“As long as this body is free from disease and decrepitude, as long as senility is far off, as long as the powers of the senses are unaffected and the end of life has not come, wise persons should make great effort for the sake of their supreme good, for what is the use of digging a well when the house is on fire?”
(Vairagya Shatak: 75)
Bhartrihari Maharaj says that as long as the body is strong, we should make maximum efforts to attain the supreme goal of human life, i.e. the Supreme Self, because after we grow old, neither our body will remain fit for doing sadhana, nor our mind and intellect will become one-pointed.
It has been stated in Shri Yoga Vasishtha Maharamayana: “When you become old, your own limbs become a burden to you and you cannot take care of them. Youth is verily the life of the living, provided it is fraught with discrimination, and if the youth phase is spent without discrimination it is worse than animal life. Having come into this world, which is as transient as fleeting lightning, one should strive to lift himself out of the mire of samsara through association with sages and scriptures.”
“Having secured, at the end of many transmigrations, birth in this very rare human body which, though transient, is capable of attaining the highest object of life, viz. Moksha (liberation), a wise person should endeavor at the earliest, to attain liberation (moksha), before his body falls prey to death. After all, sense gratification is available even in the most abominable species of life, whereas liberation is possible only for a human being.”
(Shrimad Bhagavata Purana 11.9.29)
Pujya Bapuji teaches in His nectarine satsang, “O sadhaka, O disciple, do not let your heart hanker after the petty toys of worldly pleasures. Your heart, the abode of the beloved, is not meant for petty toys. Let That antaryamin (Inner Ruler), beloved, reveal Himself. Complete your spiritual journey before the sunset of your life occurs. Attain the inner Light before your eyes become unable to perceive light (due to impaired vision). Hear the instructions on Truth before your ears become deaf due to senility. Clean your heart and attain the knowledge of the Supreme Self before your family members turn their back on you, before your teeth fall out, the facial skin becomes wrinkled, and hair turns grey. Come into your own Self while living by giving up attachment, before death knocks; kindle the love for the imperishable Atman, which is of the form of Infinite space, and gain His memory (knowledge). O son, be persistent in this important task by sparing some time from daily chores; keep diving into the Experience of Antaryamin Supreme Self.”
