In plain words
Such a life is like a chariot without wheels. A crop without water or manure. A woman without sindūra. Humanness without quality. All this is worthless, they said.
How does the enquiry into Brahman arise in us today? When we have become skilled in the enquiry into Dharma for some time, the enquiry into Brahman comes to us. When does the enquiry into Dharma come to us? When we become perfect in the enquiry into karma, then alone does the enquiry into Dharma come. That is why they said: athāto karma jijñāsā, athāto dharma jijñāsā, athāto brahma jijñāsā. That is, from karma Dharma must come, and from Dharma, Brahman. So we must have full faith in action and in Dharma. We must nurture the actions of mind, word and body fit for following this Dharma. This Dharma itself is the right goal of our birth. That is why God is the embodiment of Dharma. Rāmo vigrahavān dharmaḥ, they said.
God is the embodiment of Prema. Prema itself is God. God Himself is Prema. So we must develop full faith in this Prema and Dharma. You are students who must practise this Dharma. There are dharmas that students must keep firmly. This is a sacred age. If we spoil this age, we will have spoiled our whole life. If the root is sound, the whole tree is sound. If the root is bent, the whole tree is bent. So at this sacred age you must see that, as far as possible, you give no room to any bad feelings or to any bad thoughts. But some thoughts do come. Thoughts come, and then they pass away. You must not connect your body with those thoughts. Thoughts keep coming, keep going. If the body follows these thoughts, it takes the form of action, as when negative and positive meet.
Students! Whatever thoughts come, give them some time. Do not put thoughts into action the moment they come; take time and enquire, Is it good or bad. Then the thoughts cool down. So whatever thoughts come to us, good or bad, we must not put them into action. But at this age the blood is hot. This hot blood urges us on all the more. This Manas is not something that does as it is told. The nature of this Manas is always restlessness itself.
The mind does not stay in one place: what sin is this? It roams about as a monkey: what curse is this? This is mine, that is mine: the threefold anguish has grown great; with no steadiness at all, the mind is set on treasure alone. The mind does not stay in one place: what sin is this? It roams about as a monkey: what curse is this?