Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 9
Bondage and Liberation Under Māyā; Two Birds Analogy; Marks of the Saintly Devotee
इन्द्रियैरिन्द्रियार्थेषु गुणैरपि गुणेषु च । गृह्यमाणेष्वहं कुर्यान्न विद्वान् यस्त्वविक्रिय: ॥ ९ ॥
indriyair indriyārtheṣu guṇair api guṇeṣu ca gṛhyamāṇeṣv ahaṁ kuryān na vidvān yas tv avikriyaḥ
Ang taong maliwanag at malaya sa dungis ng pagnanasang materyal ay hindi itinuturing ang sarili na tagagawa ng mga gawain ng katawan. Batid niya na sa lahat ng gawain, ang mga pandama na isinilang mula sa mga guna ng kalikasan lamang ang sumasalamuha sa mga bagay na pandama na mula rin sa mga gunang iyon.
Lord Kṛṣṇa makes a similar statement in Bhagavad-gītā (3.28) :
FAQs
This verse teaches that actions occur through the senses and the modes of nature, and the truly wise person does not identify as the doer—remaining steady as the unchanging self.
Kṛṣṇa is instructing Uddhava in self-realization and liberation: to see material activity as interactions of guṇas and senses, and to give up egoistic identification that binds one to karma.
Do your duties responsibly, but mentally offer results to the Lord and drop the ego-thought “I alone am the controller,” recognizing that body, mind, and circumstances move under nature’s modes.