Bhaja Govindam Verse 3

नारीस्तनभरनाभीदेशं दृष्ट्वा मागामोहावेशम् ।
एतन्मांसवसादिविकारं मनसि विचिन्तय वारं वारम् ॥
nārīstanabharanābhīdeśaṃ dṛṣṭvā māgāmohāveśam |
etanmāṃsavasādivikāraṃ manasi vicintaya vāraṃ vāram ||

• The Topic of Desire: Swamiji explains that after addressing the delusions surrounding wealth (arthaḥ), ādi śaṅkarācārya moves on to the topic of desire (kāmaḥ).
• Two Types of Desire: Desires can be broadly classified into two categories: acquired desires (āgantuka-kāmaḥ) and natural or instinctive desires (svābhāvika-kāmaḥ).
• Acquired Desires: These desires are not universal; they vary from individual to individual depending on time, place, and personality. For instance, preferences for certain foods, like tea or coffee, or choosing to be a vegetarian or non-vegetarian, are developed over time and can equally be dropped.
• Natural Desires: In contrast, natural desires are universal and instinctive, such as the desire for security, health, and comfort. Among these natural desires is the mutual attraction between a male and a female (strīpuruṣānyonyeccā or strīpuruṣakāmaḥ).
• The Desire Between Male and Female: Because this attraction is a natural desire (svābhāvika-kāmaḥ), we do not have a choice regarding its existence, nor can we challenge or resist its presence. Therefore, we need not feel guilty about it. However, as human beings endowed with free will, we do have a choice regarding the activation, promotion, and nourishment of this desire. śaṅkarācārya warns us not to fall into the trap of delusion (māgāmohāveśam) when handling it.
• The Vow of Celibacy: It is perfectly possible for a human being to exercise their choice and decide not to deliberately activate or promote this natural desire. When a person actively avoids situations that trigger it and chooses not to nourish it, this discipline is known as brahmacaryavratam. The scriptures, however, never force anyone to take this vow.
• The Householder’s Life: If a person chooses not to follow brahmacaryavratam and wishes to activate and promote this natural desire, the scriptures point out that it must be done properly and legitimately. For this purpose, the śāstra prescribes a specially designed field called the householder’s life (gṛhasthāśramaḥ).
• The First Method of Handling Desire: The first line of the verse teaches us the method of discrimination (viveka). Looking at the physical form of another person (nārīstanabharanābhīdeśaṃ dṛṣṭvā), one should not get swept away by delusion (mohāveśaṃ mā agāḥ). An intelligent person understands where they have a choice and exercises that choice appropriately, either through self-discipline or by legitimately pursuing it within gṛhasthāśramaḥ.
• The Second Method of Handling Desire: In the second half of the verse, śaṅkarācārya introduces another method. He reminds us that the physical body is merely a product of flesh, marrow, and bone (māṃsavasādivikāram). It is gross and subject to aging and destruction. Therefore, any pleasure derived from it is also gross and ephemeral (sthūla-anitya-ānanda). In contrast, human beings uniquely have the privilege to work for spiritual joy (ātmānanda), which is subtle and eternal (sūkṣma-nitya-ānanda).
• The Concept of Transcendence: When a person votes for and tastes the pursuit of this higher, eternal spiritual joy, the lower physical pleasures naturally become insignificant and irrelevant. This is called sublimation or transcendence (abhibhavaḥ). It is compared to the stars in the sky during the daytime; the stars are still there, but because of the superior sunlight, their presence is overshadowed and they become irrelevant. The scriptures describe this state of inner fulfillment:
  हा तस्य कार्यं न विद्यते hā tasya kāryaṃ na vidyate
  बाह्यस्पर्शेष्वसक्तात्मा विन्दत्यात्मनि यत्सुखम् bāhyasparṣeṣvasaktātmā vindatyātmani yatsukham
  स ब्रह्मयोगयुक्तात्मा सुखमक्षयमश्नुते sa brahmayogayuktātmā sukhamakṣayamaśnute
• Sublimation for the Seeker: For a spiritual seeker (mumukṣu), working toward this higher ānanda makes the lower animalistic desires essentially non-existent. While animals are confined purely to natural desires and physical joys, human beings can transcend them by discovering the joy of the self.
• Comparing Spiritual and Physical Joy: śaṅkarācārya instructs us to repeatedly discriminate (manasi vicintaya vāraṃ vāram) between the gross physical body—which is merely a product of flesh and fat (etat māṃsavasādivikāram)—and the eternal joy that comes from govinda or spiritual truth. By constantly comparing the fleeting joy of the senses (viṣayānanda) with the eternal joy of the self (ātmānanda), one can consciously choose the higher path, thereby transcending one’s animal nature.