Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan

Bg 16.16

aneka-citta-vibhrāntā
moha-jāla-samāvṛtāḥ
prasaktāḥ kāma-bhogeṣu
patanti narake ’śucau

Synonyms: 

aneka — numerous; citta — by anxieties; vibhrāntāḥ — perplexed; moha — of illusions; jāla — by a network; samāvṛtāḥ — surrounded; prasaktāḥ — attached; kāma–bhogeṣu — to sense gratification; patanti — they glide down; narake — into hell; aśucau — unclean.

Translation: 

Thus perplexed by various anxieties and bound by a network of illusions, they become too strongly attached to sense enjoyment and fall down into hell.

So aneka-citta-vibhrāntā, so eka is one aneka is more than one many.

Citta is consciousness, vibhrāntā, perplexed 

So their consciousness is pulled in so many directions so moha-jāla-samāvṛtāḥ, they are completely covered over, so moha-jāl, by the network or trap of illusion, so it is not just one strand it is network which completely traps them. samāvṛtāḥ, completely covered over, one cannot perceive spirituality. So illusion completely covered.

prasaktāḥ kāma-bhogeṣu, asaktāḥ is attached, prasaktāḥ is very strongly attached, kāma-bhogeṣu, 

so because of desire for sense gratification patanti narake ’śucau, patanti, they fall away to hell, ’śucau, not clean. 

aneka-citta-vibhrāntā, why aneka-citta, there are so many things to do, 

Sankracharya has mentioned how there are so many distraction in material life. 

Bala Vastha Krira skatham, 

Tarun Vastha Taruni Raktham

Vridha Vastha Chinta Magnam

Param Brahma Na Kopim Saktam

Bala Vastha Krira skatham, In childhood after playing 

Tarun Vastha Taruni Raktham, continuously looking for opposite gender

Vridha Vastha Chinta Magnam, in old age anxiety is great because one doesn’t have capacity to do anything, in old age one can’t control one’s body and also others. 

Param Brahma Na Kopim Saktam

So in this way in every stage there is distraction in life. So material life doesn’t allows us to practice spiritual life in any stage in life. So we have to put aside all these distraction, we cannot think we will practice later on, that later on will never come, we have to do now only. 

This is the normal condition in material life but in kalyuga all the distractions are there at all the times. E.g. children are filled with anxiety. Child sexual abuse is there also there is sexulization of childhood, sexuality is thrust on children before teen called twigs and although they are physically and mentally not ready but such things are presented to them often by media.

Even young people are playing video games etc. watching sports etc. and even in old age. Even in old age people do all sorts of things by which they can prolong their sex drives and capacity e.g. surgery and taking some medicines.

End of ytranscription.