Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 1.6.34

etad dhy ātura-cittānāḿ

mātrā-sparśecchayā muhuḥ

bhava-sindhu-plavo dṛṣṭo

hari-caryānuvarṇanam

SYNONYMS

etat — this; hi — certainly; ātura-cittānām — of those whose minds are always full of cares and anxieties; mātrā — objects of sense enjoyment; sparśa — senses; icchayā — by desires; muhuḥ — always; bhava-sindhu — the ocean of nescience; plavaḥ — boat; dṛṣṭaḥ — experienced; hari-carya — activities of Hari, the Personality of Godhead; anuvarṇanam — constant recitation.

TRANSLATION

It is personally experienced by me that those who are always full of cares and anxieties due to desiring contact of the senses with their objects can cross the ocean of nescience on a most suitable boat — the constant chanting of the transcendental activities of the Personality of Godhead.

PURPORT

The symptom of a living being is that he cannot remain silent even for some time. He must be doing something, thinking of something or talking about something. Generally the materialistic men think and discuss about subjects which satisfy their senses. But as these things are exercised under the influence of the external, illusory energy, such sensual activities do not actually give them any satisfaction. On the contrary, they become full with cares and anxieties. This is called māyā, or what is not. That which cannot give them satisfaction is accepted as an object for satisfaction. So Nārada Muni, by his personal experience, says that satisfaction for such frustrated beings engaged in sense gratification is to chant always the activities of the Lord. The point is that the subject matter only should be changed. No one can check the thinking activities of a living being, nor the feeling, willing or working processes. But if one wants actual happiness, one must change the subject matter only. Instead of talking of the politics of a dying man, one might discuss the politics administered by the Lord Himself. Instead of relishing activities of the cinema artists, one can turn his attention to the activities of the Lord with His eternal associates like the gopīs and Lakṣmīs. The almighty Personality of Godhead, by His causeless mercy, descends on the earth and manifests activities almost on the line of the worldly men, but at the same time extraordinarily, because He is almighty. He does so for the benefit of all conditioned souls so that they can turn their attention to transcendence. By doing so, the conditioned soul will gradually be promoted to the transcendental position and easily cross the ocean of nescience, the source of all miseries. This is stated from personal experience by such an authority as Śrī Nārada Muni. And we can have the same experience also if we begin to follow in the footsteps of the great sage, the dearmost devotee of the Lord.