Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 32
Guṇa-vibhāga: The Three Modes and the Path Beyond Them
एता: संसृतय: पुंसो गुणकर्मनिबन्धना: । येनेमे निर्जिता: सौम्य गुणा जीवेन चित्तजा: । भक्तियोगेन मन्निष्ठो मद्भावाय प्रपद्यते ॥ ३२ ॥
etāḥ saṁsṛtayaḥ puṁso guṇa-karma-nibandhanāḥ yeneme nirjitāḥ saumya guṇā jīvena citta-jāḥ bhakti-yogena man-niṣṭho mad-bhāvāya prapadyate
O maamong Uddhava, ang lahat ng yugto ng kondisyong buhay na ito ay nagmumula sa pagkakagapos ng gawa na isinilang mula sa mga guna. Ang nilalang na nagwawagi sa mga gunang lumilitaw mula sa isip ay makapagtatalaga ng sarili sa Akin sa pamamagitan ng bhakti-yoga at makakamit ang dalisay na pag-ibig sa Akin.
The words mad-bhāvāya prapadyate indicate the attainment of love for God or of the same state of existence as that of the Supreme Lord. Actual liberation is residence within the eternal kingdom of God, where life is full of bliss and knowledge. The conditioned soul falsely imagines himself to be the enjoyer of the modes of nature, and thus a particular type of material work is generated, the reaction of which binds the conditioned soul to repeated birth and death. This fruitless process can be counteracted by loving service to the Lord, as described here.
FAQs
This verse explains that material wandering is caused by bondage to guna and karma, but the jīva can conquer the mind-born modes by bhakti-yoga—becoming fixed in Krishna and thus attaining His state (mad-bhāva).
Krishna is instructing Uddhava on the root cause of samsara (guna and karma) and the practical solution—exclusive devotion to Him—by which one transcends the modes and reaches spiritual perfection.
Recognize that many mental ups and downs are mode-driven, then steady the mind through bhakti practices (hearing, chanting, remembrance, and offering work to Krishna), becoming increasingly fixed in Him rather than in shifting moods and results.