Jagatguru Adi Sankaracharya is undisputably the greatest philosophers that India, or the world, has ever produced. He is unique in the history of the world as he combined in himself the attributes of a philosopher, a devotee, a mystic, a poet and a religious reformer. Though he lived twelve hundred years ago, India and the world feels the impact of the life and work of this spiritual genius even today. As per the promise given in the Gita that God would descend on earth whenever righteousness and all that is dependent upon Dharma is on the decline, Sankaracharya appeared on the Indian scene at a time when moral and religious chaos had overtaken the country. During the brief span of 32 years of life, Sankara established firmly the Advaita Vedanta philosophy as the essential unifying basis of the Hindu religion. He brought about religious harmony, spiritual coherence and moral regeneration of the country. A popular story describes the circumstances in which this great poem burst forth the lips of Sankara. It is said that once in Banaras when he, together with his fourteen disciples, was going along on his daily rounds, he overheard a very old Pundit cramming Panini's grammer rules. Sankara was touched with pity at the ignorance and folly of the man to be wasting away the most precious 'dusk hours' of his life for a mere intellectual accomplishment instead of spending them in contemplation on the Lord, praying for spiritual enlightenment and for release from the bondage of Samsara. He knew that this was not the state of that particular old man only, but was the general state of most of the men.
Men waste and while away their lives in many (or most) futile ways, grovelling in the mire of earthly attachments forgetting God who is the only goal in life. In compassion for man's plight, he burst forth into these stanzas, famous as MOHA MUDGARA, now popularly known by the refrain of the song, which is *BHAJA GOVINDAM*.
"Oh, Mudha! Oh, ignoramus! Grammer rules (in fact all your secular learning) will not come to your rescue when death knocks to snatch you away. Instead of wasting away the precious span of your life in a futile manner, turn to and seek Govinda, who alone can save you from the jaws of life and death".
In thirty-one simple, sweet and lucid Slokas, giving homely analogies and illustrations for our easy understanding, Sankara tells us about the fallacy and futility of our life; and sloka by sloka he removes veil after veil, dispelling our ignorance, illusions and delusions (MOHA) and showing us where the remedy for all our misery lies. The poem is, therefore also called MOHA MUDGARA. He touches all aspects of our life, how these blind and bind us, plunging us deeper and deeper into the abyss of ignorance and misery. He wants each one of us to cultivate a discerning and discriminating eye (VIVEKA) to distinguish the permanent from the transitory, the real from the unreal, to practice dispassion (VAIRAGYA) for worldly attractions and distractions, to cultivate devotion for realising Govinda, the abiding Truth and thus getting released from the misery and bondage of this phenomenal existence.

Seek Govindha, seek Govindha
Seek Govindha, Oh fool!
When the appointed time arrives,
Rules of grammar will definitely not save you.

Oh fool! Give up your thirst to amass wealth,
Think of reality in your mind, devoid of passions.
Whatever you obtain, produced by your karma,
With that wealth, entertain the ciththa (mind).

Woman's navel region, weighted down by her breasts,
Seeing, fall not a prey to maddening delusion.
They are modifications of flesh, fat, etc.,
Reflect in your mind, again and again.

Water on a lotus leaf is extremely unstable;
Even so is life, very much uncertain.
Know that, engulfed by disease and pride,
The entire world is overtaken by grief.

As long as you are able to earn money,
So long will your family be attached to you.
When later, you live with an infirm body,
No one at home asks about your welfare.

As long as life-breath remains in the body,
So long will they enquire about your welfare at home.
When the vital air leaves the body,
The wife is afraid of that lifeless body.

Child is attached to play,
Young man is attached to damsels,
Old man is attached to worries,
To supreme Brahman, none is attached.

Who is your beloved? Who is your son?
This samsâra (world) is very strange.
To whom do you belong? Who are you? From where have you come?
Reflect over these truths here, Friend!

From association with the wise comes non-attachment,
From non-attachment comes absence of delusion,
From absence of delusion comes steady dwelling in reality,
From steady dwelling in reality comes jîvanmukthi (freedom).

When one has become old, what is lust drive?
When water has dried, what is a lake?
When wealth is gone, what is a family?
When the reality is known, what is samsâra?

Do not be proud of your wealth, people, or youth;
Time destroys everything in just a moment.
Giving up all these that are the products of mâyâ,
Enter into the state of Brahman, after knowing.

Day and night, dusk and dawn,
Winter and spring, keep coming again.
Time plays, life is spent;
Even then, man does not give up the storm of hope.

Who is your beloved? Why think about wealth?
Oh mad man, is there none to guide you?
In all three worlds, only association with the wise
Is a boat for crossing the ocean of worldly existence.

Matted locks, shaven head, plucked-out hairs,
Saffron cloth, these are various enacted roles.
Even though seeing, the fool does not see,
For stomach's sake, these are various enacted roles.

Body is weak, head is bald,
Without tooth, leaning on crutches,
Old man goes holding a stick,
Yet does not give up the bundle of hope.

Fire in the front, the sun behind,
At night, he curls up the body to keep out the cold,
With hand as bowl for bhiksha (food), and dwelling beneath a tree,
Yet does not give up the bonds of hope.

One might make a pilgrimage to the Gangâ or the ocean,
Observe vows, or give away in charity.
But without jñâna (knowledge), with all of these,
He cannot attain mukthi (freedom) even in a hundred births.

Dwelling in a holy temple, beneath a tree,
The earth as bed, deerskin as dress,
Renouncing all possessions and enjoyments,
Who would not be made happy by dispassion?

Taking delight in yoga or bhoga (sense pleasure),
Taking delight in company, or being alone,
He whose mind likes to dwell in Brahman,
Enjoys, enjoys, certainly enjoys.

Has studied some part of Bhagavadhgîthâ;
Has drunk a drop of Gangâ water;
He who has done some deliberation on Murâri (Lord),
Such a person shall not have any dispute with Yama (Death).

And again birth, and again death,
And again, in the mother's womb, to sleep;
In this samsâra, very difficult to cross,
And boundless, please save me, Murâri!

Whose cloth is made of pieces from the road,
Whose path is devoid of virtue and vice,
The yogin, whose ciththa is immersed in yoga,
Enjoys, like a child and as one intoxicated indeed.

Who are you? Who am I? From where did I come?
Who is my mother? Who is my father?
Thus ponder; the entire, essenceless
Universe, having given up, as a mere dreamland.

In you, in me, and in other places, there is but one Vishnu (Lord).
Unecessarily, you are angry with me, and impatient;
You should become equal-minded everywhere,
If you wish to soon attain the status of Vishnu.

With foe, friend, son, relatives,
Make no effort to love or fight;
In everyone, indeed, see yourself;
Everywhere, give up sense of difference.

Lust, anger, greed, delusion,
Giving up, reflect about yourself: "Who am I?"
Devoid of self-knowledge, are fools;
They are tortured in hell as captives.

Gîthâ and thousand names are to be sung;
Vishnu's form is to be meditated upon, always;
Ciththa is to be led into the company of noble people;
And wealth is to be given to the needy people.

Easily is done, indulgence in sexual pleasure;
Later on, alas, in the body, disease comes;
Though, in the world, death is the ultimate end,
Even then, one does not give up sinful behavior.

Wealth as calamitous, think always;
From it, there is no bit of happiness, truly;
Even from son, for rich people, there is fear;
Everywhere, this is the ordained way.

Prânâyâma, withdrawal of sense-organs,
Vicâra (enquiry) with discrimination between real and unreal;
Along with japa, practice of samâdhi:
Perform with care, with extreme care.

Great bhaktha (devotee) of guru's lotus feet!
From samsâra, soon, be free;
Through control of senses and mind, thus,
You will see the Lord that dwells in one's heart!