SB 7.9.40 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

जिह्वैकतोऽच्युत विकर्षति मावितृप्ता शिश्नोऽन्यतस्त्वगुदरं श्रवणं कुतश्चित् । घ्राणोऽन्यतश्चपलद‍ृक् क्व‍ च कर्मशक्ति- र्बह्व्य: सपत्‍न्य इव गेहपतिं लुनन्ति ॥ ४० ॥

Verse text

jihvaikato ’cyuta vikarṣati māvitṛptā śiśno ’nyatas tvag-udaraṁ śravaṇaṁ kutaścit ghrāṇo ’nyataś capala-dṛk kva ca karma-śaktir bahvyaḥ sapatnya iva geha-patiṁ lunanti

Synonyms

jihvā — the tongue ; ekataḥ — to one side ; acyuta — O my infallible Lord ; vikarṣati — attracts ; mā — me ; avitṛptā — not being satisfied ; śiśnaḥ — the genitals ; anyataḥ — to another side ; tvak — the skin (for touching a soft thing) ; udaram — the belly (for various types of food) ; śravaṇam — the ear (for hearing some sweet music) ; kutaścit — to some other side ; ghrāṇaḥ — the nose (for smelling) ; anyataḥ — to still another side ; capala — dṛk — the restless eyesight ; kva ca — somewhere ; karma — śaktiḥ — the active senses ; bahvyaḥ — many ; sa — patnyaḥ — co-wives ; iva — like ; geha — patim — a householder ; lunanti — annihilate .

Translation

My dear Lord, O infallible one, my position is like that of a person who has many wives, all trying to attract him in their own way. For example, the tongue is attracted to palatable dishes, the genitals to sex with an attractive woman, and the sense of touch to contact with soft things. The belly, although filled, still wants to eat more, and the ear, not attempting to hear about You, is generally attracted to cinema songs. The sense of smell is attracted to yet another side, the restless eyes are attracted to scenes of sense gratification, and the active senses are attracted elsewhere. In this way I am certainly embarrassed.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

O Lord! My tongue pulls me in one direction. My genital pulls me elsewhere. My skin, stomach, and ear pull me in another direction. My nose and fickle eye pull me elsewhere. They have power to act in this way, just as many co-wives destroy the master of the house. “Though the mind is wicked, still people become successful by chanting my glories.” Though my tongue for speaking and tasting is unsatisfied, it pulls me. O Acyuta! It is attracted to talking about material subjects and lies and to the six tastes. The other senses pull me elsewhere, to women, to earning wealth, to beating others. Śaktiḥ means capacity. They destroy. Thus I have no time for chanting.

Purport

The human form of life is meant for God realization, but this process, which begins with śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ — hearing and chanting of the holy name of the Lord — is disturbed as long as our senses are materially attracted. Therefore devotional service means purifying the senses. In the conditioned state our senses are covered by material sense gratification, and as long as one is not trained in purifying the senses, one cannot become a devotee. In our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, therefore, we advise from the very beginning that one restrict the activities of the senses, especially the tongue, which is described by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura as most greedy and unconquerable. To stop this attraction of the tongue, one is authoritatively advised not to accept meat or similar uneatable things nor to allow the tongue to hanker to drink or smoke. Even the drinking of tea and coffee is not permitted. Similarly, the genitals must be restricted from illicit sex. Without such restraint of the senses, one cannot make advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The only method of controlling the senses is to chant and hear the holy name of the Lord; otherwise, one will always be disturbed, as a householder with more than one wife would be disturbed by them for sense gratification.