैव = na (not) + eva (also) = also (does) not (see) 
• madonmatto = मदोन्मत्तो = mada (intoxication of power, ego, alcohol etc) + unmatta (intoxicated) = totally intoxicated, insane in power/ego/alcohol etc. 
• hyarthI = ह्यर्थी = hi + arthI = one who has a self-interest (specially in wealth) 
• doShAnna = दोषान्न = doShAn + na = to the faults (doSha), flaws; 
• now additional words - yogeshwara = yoga + Ishwara = lord of yogas = kRiShNa, mAdhava, murArI
• yogIshwara = yogI + Ishwara = lord of yogIs =  shiva, mahAdeva, naTarAja
• kAma = god of desire 
• vasant = spring (his friend) 
• rati = carnal union (his wife)

kAmadeva

rati

kAma and rati are usually shown together, but in front of belur temple door, they are shown separated, as a reminder to leave all worldly desires outside.  





(c) Shashikant Joshi । शशिकांत जोशी । ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः ।

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Human or animal, what is the difference? आहार-निद्रा-भय-मैथुनं

Food, sleep, fear and mating, these acts of humans are similar to animals.  Of them (humans), dharma is the only special thing, without dharma humans are also animals ||

AhAra-nidrA-bhaya-maithunam cha
samAnam_etat_pashubhir_narANAm |
dharmo hi teShAm adhiko visheSho
dharmeNa hInAH pashubhiH samAnAH || [ITRANS]
āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṃ cha
samānam_etat_pashubhir_narāṇām |
dharmo hi teṣhāmadhiko visheṣho
dharmeṇa hīnāḥ pashubhiḥ samānāḥ || [IAST]

आहार-निद्रा-भय-मैथुनं च समानमेतत्पशुभिर्नराणाम् ।
धर्मो हि तेषामधिको विशेषो धर्मेण हीनाः पशुभिः समानाः ॥

The king Sudarshana, in the preface of Hitopadesha, out on a stroll had heard two shlokas that set him thinking about the foolish, young, wealthy and powerful sons. After all he had to leave the kingdom to them one day! (see previous posts.)

Then he thinks about this shloka, also attributed to Chanakya where he uses 'vidyA' (knowledge) instead of dharma (right conduct). Both are appropriate, since without being aware of right conduct, proper way to use the knowledge, it is mere collection of facts.

Biology teaches us, Darwin postulated, and the wisdom of Indian land always held that all living beings are of common stock, made from similar life units - cells, evolved, changed, mutated through time. Put in other words, at a gross material level, we are all similar. Basic functions of all life forms is breathing and digestion. Lord Krishna says in Gita - 'aham vaishvAnaro bhUtvA, prANinAm dehamAshritam| prANApAnasamAyuktaH pachAmyannam chaturvidham' i.e. armed with breath and digestion, residing in the life forms, I digest four types of foods.' All life forms are upheld by the divine force of Life.

Incarnation theory says that since life principle is same in all living forms, a soul can travel in various physical forms. Human body is the epitome of life perfection. Why? How? We see that we can not run faster, smell better, bite harder, swim deeper, hear better than animals. Nothing! Left alone in the forest, we won't survive for long.

Or would we?

Thank you for the century!

धन्यवादः ।
Dear friends and Sanskrit enthusiasts! Thank you for your support, we have today a full 100 fans following the blog. on Facebook, it has crossed 1000 a while back.

Your suggestions, comments, feedback is very important and most welcome. Do take a few minutes and post a comment on the posts.

How did you like it?
Did you find it practically useful?
Did you try to implement it?
What were the difficulties, if any?
Did you discuss it with your friends?
Has it impacted your thinking and hence your life in any way?





(c) Shashikant Joshi । शशिकांत जोशी । ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः ।

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Power of the language

Without dairy, what is the taste of food?
Without land, what is the importance of a king?
Without senses, what is the meaning of beautiful damsels?
Without sweet words, what is the essence of wisdom?

vinA go-rasam ko raso bhojanAnAM
vinA go-rasam ko raso bhUpatinAm |
vinA go-rasam ko raso kAminInAm
vinA go-rasam ko raso paNDitAnAm ||

विना गो-रसं को रसो भोजनानां
विना गो-रसं को रसो भूपतिनाम् |
विना गो-रसं को रसो कामिनीनां
विना गो-रसं को रसो पण्डितानाम् ||
-----

At first glance, this looks like a simple śhloka in meaning, even a useless putting together of some catchy one-liners! No, no, it is okay to assume that not everything written in Sanskrit is of transcendental value :) After all, everything written in English today is neither technical nor of high value.

But this simple śhloka is important when read in its original, rather than translated form. And it unravels an important point while studying Sanskrit works, especially those of antiquity.

The key word here is go, which has many meanings—cow, land, senses, speech among a few.

Rasam means juice, essence, interest, mood, etc. Sanskrit words often take implied meanings, not just literal ones. For example, juice is the essence of a fruit, interest shows liking—whether in a performance, a thing, or even in the juice itself :) Mood is critical to drama and theater, and is the essence of performing arts. Can the performer sway the mood of the spectators based on his or her performance? Even when we know it is all fake, we get emotional watching a particularly well-enacted movie or story.

An actor is called abhinetā. Nīyati = takes, leads. Netā = leader. Abhinetā = one who takes (not in real). An actor takes us along with him or her on an emotional trip—be it joy, sorrow, anger, greed, disgust, or love.

So, what is the important thing to learn from this?

Go has four meanings in the four occurrences in this śhloka, each time meaning something different.

Cow

go = cow.

go-rasam = milk.

rasam = taste.

Where is the taste in food without milk products? Think about it! Those who know ghee and have tasted it swear by it! No Indian sweet is authentic unless made in pure ghee, a form of clarified butter that can last a very, very long time—just like Swiss cheese when properly processed. And those who don’t know ghee also swear by milk chocolates, cheese, yogurt, or many other such products.

Land

go = land.

go-rasam = kingdom.

rasam = importance, essence.

What is the importance of a king without his kingdom? A king’s purpose is served on this earth only if he has a [large] kingdom and serves his subjects well.

Sense of perception

go = senses of perception.

go-rasam = essence of senses, well-functioning senses, "well-oiled."

rasam = interest.

Without well-functioning senses, what is the interest in beautiful women? Here, of course, it means that one cannot enjoy beauty without properly functioning senses, and it applies to both men and women—they too need well-functioning senses to enjoy life.

Here, some may argue that all enjoyment of the senses happens in the brain, and once that input is there, no more senses are needed—the brain can enjoy its own archived sensations. True, but even for the first experience, the full essence of physical beauty (epitomized in the healthy and attractive opposite gender) is only obtained through healthy senses. :)

Speech

go = speech.

go-rasam = sweet speech, meaningful words.

rasam = interest.

And without sweet, wise words of content, what is the big deal about being a wise person? That is, if one claims to be wise, his or her speech should be meaningful, sweet, useful, wise, and kind. Otherwise, anyone can speak harsh, useless, foolish, or rude words—you don’t need wisdom for that!

So, what do we learn from this śhloka, which is so critical to interpreting Sanskrit? And more so for older works?

Don’t jump to the conclusion that it is stupid to say that without milk, there is no use for food, a king, women, or wisdom. If it doesn’t make sense, we should not discard it outright, but say, "To me, it doesn’t make sense now. Maybe later it will."

And why should we give Sanskrit works so much benefit of the doubt? There is something special about the wise people whose works were preserved for generations. They did not have the distractions of TV ratings, magazines, New York bestseller lists, mega-million-dollar projects, corporate foundations, or a nonstop barrage of information through Twitter, Facebook statuses, or RSS news feeds from all over the world.

They had no hidden motives or agendas—especially the truly larger-than-life figures like Vyāsa, Vidura, Vālmīki, or the Vedic seers.

That is the only reason we should always give the benefit of the doubt to anything we do not understand—especially in the absence of background knowledge or context. Many sacred Vedic sūtras have been massacred due to arrogant and ignorant translations by early Indologists who had not lived the tradition.

Here is an excerpt from http://www.vedah.com:

Ṛigveda - Verse (1.7.3)

gobhiḥ adrim airayat

go = cow, water (as per Sāyaṇa), ray of knowledge.

adri = mountain, cloud, force of ignorance.

airayat = destroy.

Translation 1: (Indra) destroys the forces of ignorance with knowledge.

Translation 2: (Indra) charged the clouds with water [as per Sāyaṇa].

Translation 3: (Indra) smashed the hill to retrieve the cows [as per Griffith].

Translation 1 is the esoteric interpretation. Translation 3 is difficult to understand. Supposedly, the cows were hidden in the caves by robbers. By smashing the hill, even the cows would be destroyed along with it. Translation 2 is acceptable, but where is the wisdom in it?

So, always be humble when interpreting ancient wisdom. For,

श्रद्धया सत्यमाप्यते (Yajurveda 19.30)

Śhraddhayā satyam āpyate

"Reverence brings out the truth."

Not blind faith, not blind following—but a reverent pursuit.

---

And now the language aspects of the shloka -

vinA = without
go = cow, land, senses, speech
rasam = essence, juice, interest, mood
ko = kaH = what
raso = rasaH = interest, importance, value
bhojanAnAM = of food (bhojanam)

bhUpatinAm = of kings (bhupati)
bhU = earth, land
pati = owner, master, husband etc
patinAm = of pati
kAminInAm = of beautiful women (kAminI)
paNDitAnAm = of wise (pANDita)




(c) Shashikant Joshi । शशिकांत जोशी । ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः ।

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Solar eclipse of 15 Jan 2010

These pictures were taken with Canon EOS rebel XT and 300mm zoom lens from Quantaray.

The four enemies in the family - ऋणकर्ता पिता शत्रुः

debt giving father is enemy, and mother of loose character.
a beautiful wife is enemy, enemy is a foolish son.

RiNa-kartA pitA shatrur_mAtA cha vyabhichAriNI |
bhAryA rUpavatI shatruH, putraH shatrur_apaNDitaH ||

ऋणकर्ता पिता शत्रुर्माता च व्यभिचारिणी ।
भार्या रूपवती शत्रुः पुत्रः शत्रुरपण्डितः ॥


the king sudarshana, in the preface of hitopadeshaH, out on a stroll had heard two shlokas that set him thinking about the foolish, young, wealthy and powerful sons. after all he had to leave the kingdom to them one day!

debtor father
father is one who protects, shelters, helps in growing to full potential, guides.
in mahAbhArata, when the yakSha asks pANDava prince yudhiShThira - "who is more bearing (patient) than the earth, higher (greater) than sky, more than grass blades and faster than wind?" and yudhiShThira says - "mother is more bearing (patient) than earth, father is higher/greater than sky, worries are more than the grass blades and the mind (manas, imagination) is faster than the wind."

such is the role of the father. we feel protected, secure, in good hands with father. on his shoulder, or holding his finger, or going to the market, using his cycle/bike/car/phone for the first time, ... what all memories we make!

Like father like son - yathA rAjA tathA prajA - यथा राजा तथा प्रजा

as the land so the [ground] water, as the seed so the sprout.
as the region [country] so the language, as the king so the people.

यथा भूमिस्तथा तोयं, यथा बीजं तथाऽङ्कुरः ।
यथा देशस्तथा भाषा, यथा राजा तथा प्रजा ॥

yathA bhUmis_tathA toyaM, yathA bIjaM tathA'nkuraH |
yathA deshas_tathA bhAShA, yathA rAjA tathA prajA ||


the last part of this shloka - yathA rAjA tathA prajA - is an often quoted famous saying, used in perhaps all languages of india, specially in sanskrit and hindi. a good friend asked me for some quote on 'If we sow goodness, we will reap goodness; if we sow evil, we will reap evil.' and in that connection i ended up searching the internet for it, maybe in an attempt to give a quick link. but i never found the full shloka anywhere. i don't remember the original source, so that is still a mystery. any help would be appreciated.

as the land, so the water.
the ground water differs from place to place. the mineral content, the medicinal powers are different. even the contamination! bottled water is sold as 'From the Source in the Alps!'. why does it matter, when it is only H2O. but no, it matters. different natural water sources have different healing powers, like hot springs. and all because of the particular composition of the land, the earth in that area.

there are people who get, or are cured of, skin problems when they move from one place to another. people have solved gray hair, stomach troubles and many such problems by moving to another place. as 'they' say - oh, it is in the water! or e.g. in india when someone moves to a new place and gets health issues, people would say 'the water didn't suit you.'