मोघाशा मोघकर्माणो मोघज्ञाना विचेतस: |
राक्षसीमासुरीं चैव प्रकृतिं मोहिनीं श्रिता: || 12||
moghāśhā mogha-karmāṇo mogha-jñānā vichetasaḥ
rākṣhasīm āsurīṁ chaiva prakṛitiṁ mohinīṁ śhritāḥ
moghasha mogha-karmano mogha-jnana vichetasah
rakshasim asurim chaiva prakritim mohinim shritah
Translation
BG 9.12: Bewildered by the material energy, such persons embrace demoniac and atheistic views. In that deluded state, their hopes for welfare are in vain, their fruitive actions are wasted, and their culture of knowledge is baffled.
Commentary
There are many strands of atheistic views relating to the personal form of God that are prevalent in the world. Some people declare that God cannot descend in the world in a personal form. Consequently, they say that Shree Krishna was not God; He was merely a yogi. Others say that Shree Krishna is Māyā-viśhiṣhṭ brahma, i.e. a lower grade of the Supreme Divinity, due to contact with the material energy. Yet others say that Shree Krishna was a characterless loafer who roamed around with the cowherd maidens of Vrindavan.
According to this verse, all these theories are incorrect, and the intellects of those who subscribe to them are deluded by the material energy. Shree Krishna goes to the extent of saying that those who embrace such ungodly philosophies possess demoniac natures. Since, they do not harbor divine sentiments toward the personal form of the Supreme Lord, they cannot engage in bhakti toward Him. And since devotion to the formless aspect of God is exceedingly difficult, they cannot do that either. As a result, they remain bereft of the path to eternal welfare. Bewildered by the transient attractions of the material energy, their hopes for eternal well-being are in vain.
