Earthly treasures are fleeting - mantrA 174

srigurubhyO namahA |

The 174th mantrA alludes to  nAda yOgA.

வாழ்வும் மனைவியும் மக்கள் உடன்பிறந்
தாரும் அளவு ஏது எமக்கென்பர் ஒண்பொருள்
மேவும் அதனை விரிவுசெய் வார்கட்குக்
கூவும் துணையொன்று கூடலு மாமே. I.3.7.174

"Joys of life and wife, children and brothers--all ours," they claim
Little knowing how fragile and fleeting these delights be;
But the yearning souls that seek and build on treasure true,
Find support firm and ne'er failing company. I.3.7.174

Com - "Joys of life and wife, children and brothers--all ours," they claim Little knowing how fragile and fleeting these delights be; Those things that are in reality of absolutely no use to the self (but are of use to what we call life), like houses and riches, wife, children and siblings we keep on accumulating to dizzying heights and attaching ourselves to them as if they are ours. But the yearning souls that seek and build on treasure true, but there are those wiser souls, who forsaking these fragile pleasures seek the true wealth (i.e. light) by cultivating steady meditation on siva, and they ‘call out’ to Him.Find support firm and ne'er failing company. And through this process they are able to unite with the supreme lord who ‘calls back’ and attain salvation.

*The Tamil word ‘kUvum’ refers to calling and here indicates the fact that the supreme is attained through nAdA – nAdabraHmam. When the aspirant has forsaken the pursuit of the lesser (material) pleasures, the clamour of the steady sensory stimuli and its effect on the mind is steadily controlled and this inner ‘silence’ is the space in which the communion with the supreme transpires. The nAdA occurring in the anAhatA will gain in intensity and gradually manifest as a physical ‘sensation’ with steady practise. The sage advices that it is wiser to spend one’s short and dreamlike life in the pursuit of this higher end as it is something that will enable one to face death (at any rate) and might even be the agency through which one could transcend death.

thirucchitrambalam |