Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 12
Bhakti as the Supreme Process; Detachment and the Rudiments of Meditation
मय्यर्पितात्मन: सभ्य निरपेक्षस्य सर्वत: । मयात्मना सुखं यत्तत् कुत: स्याद् विषयात्मनाम् ॥ १२ ॥
mayy arpitātmanaḥ sabhya nirapekṣasya sarvataḥ mayātmanā sukhaṁ yat tat kutaḥ syād viṣayātmanām
Ô Uddhava, toi le sage, celui qui m’offre sa conscience, affranchi de tout désir matériel, partage avec moi une félicité de l’âme que ceux voués aux plaisirs des sens ne peuvent connaître.
The actual purport of Vedic knowledge is explained in this verse. The word viṣayātmanām includes those who are cultivating material peace of mind, self-control and speculative philosophy. But even if such persons rise to the platform of sattva-guṇa, the mode of goodness, they do not attain perfection, because sattva-guṇa, being material, is also part and parcel of māyā, or illusion. As stated by Śrī Nārada Muni:
FAQs
This verse says true happiness comes when one offers oneself to Kṛṣṇa and lives with Him as the very Self; those absorbed in sense-objects cannot access that higher, inward joy.
Kṛṣṇa is instructing Uddhava on renunciation and bhakti, explaining that freedom from dependence on external objects is essential for experiencing the Lord-centered happiness of devotion.
Reduce dependence on constant sensory stimulation, cultivate daily remembrance and offering of actions to Kṛṣṇa, and seek fulfillment through devotion and inner steadiness rather than external consumption.