Bhagavad Gita 18.16

The Self is always actionless. He is unattached like ether. He is always the silent witness. He is the spectator of activity. The egoistic man of little understanding only thinks that he is the real agent? and so he is bound by actions. He takes birth again and again to reap the fruits of his actions. For him who considers the body as consciousness? God or the Self? it naturally follows that the Self is the agent or the doer. He who identifies himself with the body? who has taken the body as the pure Self? has cast a net over himself? and he leads a deluded life of utter ignorance. He is bound by the fetters or bonds of Karma. He is ever shut up in the prisonhouse of this body.He who has not united himself with the Buddhi? who has got an impure or untrained understanding? who regards the Self as the actor or the agent is certainly a man of perverted intelligence. He is deluded. He is really a blind man. He sees not though he has eyes. He does not behold the essence of things. He has no idea of the supreme Principle (the Self) Which is Itself actionless? Which ever stands as a silent witness of the activities of all minds and all organs of all beings? Which moves the minds? organs and the lifeforce and the bodies to action? just as the magnet makes the iron pieces move. He does not behold the truth about the Self and action.Durmati Evilminded person A man of perverted intellect or undeveloped reason. He thinks that he alone is the doer or agent. He does not understand anything. He has no knowledge of the,actionless? pure? selfluminous Self.The ignorant man of untrained understanding identifies himself with the five causes and regards the pure actionless Self as the agent or doer of the actions which are really done by these five causes. What is the reason for this Why does he regard them so Because he is not endowed with a pure and subtle intellect his understanding (Buddhi) has not been trained in the practice of Vedanta he is not eipped with the four means of salvation his intellect has not been trained by the teachings of the preceptor or the spiritual teacher in the methods of logical reasoning.He who considers that the pure actionless Self is the agent or the doer is certainly a man of untrained understanding. He has no knowledge of the actionless Self and action. Therefore? he is a man of perverted intelligence. His intellect works or moves in the wrong direction. His intellect moves in the sensual grooves or avenues. It runs like the vicious horse and leads to birth and death. The technie of Buddhi Yoga taught in the Gita enables one effectively to prevent this.He does not perceive or cognise the Truth though he has eyes. Though he sees? he sees the external? gross? illusory? everchanging? perishable objects only. He does not behold the one immortal? unchanging? allblissful essence? which is the basis or substratum of everything. He is like the man with jaundiced eyes? who sees all objects tinged with yellow colur? or like the man suffering from diplopia who beholds many moons? or like the man who thinks that the moon moves when the clouds move? or like the man who? seated in a train? imagines that the trees are moving when it is the train that is really moving. (Cf.V.15XIII.30)

पूर्व श्लोक में हमने देखा कि आत्मा की उपस्थिति में शरीरादि जड़ उपाधियाँ कार्य करती हैं? परन्तु आत्मा अकर्ता ही रहता है। आत्मा और अनात्मा के इस विवेक के अभाव में अज्ञानी जन स्वयं को कर्ता और भोक्ता रूप जीव ही समझते हैं। जीव दशा में रागद्वेष? प्रवृत्तिनिवृत्ति? लाभहानि और सुखदुख अवश्यंभावी हैं। जिस क्षण कोई पुरुष आत्मा और अनात्मा के भेद को तथा अविद्या से उत्पन्न मिथ्या अहंकार को समझ लेता है? उसी क्षण इस मिथ्या जीव का अस्तित्व दिवा स्वप्न के भूत के समान समाप्त हो जाता है।तत्रैवं सति सभी प्रकार के उचित और अनुचित कर्म शरीर? कर्ता? दशेन्द्रियाँ तथा दैव की सहायता से ही होते हैं? परन्तु इन्हें चेतनता प्रदान करने वाला आत्मा नित्य शुद्ध और अकर्ता ही रहता है। अज्ञानी जन इस आत्मा को ही कर्ता समझ लेते हैं।इस प्रकार के विपरीत ज्ञान के कारणों का निर्देश? यहाँ अकृतबुद्धि और दुर्मति इन दो शब्दों से किया गया है। अकृतबुद्धि का अर्थ है वह पुरुष जिसने अपनी बुद्धि को शास्त्र? आचार्योपदेश तथा न्याय (तर्क) के द्वारा सुसंस्कृत नहीं किया है तथा दुर्मति का अर्थ है दुष्टरागद्वेषादि युक्त बुद्धि का पुरुष। इस कथन का अभिप्राय यह हुआ कि जो पुरुष अपने चित्त को शुद्ध कर आत्मविचार करता है? वह अपने में ही यह साक्षात् अनुभव करता है? कि शरीरादि जड़ उपाधियाँ ही कार्य करके थकान का अनुभव करती हैं? अकर्ता आत्मा नहीं।विपरीत ज्ञान का वर्णन करने के पश्चात् अब यथार्थ ज्ञान का वर्णन करते हैं