Verse 7.14.1

आशा वाव स्मराद्भूयस्याशेद्धो वै स्मरो मन्त्रानधीते कर्माणि कुरुते पुत्रांश्च पशूंश्चेच्छत इमं च लोकममुं चेच्छत आशामुपास्स्वेति ॥ ७.१४.१ ॥

āśā vāva smarādbhūyasyāśeddho vai smaro mantrānadhīte karmāṇi kurute putrāṃśca paśūṃścecchata imaṃ ca lokamamuṃ cecchata āśāmupāssveti || 7.14.1 ||

1. Hope is certainly better than memory. Hope inspires a person’s memory, and one uses one’s memory to learn the mantras and perform rituals. One then wishes for children and animals, and one also wishes to attain this world and the next. Therefore, worship hope.

Word-for-word explanation:

Āśā vāva smarāt bhūyasī, hope is certainly superior to memory; āśā-iddhaḥ vai, fired by hope; smaraḥ, memory; mantrān, the mantras; adhīte, learns; karmāṇi kurute, performs the rituals; putrān ca, children; paśūn ca, and animals; icchate, he wishes for; imam ca lokam amum ca, this world and the other [world]; icchate, he wishes for; āśām upāssva iti, worship hope.

Commentary:

Suppose there is something you want. You have not got it, but you hope to get it. This kind of desire can be helpful. Maybe you have money, children, and a good reputation, but you are not happy. You discover that any amount of material prosperity you attain does not give you peace of mind. You see many people who are very prosperous but unhappy. You then start yearning for spiritual enlightenment. This is called divine discontent. This discontent pushes you on and on to make progress. Without burning desire, you cannot attain anything in spiritual life.