Then, what to speak of Purushadharma? How can purushas who have not cared to earn even the infinitesimal glory of the Primal Purusha be expected to practice Purushadharma? Not even the most diligent search will now reveal a fraction of it! As the ancient Rishi said:

Samdhyaa heeno suchirnithyamanathas sarva karmasu
Yad anyath kuruthe karmo no thasya phala bhaag bhaveth

That is to say, when the twice-born gives up the Sandhya-worship, he falls into perdition; so say all the Smrithis. Those who neglect the Sandhyaa-worship have no right for any other type of ritual. It is because the sages of ancient times performed the Sandhya-worship for many years that they acquired long life, fame, glory, wisdom and the splendour of Divinity; this is mentioned by Manu also. Therefore, from whatever point of view we consider, no Brahmin can deserve that status if he does not meditate on the Gayathri.

Of course what is meant by Brahmin in this context is the man who has realised the Brahmathathva and who has purified himself by the practice of the Brahmopasana, the ceaseless contemplation of the Brahmam. This has nothing to do with caste and even religion. But, those who have inherited the name Brahmin have a special responsibility in adhering to the Sandhya-worship and the Gayathri.

What exactly is Sandhya? 'Sam' means well and 'dhya' is derived from 'dhyan' and so Sandhya refers to the proper dhyana or intense meditation on the Lord. It means concentration on the Godhead. To fix the mind on God, the activities have to be controlled. For, success in that process of control one should overcome the handicaps of the Gunas, the Sathwa, the Rajas and the Thamas. When these faces of natural impulse predominate and try to direct along their channels, one must pray to God to negate their pull. That is the first duty of the man who strives towards God. It is the rule of nature, that the morning is the period of Sathwic quality, the "noon" of Rajasic nature and the "evening" hour of dusk of Thamasic nature. At dawn, the mind is awakened from the comfort of sleep, liberated from agitations and depressions and so, the mind is calm and clear. At that time, in that mental condition, the dhyana of the Lord is very fruitful, as everyone knows. This is the reason why the Praathah-Sandhya is prescribed. But ignorant of the significance, men continue doing the ritual in a blind mechanical way, simply because the ancients have laid down the rule. The second duty of man is to perform the Sandhya-worship, after realising the inner and deeper meaning of the same.