When we eat something, we taste its rasa, the juice. Raso 'ham apsu kaunteya (BG 7.8). Just like Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, "Kaunteya, My dear Arjuna, I am the taste of the water." Everyone, when he's thirsty, he wants, "Give me water, give me water." Because there is a taste in the water which will immediately quench your thirst. So we enjoy everything because there is some taste. That is called rasa. Anything we do.
Just like a man, he's working very hard day and night. What for? For maintaining his family, his children and wife. So unless there is some rasa, some taste, he cannot work so hard day and night. There is some flavor in maintaining the family with hard labor. And sometimes we see therefore one who has no family, one who has no family affection, he does not work so hard. He doesn't care to work. This is practical. Therefore in the Vedic civilization the family life is recommended unless one will become confused, hopeless, because he has no taste for the family life. So everything there is some rasa, taste. Without that taste, nobody can live.
Now here it is recommended, śrīmad-bhāgavataṁ rasam ālayam. Here is a taste which you can enjoy up to the end of your life or up to the point of liberation. Because life is meant for getting liberated from this painful material existence. That is life. Everyone is trying to get out of the painful situation. That is struggle for existence. But they do not know what is the ultimate life, free from all painful activities. That is called liberation. The whole Vedic civilization is based on this point, how to get liberated and enjoy eternal happiness.