Navigating the Ocean of Material Nescience: From the Deck of the Adriatic

Peace be with you and upon you. We are writing from a small patch of world that keeps moving, a ship riding the Adriatic swells, a horizon in every direction. There is cold wind in the face, salt on the lips, and somewhere deep in the hull the choir of queasy travelers offering their own strange kirtan to the sea. It is funny and not funny at all. It is also a perfect setting for the teaching that keeps arriving like waves: the ocean is wide, and we do not cross by ourselves.

A Boat, a Breeze, and That Rolling Stomach

We have been at sea for more than a day, two nights and a long stretch from port to port, moving up the spine of the coast. Greece slipped behind us, Albania too, then the darker gaps where the map goes quiet and names blur. Out west, Italy somewhere, but we only see water. It is all water.

Inside the cabin, it sounds like a hospital waiting room for the stomach. Outside, it is breath and space. We are not sailors by nature, so feeling steady is a small miracle. If you have ever been seasick you know, the body stops being your friend and becomes a question mark. The ocean is not just outside, it is inside your head, inside your ears, sloshing around every sense.

Which is why we stayed out on the deck as much as we could. Fresh air. Jokes about Step Brothers. A blanket wrapped too tight. A prayer whispered between shivers. And the oldest trick we know: sing God’s names and let the wind carry the worry away.

The Ocean as the Oldest Metaphor

Traditions across time use the sea to speak of life’s confusion. Scriptures describe the ocean of material nescience, the fog and foam of forgetfulness, the way we get lost in waves of desire and fear and endless busy-ness. Alone, it is too much. Try swimming this water on willpower and see where you end up.

Here is the sweet part. We are not asked to swim it alone. Spiritual wisdom says that knowledge and grace arrive like a boat, a real vessel, strong enough to carry us across what once felt impossible. The Bhagavad Gita holds that image close, comparing knowledge to a boat that crosses the material ocean of ignorance. If you want to sit with that teaching more, this gentle piece, Four Metaphors for Transcendental Knowledge, traces how knowledge, a raft, and even fire appear as living symbols for transformation.

On deck, as we watched the waves chop and lift, the metaphor stopped being a metaphor and became practical. Without the ship, we would be swallowed. With the ship, we can laugh. With the teacher, the path makes sense. Without a guide, everything is guesswork and sore arms.

For a wider view on this classic image, you can browse collected references on the ocean of material existence, a thread that runs through the Gita and commentaries over centuries.

The Role of Association, Or, Why Your Company Steers Your Ship

We keep hearing the same counsel from wise voices: association is everything. Who you keep close shapes your habits, and your habits steer your life. It shows up early. Parents pour a whole world into us at home, but once a child is in school the peer culture begins to set the rhythm. It does not stop when we grow up. Friends and mentors can either sharpen our memory of what matters or pull our attention from it.

• Good company reminds us to chant, hear, reflect, and act with care.
• Good company settles the stomach of the mind during storms.
• Good company makes the heavy moments lighter.

Out here, with a few sticks of incense and a simple offering, the deck felt like home. The chaos of boarding, the loudspeaker announcements, the arguing in line, the rushing and shoving at the gangway, all of it softened when we listened to a lecture in the car and kept our voices moving in kirtan. You can do this anywhere. Any room. Any train. Any boat. Two people, one melody, soft claps if you have hands, just breath if you do not.

Material Science and Spiritual Science, Both Useful, Not the Same

We love a good engine. This ship has plumbing and radar and a kitchen that keeps trying its best. Material science is a real gift. It gives us ferries and medicine and microphones. It also has limits. It works outward and downward, studying the physical, measuring, predicting, refining.

We also need spiritual science, not as a business, not as performance, but as lived practice. Spiritual science begins with hearing, remembering, and repeating divine names and teachings. Shravanam, Kirtanam, Vishnum. Hear first, then speak, then let the heart turn those words into experience. When knowledge ripens into realization, it stops being someone else’s claim and becomes your own clear sight.

As one saintly thread puts it, the “ocean of material nescience” can feel like a blaze, yet for a devotee absorbed in higher sound it becomes small and passable. For a helpful collection of those statements, see Nescience in Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam.

The Body Changes, So Hold Gently

There is a joke we share when the sea gets rough. At least we are not being flayed alive. Dark humor, sure, but it brings the point close. Bodies get sick, then they heal. Bodies weaken, then rally, then age again. They burn, they are buried, they return to the elements. In Varanasi the pyres rise day and night by the river. Out at sea, some offer their dead back to the water. In high places, sky burials return the body to birds, bones to light. In other traditions, the towers are quiet, the bones kept and then gathered with care.

It is not morbid. It can be tender and honest. It teaches us to hold what is passing with gratitude and to rest our real hope somewhere steady. As one father said, the golden age is not for whims. This body will do what bodies do. Let your heart learn to stand in something that does not end.

Kirtan on the Deck, With Hands for a Drum

We sang. A simple call and response is enough to change the atmosphere. One name, then another, back and forth until the thoughts slow down and the breath remembers. A favorite today:

Madana Mohana Murari

The melody can be any melody you love. There are no hard and fast rules about tune. The only steady rule is the Holy Name itself. Say it from the heart. Say it with a friend. If you are alone, listen to the echo of your own voice and call that your duet.

Here is a gentle way to try it:

1. Pick a name or mantra you love.
2. Sing one line out loud, then sing it again as if you are answering yourself.
3. Clap softly or tap a beat on your thigh.
4. Keep your breath easy; you do not need to push.
5. Close your eyes for a few lines, then open them to the world that keeps changing.

You can add a conch if you have one. Light a little incense. Offer a silent plate of what you have. The point is connection. Nature does not like empty space. You are not a blank slate. Fill your time with sound that softens the sharp edges, and you will feel at home, even in a crowd, even on a boat that keeps wobbling.

The Teacher as Pilot, The Lineage as Map

Crossing alone feels brave until the storm comes. This is why the teachings honor the bona fide spiritual master, not as a celebrity, not as a brand, but as a guide who has walked, who has seen, who can hand you the right tool at the right time. Through that grace, and the wisdom that flows through the line of teachers, the ocean becomes what a calf’s hoofprint filled with rain becomes, a small puddle you can step over with a steady foot.

You know this when you feel it. Someone’s words land in the heart. A verse appears at the right moment. You remember to breathe and be kind. Knowledge stops being a stack of quotes and becomes a lamp in a dark hallway.

A Small Travel Altar, Anywhere You Roam

We brought so little. A bag of clothes, a book, our voices. But a thin stick of incense, a tiny offering, a quiet bow in the corner of a cabin, and the room was a temple. You can do it in five minutes before bed. You can do it in the back seat before a long drive. You can do it after a loud day when your ears feel raw. It is not about performance. It is about turning your face to the reality that holds you.

If the space around you is chaotic, it helps to choose a simple routine and keep it close. One song you love. One prayer you remember by heart. One line of gratitude whispered before you sleep. And if you have a friend to sing with, the heart learns even faster.

Practical Reminders for Choppy Waters

• Keep your company bright. Seek friends who help you remember.
• Keep a light practice. Hearing, chanting, a little remembrance.
• Keep humor close. A small joke can loosen a tight moment.
• Keep your senses simple. A scent, a candle, a soft song.
• Keep the big view nearby. This body changes. The soul watches.

If You Want to Walk With Us

We love hearing from you. Questions from the heart, small wins, a simple thank you if something helped, they all keep this little ship moving. If you want a warm corner to connect with others, our community space is open. Join the Juicy MagiK Agora. If you feel moved to support our creative projects, offerings, and sats work, you can visit support projects by Juicy MagiK.

Closing the Circle

We started with a boat and a rolling belly. We end with the same sea, but the feeling is softer now. The ocean is still the ocean, but we are not alone in it. Good company, steady practice, a teacher’s grace, a name on the tongue, and the great water shrinks to something we can cross with ease.

Thank you for your time and your presence. If you try a simple call and response tonight, tell us how it felt. If you already have a daily song, what changed in you when it became regular? May your days be full of good company, and may the name in your heart keep you steady in every tide.

mariakerwin

As a former serial entrepreneur, she turned from a workaholic in the business world to freedom and creativity, living now as a writer, creator and world traveller. Since an early age Maria is close to death and what exists beyond, courageously exploring the dimensions of existence. A Kundalini Awakening guided her into the abyss of fully surrendering to the life force itself, crushing all known aspects of her old life. Finally, it led her to her purpose of bridging both worlds, connecting to what goes beyond the ordinary.

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