Aim

To understand how ignorance and disobedience to Krishna cause all efforts—whether for liberation, knowledge, or material gain—to end in failure.

Purport

Men who are bewildered by false ego and the illusory energy of the Lord become atheistic and demoniac. In such a bewildered condition, all their hopes for liberation, their endeavors for fruitive activity, and their culture of knowledge are baffled. The so-called liberation of the impersonalists and the fruitive work of the materialists are useless because of their disobedience to the Supreme Lord. In spite of their high endeavors, they are sure to be defeated because they do not approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead. There are many devotees who assume themselves to be in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and devotional service but at heart do not accept the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, as the Absolute Truth. For them, the fruit of devotional service – going back to Godhead – will never be tasted. Similarly, those who are engaged in fruitive pious activities and who are ultimately hoping to be liberated from this material entanglement will never be successful either, because they deride the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. In other words, persons who mock Kṛṣṇa are to be understood to be demonic or atheistic. As described in the Seventh Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, such demonic miscreants never surrender to Kṛṣṇa. Therefore their mental speculations to arrive at the Absolute Truth bring them to the false conclusion that the ordinary living entity and Kṛṣṇa are one and the same. With such a false conviction, they think that the body of any human being is now simply covered by material nature and that as soon as one is liberated from this material body there is no difference between God and himself. This attempt to become one with Kṛṣṇa will be baffled because of delusion. Such atheistic and demoniac cultivation of spiritual knowledge is always futile. That is the indication of this verse. For such persons, cultivation of the knowledge in the Vedic literature, like the Vedānta-sūtra and the Upaniṣads, is always baffled.

It is a great offense, therefore, to consider Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, to be an ordinary man. Those who do so are certainly deluded because they cannot understand the eternal form of Kṛṣṇa. The Bṛhad-viṣṇu-smṛti clearly states:

yo vetti bhautikaṁ dehaṁ
kṛṣṇasya paramātmanaḥ
sa sarvasmād bahiṣ-kāryaḥ
śrauta-smārta-vidhānataḥ
mukhaṁ tasyāvalokyāpi
sa-celaṁ snānam ācaret

“One who considers the body of Kṛṣṇa to be material should be driven out from all rituals and activities of the śruti and the smṛti. And if one by chance sees his face, one should at once take bath in the Ganges to rid himself of infection.” People jeer at Kṛṣṇa because they are envious of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Their destiny is certainly to take birth after birth in the species of atheistic and demoniac life. Perpetually, their real knowledge will remain under delusion, and gradually they will regress to the darkest region of creation.

Objectives

1. To understand why bewildered persons adopt demonic and atheistic views.
2. To recognize how false ego and illusory energy mislead people away from Krishna.
3. To explain why the efforts for liberation, knowledge, and material prosperity of such persons are all defeated.
4. To understand why disobedience to the Supreme Lord nullifies all human endeavors.
5. To realize that only surrender to Krishna leads to true success and liberation.

Key Points

• Bewilderment arises from false ego and Krishna’s illusory energy.
• Atheistic and demonic views are symptoms of spiritual ignorance.
• All efforts for liberation, knowledge, or material success without Krishna fail.
• Disobedience to the Lord leads to defeat, however grand one’s attempt may be.
• Only surrender to Krishna brings true success and liberation.

Application in Life

1. Do cultivate humility and dependence on Krishna → This protects us from false ego and illusion.
2. Do engage knowledge, work, and resources in Krishna’s service → Then all actions become spiritually perfect.
3. Do avoid pride and atheistic ideas → This keeps the heart pure and connected to the Lord.
4. Do surrender to Krishna through chanting, devotion, and obedience → This ensures success in both material and spiritual life.
5. Do study Bhagavad-gita and follow Prabhupada’s teachings → This removes bewilderment and establishes faith in Krishna.

Simple Takeaway

1. Bewildered by false ego, people become atheistic and fail in all their pursuits.
2. True knowledge and success come only through surrender to Krishna.
3. Without devotion, even the highest efforts end in defeat, but with Krishna, every act becomes perfect.