Bhagavad Gita 2.67
indriyāṇāṁ hi caratāṁ
yan mano ’nuvidhīyate
tad asya harati prajñāṁ
vāyur nāvam ivāmbhasi
“When the restless senses seize the mind,
Wisdom fades, left far behind.
Like a boat in a stormy sway,
One is carried helplessly away.”
My dear Lord, in this temptation-filled world, I am always in vulnerable territory—just as a boat is when it is in the ocean. At any moment, a storm can rise in the ocean, and the boat will be swept away helplessly. Similarly, O mighty Lord, temptation can arise and sweep me away from my values and my purpose.
Please, O Lord, bless me with the alertness to notice quickly whenever a stormy wave is forming in my consciousness, so that I can quickly row myself out of that danger zone.
Whereas the waves in an ocean are beyond human control, the stormy waves of temptation in my consciousness are not so utterly uncontrollable.
While I cannot control what kind of tempting object will pop up in front of my eyes or emerge from within my memory, I can still control how much attention I give to it—whether in its external physical manifestation or its internal mental depiction.
The more I pay attention to it, the more I give power to that stormy wave, causing it to charge toward me with greater speed and force. And by giving my attention to temptation, I end up rushing toward it, as happens when my contemplation grows into infatuation, which then propels me toward indiscriminate indulgence, the expressway to self-destruction.
Bless me, O Lord, so that I can give my attention to you instead of to temptation and thus let you offer me protection through absorption.
***
02.67 As a strong wind sweeps away a boat on the water, even one of the roaming senses on which the mind focuses can carry away a man’s intelligence.
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