BHAGAVAD-GITA 7:20

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BHAGAVAD-GITA 7:20

 

kamais tais tair hrta-jnanah

prapadyante 'nya-devatah

tam tam niyamam asthaya

prakrtya niyatah svaya

 

WORD FOR WORD

 

kamaih--by desires; taih taih--various; hrta--deprived of;

jnanah--knowledge; prapadyante--surrender; anya--to other;

devatah--demigods; tam tam--corresponding; niyamam--regulations;

asthaya--following; prakrtya--by nature; niyatah--controlled;

svaya--by their own.

 

TRANSLATION

 

Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires surrender

unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of

worship according to their own natures.

 

PURPORT

 

Those who are freed from all material contaminations surrender unto

the Supreme Lord and engage in His devotional service. As long as the

material contamination is not completely washed off, they are by

nature nondevotees. But even those who have material desires and who

resort to the Supreme Lord are not so much attracted by external

nature; because of approaching the right goal, they soon become free

from all material lust. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is recommended

that whether one is a pure devotee and is free from all material

desires, or is full of material desires, or desires liberation from

material contamination, he should in all cases surrender to Vasudeva

and worship Him. As stated in the Bhagavatam (2.3.10):

 

akamah sarva-kamo va

moksa-kama udara-dhih

tivrena bhakti-yogena

yajeta purusam param

 

Less intelligent people who have lost their spiritual sense take

shelter of demigods for immediate fulfillment of material desires.

Generally, such people do not go to the Supreme Personality of

Godhead, because they are in the lower modes of nature (ignorance and

passion) and therefore worship various demigods. Following the rules

and regulations of worship, they are satisfied. The worshipers of

demigods are motivated by small desires and do not know how to reach

the supreme goal, but a devotee of the Supreme Lord is not misguided.

Because in Vedic literature there are recommendations for worshiping

different gods for different purposes (e.g., a diseased man is

recommended to worship the sun), those who are not devotees of the

Lord think that for certain purposes demigods are better than the

Supreme Lord. But a pure devotee knows that the Supreme Lord Krsna is

the master of all. In the Caitanya-caritamrta (Adi 5.142) it is said,

ekale isvara krsna, ara saba bhrtya: only the Supreme Personality of

Godhead, Krsna, is master, and all others are servants. Therefore a

pure devotee never goes to demigods for satisfaction of his material

needs. He depends on the Supreme Lord. And the pure devotee is

satisfied with whatever He gives.

 

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with

permission.