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ŚB 9.8.22

Devanagari

ये देहभाजस्त्रिगुणप्रधाना
गुणान् विपश्यन्त्युत वा तमश्च ।
यन्मायया मोहितचेतसस्त्वां
विदु: स्वसंस्थं न बहि:प्रकाशा: ॥ २२ ॥

Text

ye deha-bhājas tri-guṇa-pradhānā
guṇān vipaśyanty uta vā tamaś ca
yan-māyayā mohita-cetasas tvāṁ
viduḥ sva-saṁsthaṁ na bahiḥ-prakāśāḥ

Synonyms

ye — those persons who; deha-bhājaḥ — have accepted the material body; tri-guṇa-pradhānāḥ — influenced by the three modes of material nature; guṇān — the manifestation of the three modes of material nature; vipaśyanti — can see only; uta — it is so said; — either; tamaḥ — the mode of ignorance; ca — and; yat-māyayā — by the illusory energy of whom; mohita — has been bewildered; cetasaḥ — the core of whose heart; tvām — Your Lordship; viduḥ — know; sva-saṁstham — situated in one’s own body; na — not; bahiḥ-prakāśāḥ — those who can see only the products of external energy.

Translation

My Lord, You are fully situated in everyone’s heart, but the living entities, covered by the material body, cannot see You, for they are influenced by the external energy, conducted by the three modes of material nature. Their intelligence being covered by sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa, they can see only the actions and reactions of these three modes of material nature. Because of the actions and reactions of the mode of ignorance, whether the living entities are awake or sleeping, they can see only the workings of material nature; they cannot see Your Lordship.

Purport

Unless one is situated in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, one is unable to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Lord is situated in everyone’s heart. However, because the conditioned souls are influenced by material nature, they can see only the actions and reactions of material nature, but not the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One therefore must purify himself internally and externally:

apavitraḥ pavitro vā
sarvāvasthāṁ gato ’pi vā
yaḥ smaret puṇḍarīkākṣaṁ
sa bāhyābhyantaraḥ śuciḥ

To keep ourselves externally clean we should bathe three times daily, and for internal cleanliness we must cleanse the heart by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. The members of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement must always follow this principle (bāhyābhyantaraḥ śuciḥ). Then it will one day be possible to see the Supreme Personality of Godhead face to face.