Golden Steps To Salvation

Author(s): Padmasagarsuri
Publisher: Arunoday Foundation

Page 30

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धनानि भूमो पशवश्च गोष्टे
कान्ता गृहद्वारि जनः स्मशाने । देहश्चितायां परलोकमार्गे
कर्मानुगो गच्चति जीव एकः Dhanāni Bhumau Pasávascha oște Kantā grihadwāri Janaḥ Smašāne Dehaschitā yām Paralokamarge
Karmānugo gachchati Jiva ekah. “Wealth remains underground (In olden days people used to bury their money underground since there were no banks); cattle remain in the shed; wife comes upto the threshold of the house; relatives come upto the cemetery; the body comes upto the funeral pyre. Beyond that the jiva (the living being) has to go alone on his way to the other world accompanied only by his good and evil actions."
All things in this world are like borrowed objects. How long can they be with you? Nobody can achieve any elevation by means of borrowed things. Even heavenly life is borrowed through our good actions. Hence even that is not permanent.
क्षीणे पुण्ये मर्त्यलोक विशन्ति ।
Kshine pun ye martyalokam visanti. “When the effect of our good actions declines we re-enter the human world. We have to take birth again in this world and we have to give up heavenly existence.”
Only our spiritual excellence remains with us permanently. Therefore, we should always strive for spiritual attainments and spiritual development; and the basis for those endeavours is detachment.
We can have attachment not only for things but also for persons; but it is always undesirable and improper. The man who is in search of the ultimate truth shuns partiality at all times.
The famous preceptor, Haribhadra Suri has written ;