Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 10
Bondage and Liberation Under Māyā; Two Birds Analogy; Marks of the Saintly Devotee
दैवाधीने शरीरेऽस्मिन् गुणभाव्येन कर्मणा । वर्तमानोऽबुधस्तत्र कर्तास्मीति निबध्यते ॥ १० ॥
daivādhīne śarīre ’smin guṇa-bhāvyena karmaṇā vartamāno ’budhas tatra kartāsmīti nibadhyate
The unintelligent soul, dwelling in this body governed by divine arrangement and shaped by past karma, imagines, “I am the doer.” Bewildered by false ego, he becomes bound by fruitive work, which is actually carried out by the modes of material nature.
As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (3.27) :
FAQs
This verse says the body acts under destiny and the modes of nature, but the foolish person becomes bound by identifying as the independent doer.
Krishna is teaching Uddhava how bondage arises from false ego and how liberation begins by understanding the Lord’s control and the workings of karma and the gunas.
Do your duties responsibly, but mentally offer results to God, recognize nature’s forces and past karma, and reduce ego-driven anxiety by dropping the claim of absolute control.