Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 2
Purūravā’s Song of Renunciation and the Glory of Sādhu-saṅga
गुणमय्या जीवयोन्या विमुक्तो ज्ञाननिष्ठया । गुणेषु मायामात्रेषु दृश्यमानेष्ववस्तुत: । वर्तमानोऽपि न पुमान् युज्यतेऽवस्तुभिर्गुणै: ॥ २ ॥
guṇa-mayyā jīva-yonyā vimukto jñāna-niṣṭhayā guṇeṣu māyā-mātreṣu dṛśyamāneṣv avastutaḥ vartamāno ’pi na pumān yujyate ’vastubhir guṇaiḥ
Wer im transzendentalen Wissen gefestigt ist, wird von bedingtem Leben frei, indem er die falsche Identifikation mit den Erzeugnissen der Gunas aufgibt. Da er sie nur als Maya sieht, verstrickt er sich nicht in die Modi, selbst wenn er unter ihnen lebt, denn sie sind letztlich nicht wirklich.
The three modes of nature become manifest as varieties of material bodies, places, families, countries, foods, sports, war, peace and so forth. In other words, everything we see within the material world is constituted of the modes of nature. A liberated soul, although existing within the ocean of material energy, sees everything as the property of the Lord and is thus not entangled. Although Māyā tempts such a liberated soul to become a thief — to steal the property of the Lord for sense gratification — a Kṛṣṇa conscious person does not bite the bait of Māyā ; he remains honest and pure in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In other words, he does not believe that anything within the universe can become his personal property for sense gratification, especially the illusory form of a woman.
FAQs
This verse says that by steady establishment in true knowledge (jñāna-niṣṭhā), one becomes liberated from mode-made embodied existence and is not entangled by the guṇas, which are ultimately only māyā.
Krishna explains that although the guṇas appear to operate in the world, they lack ultimate reality; recognizing their insubstantial nature prevents the liberated person from identifying with and being bound by them.
See changing moods, labels, and material pressures as temporary and not the self; remain anchored in spiritual knowledge and identity, and you can act responsibly without inner bondage to those shifting influences.