As old age creeps on, acts of lust vanish of their own accord. As water dries up,
the lake loses even its form. As one becomes poor, one's kinsmen disappear into nowhere.
All these art most certain; equally certain is the disappearance of life's troubles upon
the dawn of wisdom, says Sri Sankara. Even the most persistent sorrows and cares of men
will be cured by true knowledge of self. When they disappear, man's native powers will
assert themselves and go into fruitful channels. They will not be spent in futile cares.
Knowledge of the self is the true medicine,
which will give one soul-strength. It cures one of cares and anxieties and spurs one to
the good life. If even after studying the saastras, one's cares have not been
extinguished, it means that they have not been read with devotion. |
