Bhaja Govindam Verse 5

यावद्वित्तोपार्जनसक्तस्तावन्निजपरिवारो रक्तः।
पश्चाज्जीवति जर्जरदेहे वार्तां कोऽपि न पृच्छति गेहे॥
yāvadvittopārjanasaktastāvannijaparivāro raktaḥ |
paścājjīvati jarjaradehe vārtāṃ ko’pi na pṛcchati gehe ||

  • yāvat: as long as; vitta-upārjana-śaktaḥ: (one is) capable of earning wealth; tāvat: till then; nijaparivāraḥ: one’s own family; raktaḥ: is attached or affectionate; paścāt: afterwards; jīvati: while living; jarjaradehe: in an old, decayed body; gehe: in the house; ko’pi: even one person; vārtāṃ: a word or welfare; na pṛcchati: does not ask or inquire

Summary: The Illusion of Family Attachment
As long as a person has the ability to earn wealth, their family members remain attached and affectionate towards them.
Later, when that earning capacity is lost, the person is left to live in an old, decrepit body.
At that stage, not even a single person in the house cares to inquire about their well-being.

  • Conditional Love: śaṅkarācārya points out that any love we receive from people in the world is strictly conditional. Leaving aside bhagavan and a jñānī, there is no source of unconditional love available in the world. The primary condition for receiving love from others is being a benefactor, a positive contributor, or being useful to them.
  • The Example of a Family Provider: To illustrate this, śaṅkarācārya uses the example of a family member. As long as a person contributes to the well-being of the family by earning and owning wealth, they enjoy a high status accompanied by excellent care and love. However, if this person retires and stops being a contributor, the quality of love they receive undergoes a subtle change. If they eventually become a financial or physical liability due to old age or sickness, the attitude of the family members changes drastically. In their hearts, people may silently pray to bhagavan to release the person from suffering, which is often just a polite way of wishing for their own freedom from the burden.
  • Scriptural Proof from the Upanishad: The bṛhadāraṇyaka upaniṣad beautifully reveals this truth in the dialogue between yājñavalkya and maitreyī: न वा अरे पत्युः कामाय पतिः प्रियो भवति आत्मनस्तु कामाय पतिः प्रियो भवति। न वा अरे जायायै कामाय जाया प्रिया भवति आत्मनस्तु कामाय जाया प्रिया भवति॥ na vā are patyuḥ kāmāya patiḥ priyo bhavati ātmanastu kāmāya patiḥ priyo bhavati | na vā are jāyāyai kāmāya jāyā priyā bhavati ātmanastu kāmāya jāyā priyā bhavati || This mantra explains that nobody loves anyone purely for that person’s sake; rather, anyone loves another only for their own well-being and comfort.
  • The Delusion of Unconditional Love: Expecting unconditional love from the world, or mistaking conditional love for unconditional love, is a profound mohaḥ (delusion). When the conditions change, the discovery that the love was conditional comes as a great shock. For unconditional love, one must turn to bhagavan.
  • The Essence of the Verse: The phrase tāvannijaparivāro raktaḥ indicates that one’s own family (nijaparivāraḥ) remains loving and caring only as long as a specific condition is fulfilled. That condition is yāvadvittopārjanasaktaḥ—meaning, as long as the person remains a productive member capable of earning wealth.
  • The Meaning of the Second Line: vitta upārjana refers to earning wealth, and saktaḥ (or śaktaḥ) means being capable or productive. paścāt means later in life. When the person can no longer contribute and is merely surviving in a dilapidated, aging body (jarjaradehe jīvati sati), the situation changes. At this stage, ko’pi vārtāṃ na pṛcchati—nobody makes a genuine inquiry about them. Food might merely be sent through a servant, or the person might be placed in an old age home. It is our own delusion to expect from the world what it is simply incapable of giving.
  • Summary: Ultimately, bhagavan or the ātmā (as bhagavan) is the only true source of love. We must learn to discover this love within ourselves rather than seeking it externally. Otherwise, in the end, no single member at home will truly have the time or inclination to ask how we are doing (ko’pi gehe vārtāṃ pṛcchati).