being an island unto one's self

"By sustained effort, earnestness, discipline, and self-control, let the wise man make for himself an island, which no flood overwhelms,"

"By resolution and attention, by discipline and self-control, a clever man may build himself an island that no flood can overthrow,"

Two translations of a verse from the Dhammapada in the "Appamada Vagga" or what is weirdly translated as "heedfulness" or "wakefulness" but its more like "being in the present moment at all times/ being cautious of one's thoughts without delay" kind of thing.

The stanza caught my attention, because it talks of creating an island for one self? What is this island? Why does one need to create it? What great flood are we trying to save ourselves from? How do we create this island?

"An island" provides refuge/ safety from something... but from what?

One book says the "floods" refereed to here are the 4 forces of
1) sense desires (kama)
2) false beliefs (ditthi)
3) craving for existence (bhava)
4) ignorance (avijja)

which inundates our minds, leads to wrong choices in life and thereby lead to mental agony.

hmm but then take a closer a look at them.. Aren;t they the very things we try to submerge ourselves, in the name of fun?
well oki Sense desires.. ummm sounds yummy.. from all the lavish gooi brownies that we stuff down our throats, to our favorite music collection in our hmm cheap pettah mp3 player masquerading as an ipod, to the lustful mooching around for instant gratification, to the eau de toilette, body sprays and deodorants we spend half our salaries on [to tingle the pheromones of those around us] and all the movies and ot chics we check out... a good part of our existence modeled around gratifying our sense pleasures.. And the moment we have to make a tough choice that is the "right" thing to do, but will shake and break our comfort zone and take away our sensual pleasures, we shirk and withdraw into our shells..we choose to hold onto meaningless, mechanical jobs, with a good "package" cos it helps us "live it up"

we choose to give up dreams of greatness, to become mundane hogs with fat paychecks..
we loose sight of unleashing our potential..

AND.... sensual gratification ain't all that "fun", once the temporary stimulation is over.. the guilt of indulging urself on that extra chocolate moose when u look at ur obese self in the mirror, while pining over a life time of pain with diabetes, the unique pungent stench, when your deodrant mixes with sweat and grime and ur strong perfume, the shame, guilt and insecurity of making out with ur best friend's man [for a spur of the moment lust], the absolute addiction to your playlist that makes u flunk your exams.. aaah agony... sorrow... following the temporary joy like a secret shadow...

So why not build an island to guard your self from this paradoxical pursuit of "sensory happiness" which only makes you fall face down at the feet of sorrow.

2) false beliefs ()