Shloka 7
Sāṅkhya: Categories of the Absolute Truth and the Unfolding of Creation
Tattva-vicāra
तदस्य संसृतिर्बन्ध: पारतन्त्र्यं च तत्कृतम् । भवत्यकर्तुरीशस्य साक्षिणो निर्वृतात्मन: ॥ ७ ॥
tad asya saṁsṛtir bandhaḥ pāra-tantryaṁ ca tat-kṛtam bhavaty akartur īśasya sākṣiṇo nirvṛtātmanaḥ
Material consciousness is the cause of the soul’s bondage in saṁsāra and its dependence. Though the self is non-doer, the Lord’s witness, and by nature serene, it is nonetheless affected by conditioned life.
The Māyāvādī philosopher, who does not differentiate between the Supreme Spirit and the individual spirit, says that the conditional existence of the living entity is his līlā, or pastime. But the word “pastime” implies employment in the activities of the Lord. The Māyāvādīs misuse the word and say that even if the living entity has become a stool-eating hog, he is also enjoying his pastimes. This is a most dangerous interpretation. Actually the Supreme Lord is the leader and maintainer of all living entities. His pastimes are transcendental to any material activity. Such pastimes of the Lord cannot be dragged to the level of the conditional activities of the living entities. In conditional life the living entity actually remains as if a captive in the hands of material energy. Whatever the material energy dictates, the conditioned soul does. He has no responsibility; he is simply the witness of the action, but he is forced to act in that way due to his offense in his eternal relationship with Kṛṣṇa. Lord Kṛṣṇa therefore says in Bhagavad-gītā that māyā, His material energy, is so forceful that it is insurmountable. But if a living entity simply understands that his constitutional position is to serve Kṛṣṇa and he tries to act on this principle, then however conditioned he may be, the influence of māyā immediately vanishes. This is clearly stated in Bhagavad-gītā, Seventh Chapter: Kṛṣṇa takes charge of anyone who surrenders to Him in helplessness, and thus the influence of māyā, or conditional life, is removed.
FAQs
This verse says bondage, dependence, and repeated material existence arise from false identification (egoic misidentification), not from the true Self or the Supreme Lord.
To clarify that karmic entanglement belongs to the conditioned jīva’s misidentification, while the Lord remains the uninvolved overseer—controller and witness—ever self-satisfied.
Practice seeing thoughts, emotions, and roles as observed phenomena rather than the self; this loosens ego-based reactions and supports devotion and inner freedom.