ĀTMĀNUŚĀSANA – PRECEPT ON THE SOUL by Ācārya GUṆABHADRA (ca. 818–900 A.D.) [82]
Gātha 81
Like the sugarcane infested with wood-worms, the human mode (paryāya) is purposeless; charming in name only. Similar to the sugarcane, the human mode is marked by internodes (interludes, in human age) of misfortune; the end part (the top part, old-age) is without much juice (insipid); the root (the bottom part, childhood) is unfit for consumption (enjoyment); and it has pores all around due to frightful diseases like hunger, wounds, leprosy, and malodour. O worthy soul! Without delay, make your human mode (paryāya) purposeful by turning it into a seed for the next birth.
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