Gyaneshwari -Sant Gyaneshwar
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Chapter-17
Three Kinds of Faith
Then he created the Brahmins, and after directing them to follow the Vedas, he provided them the means of livelihood, in the form of sacrificial rites. Then he created countless beings and gifted them for their livelihood, the three worlds with a hereditary right over them (336-340). Now hear about this formula, signifying the name of God, which made god Brahma pre-eminent in this world, so said the Lord of Lakshmi. He added: know that its first syllable is Om, the king of all sacred formulae, its second syllable is Tat and the third is Sat. In this way, Om Tat Sat is the triple name of Brahman. You should smell this beautiful flower of the Upanishads in the form of this name. If you become one with this name and perform sattvic actions, emancipation becomes a domestic servant in your house. If a person secures ornaments of camphor through good fortune, he finds it difficult to know how to wear them (341-345). In the same way, even if one performs good actions and chants the name of Brahman, he may not know the secret of its proper application as laid down in the scripture. Just as one loses merit, by not showing proper respect to saintly persons who visit one’s house or one longing to wear beautiful ornaments of gold puts them in a bundle and hangs it round one’s neck, so the chanting of the name of God and performance of good actions, are of no avail, if one does not know its proper application, consisting of three syllables in performing such action. O Arjuna, there is food and hunger side by side and yet if an infant does not know how to eat it, it starves (346-350). Or oil, wick and fire may be all available at one place, still, O warrior, if their use is unknown, no light can be had. So even when there is timely action and the appropriate formula (mantra) comes to mind; yet they are of no use without the knowledge of their proper application. I shall now tell you, how one should properly apply the three syllabic names of Brahman. |
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