Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

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

Bg 18.16

tatraivaṁ sati kartāram
ātmānaṁ kevalaṁ tu yaḥ
paśyaty akṛta-buddhitvān
na sa paśyati durmatiḥ

Synonyms: 

tatra — there; evam — thus; sati — being; kartāram — the worker; ātmānam — himself; kevalam — only; tu — but; yaḥ — anyone who; paśyati — sees; akṛta–buddhitvāt — due to unintelligence; na — never; saḥ — he; paśyati — sees; durmatiḥ — foolish.

Translation: 

Therefore one who thinks himself the only doer, not considering the five factors, is certainly not very intelligent and cannot see things as they are.

tatraivaṁ sati kartāram, tatraivaṁ, among these kartāram, the workers 

ātmānaṁ kevalaṁ tu yaḥ, so if somebody think that I am the only doer and there is no doer apart from me

paśyaty akṛta-buddhitvān, akṛta-buddhi, means the person’s intelligence is not good, not satisfactory, Buddhi is not able to do kruti properly, not functioning properly, 

na sa paśyati durmatiḥ, such a person in not the seer, durmatiḥ, misdirected consciousness, 

so this is the thrust of argument don’t assume that you are the only doer, 

So one is the doer no doubt but the illusion is to think that he is the only doer. 

e.g. even if a general is intelligent and taking right decision in the war there are so many factors which has to go right for the decision to lead to success. So to think that I am the only doer and the results are due to me that is paśyaty akṛta-buddhitvān, such a person’s intelligence is not proper, and therefore na sa paśyati durmatiḥ, he cannot see actually because his consciousness is obsessed with ego that one can’t understand what is happening, the thrust of the point is actually one should see the role of the Super Soul, we have to acknowledge the role of the Supersoul in whatever is happening, so if one focuses only on the material causes then one doesn’t get a proper understanding of the things, and if one see only oneself at ego level then also one doesn’t understand the things. So the final cause is the Supreme, the Personality of Godhead, and that had to be acknowledged.

End of transcription.