Srimad Bhagavatam — Dvadasha Skandha, Shloka 29
Parīkṣit’s Final Absorption, Takṣaka’s Bite, Janamejaya’s Snake Sacrifice, and the Vedic Sound-Lineage
सैषा विष्णोर्महामायाबाध्ययालक्षणा यया । मुह्यन्त्यस्यैवात्मभूता भूतेषु गुणवृत्तिभि: ॥ २९ ॥
saiṣā viṣṇor mahā-māyā- bādhyayālakṣaṇā yayā muhyanty asyaivātma-bhūtā bhūteṣu guṇa-vṛttibhiḥ
这确是毗湿奴至尊主的大神幻力（摩诃摩耶），不可制伏，亦难洞察。众生灵我虽为主之分灵，却因诸性（guṇa）的作用而迷惑，执身为我，认种种物质之身为自我。
The illusory energy of Lord Viṣṇu is so powerful that even the illustrious son of King Parīkṣit was temporarily misdirected. Because he was a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, however, his bewilderment was quickly rectified. On the other hand, an ordinary, materialistic person without the special protection of the Lord plummets to the depths of material ignorance. Factually, materialistic persons are not interested in the protection of Lord Viṣṇu. Therefore their complete ruination is inevitable.
FAQs
This verse says Mahāmāyā is Lord Viṣṇu’s great potency that binds and bewilders the jīva through the workings of the material modes (guṇas), causing the soul to identify with material existence.
In Canto 12’s concluding teachings, Śukadeva clarifies how illusion operates—through guṇas—so Parīkṣit can fix his consciousness on the Lord and not be diverted by material identification at life’s end.
Notice how goodness, passion, and ignorance shape thoughts and habits; then deliberately choose bhakti practices—hearing, chanting, and remembering Viṣṇu/Kṛṣṇa—to reduce bewilderment and regain spiritual clarity.