Don't worry, be happy - चिन्ताज्वरो मनुष्याणां

The Fever of Worry

The fever of worry snatches away hunger, sleep, strength, beauty, enthusiasm, mind, wealth, and life itself—there is no doubt.

chintAjwaro manuShyANAm kShudhAm nidrAm balam haret |

rUpamutsAhabuddhim shrIm jIvitam cha na saMshayaH ||

चिन्ताज्वरो मनुष्याणां क्षुधां निद्रां बलं हरेत् ।

रूपमुत्साहबुद्धिं श्रीं जीवितं च न संशयः ॥

cintājvaro manuṣyāṇāṃ kṣudhāṃ nidrāṃ balaṃ haret ।

rūpamutsāhabuddhiṃ śrīṃ jīvitaṃ ca na saṃśayaḥ ॥

If you don’t believe in the simple maxim made famous by the song Don’t Worry, Be Happy, then here is the doctor's diagnosis of what all will go wrong due to this fever of worrying—if not controlled. This gem comes from the Skanda Purāṇa.

Hunger

It is a known fact that worry kills hunger. And this explains why the most common solution Americans have found to counter worry is to raid the fridge, grab the ice cream bucket, and finish it off while watching I Love Lucy, Friends, or Everybody Loves Raymond. You can fill in your favorite TV show here.
So, if worrying kills hunger, eating binges should surely counter worrying! And somehow, it seems to work as well.
But it works only to add new worries—about a wardrobe two sizes too small that doesn’t fit anymore! So, worrying only makes it worse.

Sleep

And how have you slept before the exams you didn’t prepare for? Or on your wedding night? Or before that job interview? Or when he isn’t picking up the phone, or she doesn’t text you back?
Well, maybe guys don’t worry too much on that front. :)

Strength

When you don’t eat or sleep, your body loses strength—not just physical strength but also immunity. That’s when you catch colds, flu, and other illnesses.
But it’s not just physical strength that diminishes. You somehow find yourself lacking confidence when you’re worried. And without confidence, what can you do? Just make more mistakes—and create even more worries!

Beauty

And without your beauty sleep, where is the beauty? Sagging eye bags, bad skin, acne, colorless cheeks—everything starts to show up when your worrying reaches a more worrisome stage.

Enthusiasm

So now you are sleep-deprived, lacking confidence, weak, and hungry—and they expect you to have any enthusiasm left? How cruel!
Will someone do something about this, or will they just keep expecting me to be all happy and smiley? I have no energy or mood to be happy or to be a go-getter.

Mind, Sanity

Are you seeing the logical sequence of the effects of worrying? The deeper the worry, the longer it lasts, and the more severe its impact on different aspects of your life.
Now your mind starts playing tricks on you. The border to insanity is not too far away. Whether it’s romantic worry, job-related worry, or any other severe case, when you keep worrying about things beyond your control, you simply worsen the situation.

Wealth

With the mind finally afflicted, you start making wrong decisions—and soon, it impacts you financially.
Maybe you’re not working properly, not paying attention to what the boss is saying, or not noticing when to turn the nuclear reactor off! Maybe you’re making bad investment decisions or going on a shopping spree after the ice cream spree didn’t work!
You are only making matters worse with unstoppable worrying.

Life

And then, it culminates in a chronic problem, giving rise to more severe health issues like headaches, ulcers, hypertension, or even cancer. They don’t call it “worried sick” for no reason!
You have one life (for the time being, at least). You can spend it worrying, and it will fly by quickly, or you can stop worrying. Stop doing things that will lead to situations that need to be worried about—like abstaining till marriage or using proper protection, working hard, and not being a jerk around her/him.
There is a difference between wondering (contemplating) and worrying. The first makes you better at work, the second makes you a beggar for work.
Not worrying doesn’t mean not planning! It just means not disabling your thinking itself.
Anything sound familiar? Post your comments—and when will you stop worrying?

Language Aspects of the Śloka

cintājvaro = fever of worry
cintā = worryjvaraḥ = fever, high temperature (even high tide is called jvāra in Hindi)Here, it is a tatpuruṣa samāsa—jvara of cintā, meaning "fever of worry." When a vibhakti is missing from the compounding, it is a tatpuruṣa samāsa.
manuṣyāṇām = of humans (-ṇām suffix to mean “of” in plural form)
manuṣya = human, from Manu, the first human of this era (after each deluge), whose descendants are all humans.kṣudhām = hunger (object, second vibhakti)
nidrām = sleep
balam = strength
haret = snatches away, takes away
rūpamutsāhabuddhim = rūpam + utsāha + buddhimrūpam = beautyutsāha = enthusiasm (ut- prefix suggests “up,” as in "up with enthusiasm")utkaṇṭhā = eagerness (literally “raised necks,” as when people stand on tiptoes to see something in a crowd)
śrīṃ = wealth, fame, prosperity
jīvitam = life
ca = and
na = not
saṃśayaḥ = doubt



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

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