April 19th

Sanskrit Pearl of the day:
मर्कटस्य सुरापानं मध्ये वृश्चिकदंशनम् ।
तन्मध्ये भूतसञ्चारो यद्वा तद्वा भविष्यति ॥
- समयोचितपद्यमालिका


Transliteration:
markaṭasya surāpānaṃ madhye vṛścika daṃśanam ।
tanmadhye bhūtasañcāro yadvā tadvā bhaviṣyati ॥
- samayocitapadyamālikā

Meaning of the subhAShita:

A monkey who is drunk, stung by a scorpion amidst (all these), and invaded by ghosts in the thick of all this—anything can happen!

Commentary:

To begin with, he is a monkey. Then he is given alcohol to make him tipsy. (As if he needs alcohol to get jumpy :). On top of it, he gets stung by a scorpion. As if this wasn't sufficient, there is an invasion of ghosts!! What else can be expected but catastrophic chaos?!! No one can predict the outcome of such situations, and not to mention that the result will be different each time too!

This is a metaphor for the mind. The mind is already very unstable. What if it is provided with an ambiance where it can splurge on all of its whims and fancies?! To top that, what if it is provided with the means to fulfill them without any hurdles on the way?! Nobody to ask nor to question! What will be the outcome of such an individual?! Just as the verse satirically says, 'totally unpredictable!' 

Do not feed the monkey mind! Put a saddle on it and direct it in the right direction. Don't let it run wild and then end up repenting after situations go out of hand. Taming the mind is a full-time assignment. 

pada vigrahaH:
मर्कटस्य सुरापानं मध्ये वृश्चिक-दंशनम् ।
markaṭasya surāpānaṃ madhye vṛścika daṃśanam ।

तत् मध्ये भूत-सञ्चारः यत् वा तत् वा भविष्यति ॥
tat madhye bhūta-sañcāraḥ yat vā tat vā bhaviṣyati ॥

Alternate Transliteration:
markaTasya suraapaanaM madhye vRushchikadaMshanam ।
tanmadhye bhUtasa~nchaaro yadvaa tadvaa bhaviShyati ॥
- samayochitapadyamaalikaa

markaTasya suraapaanaM madhye vRushchika-damshanam ।

tat madhye bhUta-sa~nchaaraH yat vaa tat vaa bhaviShyati ॥