āpūryamāṇam acala-pratiṣṭhaṁ samudram āpaḥ praviśanti yadvat tadvat kāmā yaṁ praviśanti sarve sa śāntim āpnoti na kāma-kāmī
"Just as the ocean remains calm and unmoved though rivers flow into it from all sides, so the person into whom all desires flow without disturbing remains at peace—not one who strives to satisfy desires."
What This Means:
Picture the ocean: countless rivers pour into it constantly, yet it stays perfectly still, unchanged. The wise person is like that—desires and experiences flow into them, but they remain undisturbed, peaceful. They don't chase desires; they let them come and go. That's the secret to peace.
Going Deeper:
This is one of the Gita's most beautiful images. The ocean (samudra) is 'acala-pratishtha' (firmly established, unmoving). Rivers don't disturb it because it's so vast and deep. Similarly, the sage's consciousness is so expanded that desires entering are like rivers meeting the ocean—they lose their force, get absorbed, cause no ripple. The desire-chaser (kama-kami) can never achieve this peace.
How To Apply This:
Become like the ocean. When desires arise—and they will—don't chase them and don't fight them. Let them flow into your awareness like rivers into the sea. Watch them come, watch them dissolve. The more spacious your awareness becomes, the less any single desire can disturb you. This is true peace.
Key Sanskrit Terms: