Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 27
Avadhūta’s Further Teachers: Detachment, Solitude, One-Pointed Meditation, and the Lord as Āśraya
जिह्वैकतोऽमुमपकर्षति कर्हि तर्षा शिश्नोऽन्यतस्त्वगुदरं श्रवणं कुतश्चित् । घ्राणोऽन्यतश्चपलदृक् क्व च कर्मशक्ति- र्बह्व्य: सपत्न्य इव गेहपतिं लुनन्ति ॥ २७ ॥
jihvaikato ’mum apakarṣati karhi tarṣā śiśno ’nyatas tvag udaraṁ śravaṇaṁ kutaścit ghrāṇo ’nyataś capala-dṛk kva ca karma-śaktir bahvyaḥ sapatnya iva geha-patiṁ lunanti
Như người đàn ông có nhiều vợ luôn bị họ quấy nhiễu và kéo về những hướng khác nhau, các giác quan vật chất cũng hành hạ linh hồn bị điều kiện hóa. Lưỡi kéo về món ngon; cơn khát lôi đi tìm thức uống. Cơ quan sinh dục đòi thỏa mãn, da đòi xúc chạm mềm mại; bụng thúc bách cho đến khi đầy; tai muốn nghe âm thanh êm dịu; mũi thèm hương thơm; đôi mắt chao đảo khao khát cảnh đẹp. Thế là các giác quan kéo sinh linh về muôn nẻo.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura mentions that after understanding this verse one should merely offer, without attachment, the bare necessities to the guru of one’s body. One should keep one’s body fit and working in the simplest possible way, and that is the sum and substance of service to this so-called guru. If one desires to faithfully serve the body, one should consider that the body pulls the consciousness of the conditioned soul in many ways at once, and thus for the servant of the body there is no possibility of understanding God or even of becoming peaceful.
FAQs
This verse explains that the senses pull the embodied soul in many competing directions—taste, sex, touch, hunger, sound, smell, sight, and activity—so an uncontrolled life becomes scattered and spiritually weakened.
He uses a vivid metaphor to show how each sense demands exclusive attention, creating inner conflict and “plundering” the person’s steadiness, just as competing co-wives may harass a household master.
Notice which sense-demand is pulling you (food, scrolling/visual stimulation, sexual impulse, constant noise) and practice restraint by redirecting attention to sādhana—hearing and chanting about Krishna, mindful habits, and disciplined routines.