Goswami Tulsidas, the author of the Ramcharitmanas, has written a work so profound that every time I read it, I’m amazed. From a literary standpoint, it uses the finest poetic tools; from a scriptural view, it echoes Upanishadic mantras; and from a bhakti perspective, it’s an endless ocean of devotion.

Our longing for happiness comes from God, the ocean of bliss. Just as fire has heat, our soul naturally seeks joy. The only choice is—seek it in the right place or the wrong one.

If we consistently contemplate on the Ocean of bliss, that is God, we will become attached to Him. The mind will then long for Him.

Material existence is like a vast ocean, where one is tossed around by the waves of birth, disease, old age, and death. Only Divine knowledge provides the boat to cross over that Material Ocean.