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आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं समुद्रमापः प्रविशन्ति यद्वत्। तद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति सर्वे स शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी।।

āpūryamāṇam acala-pratiṣṭhaṁ samudram āpaḥ praviśanti yadvat tadvat kāmā yaṁ praviśanti sarve sa śāntim āpnoti na kāma-kāmī

āpūryamāṇam (always being filled) acala-pratiṣṭham (steadily situated) samudram (the ocean) āpaḥ (waters) praviśanti (enter) yadvat (as) tadvat (so) kāmāḥ (desires) yam (unto whom) praviśanti (enter) sarve (all) saḥ (that person) śāntim (peace) āpnoti (achieves) na (not) kāma-kāmī (one who desires to fulfill desires)

A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires—that enter like rivers into the ocean, which is ever being filled but is always still—can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy such desires.

Kṛṣṇa uses the analogy of the ocean to describe a person of peace. The ocean is constantly being filled by hundreds of rivers, yet it remains still and never overflows. Similarly, the sage is bombarded by thousands of sensory inputs and thoughts, but they enter him without creating an emotional tsunami. Only such a person can achieve peace, not the ‘kāma-kāmī’, or the person who is always trying to satisfy every desire. You cannot find peace by trying to fulfill every wish; it is a bottomless pit. Peace comes from being so internally deep and vast that external changes don’t move you. Kṛṣṇa is encouraging Arjuna to develop this oceanic depth. He should allow his thoughts and fears to enter his mind but not let them agitate his soul. Fulfillment comes from inner stability, not from an empty world.
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