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Divinize every moment

वाणी गुणानुकथने श्रवणौ कथायां
हस्तौ च कर्मसु मनस्तव पादयोर्नः ।
स्मृत्यां शिरस्तव निवासजगत्प्रणामे
दृष्टिः सतां दर्शनेऽस्तु भवत्तनूनाम् ।।
श्रीमद् भागवतम् ११.९.२९

vāṇī guṇānukathane śravaṇau kathāyāṁ
hastau ca karmasu manastava pādayornaḥ |
smṛtyāṁ śirastava nivāsajagatpraṇāme
dṛṣṭiḥ satāṁ darśane’stu bhavattanūnām ||
Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.10.38

Translation:

May our speech remain engrossed in relating your qualities and virtues, ears in your stories, hands in doing your service, mind in the remembrance of your feet, head in prostrating before the world which is your abode and the eyes in seeing your devotees, who are no other than your manifestations.

Points for Introspection:

Our constant effort in life should be to divinize every moment; to feel and see God everywhere and in everything. Then alone the life will be fulfilled and we will experience Supreme bliss. But how to bring about divinity in day-to-day life, in every thought, word and action. Throughout the day the senses and the mind remain preoccupied with worldly matters which are seemingly non-spiritual and non-divine in nature. How to have the touch of divinity in spite of that? How to feel the presence of God always and fill the mind with divine bliss every moment?

This shloka tells us how to go beyond the petty worldly thought which make us narrow and bound. Every sense organ should be united with God alone while doing their respective activities. How to do it?

Our tongue keeps on talking about useless and insignificant matters. Throughout the day we engage in gossip and criticism. Being immersed in worldly matters we loose the touch of divinity completely. To feel sublime and divine, the tongue should always be engaged in praising the Lord and talking about his glorious deeds and excellences. The ears are ever eager to hear criticism and faults of others. How will divinity be felt then? To experience divinity, the ears should always hear divine sounds, like descriptions of the Lord and the stories about Him. Hands are always active, but mostly doing work for oneself or for the near and dear ones. Where is the thought of the divine there? So, to be immersed in divine feeling, let the hands be engaged in such acts as cleaning the temple, plucking flowers for pooja etc.. When we think we are doing something connected to worship, we feel blissful.

The mind always wastes time thinking about worldly matters. It gets agitated by various desires. Most of the time, the mind is restless and tense. Divinity will dawn in such a mind if it constantly remembers the holy lotus feet of the Lord. That divine feeling will bring peace and bliss to the mind.

We move about with our head held high, proud of our possessions and achievements in our life. We feel we have done everything and forget the fact that by God’s grace alone we are able to perform any act. It is He who enlivens our senses, the organs, the mind and the intelligence. If we always remember the fact that God resides in everything in this world and bow our head in humility and devotion to every object of the world, then we will always feel the divine touch of God.

Our eyes see several things all around. But while seeing, we do not remember that God is present everywhere. The eyes, instead of enjoying all worldly sights should see the devotees of God who are embodiment of God Himself.

When, instead of engaging the senses and the mind in world objects, which are perishable, misery-producing, we engage them in the remembrance, talk and thought of the Lord, engage the hands in divine work, then every moment will become divine and full of bliss. Chanting this shloka will help us divinize our very existence.

Word Meaning:

वाणी (vāṇī) = speech, language, words; गुणानुकथने (guṇānukathane) = in relating qualities and virtues; श्रवणौ (śravaṇau) = the ears; कथायाम् (kathāyām) = in stories; हस्तौ (hastau) = pair of hands; च (ca) = and; कर्मसु  (karmasu) = in work, in service; मनः (manaḥ) = mind; तव (tava) = your; पादयोः (‘पादः’ शब्दः स. द्वि. ) (pādayoḥ) = on pair of feet; नः (naḥ) = our; स्मृत्याम् (smṛtyām) = in remembrance; शिरः (śiraḥ) = the head; तव(tava) = your; निवास-जगत्-प्रणामे (nivāsa-jagat-praṇāme) = in prostrating to the world which is your abode; दृष्टिः (dṛṣṭiḥ) = sight, eyes; सताम् (satām) = of the virtuous, noble; दर्शने (darśane) = in seeing; अस्तु (अस् धातु, लोट्, प्र. ए.) (astu) = let it be, may it be so; भवत्  (bhavat) = your; तनूनाम्  (तनु शब्दः ष. ब.) (tanūnām) = of forms, manifestations;

अन्वयः

वाणी (तव) गुणानुकथने, श्रवणौ (तव) कथायाम्, हस्तौ च कर्मसु, मनः तव पादयोः स्मृत्याम्, नः शिरः तव निवास- जगत्-प्रणामे, दृष्टिः भवत् तनूनाम् सताम् दर्शने अस्तु ।

vāṇī(tava) guṇānukathane, śravaṇau (tava) kathāyām, hastau ca karmasu, manaḥ tava pādayoḥ smṛtyām,naḥ śiraḥ tava nivāsa-jagat-praṇāme, dṛṣṭiḥ bhavat tanūnām satām darśane astu.