Chapter 7, Verse 20
कामैस्तैस्तैर्हृतज्ञानाः प्रपद्यन्तेऽन्यदेवताः | तं तं नियममास्थाय प्रकृत्या नियताः स्वया ||७-२०||
kāmaistaistairhṛtajñānāḥ prapadyante.anyadevatāḥ . taṃ taṃ niyamamāsthāya prakṛtyā niyatāḥ svayā ||7-20||
Meaning
7.20 Those whose wisdom has been rent away by this or that desire, go to other gods, following this or that rite, led by their own nature.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Krishna observes, without scorn, that many people pursue lesser gods and rituals in hope of specific desires — health, wealth, success. Their deeper wisdom has been 'rent away' by these wants, and so, led by their own nature (prakriti), they take up whatever practice promises the boon they crave. The worship is real, but the aim is small.
The verse is descriptive, not condemning. Desire narrows our vision; when we want one thing badly enough, we forget the One who is the source of all things. This is a universal human pattern — we seek the gift and overlook the Giver. The Gita gently invites us to notice when our spirituality has shrunk to a means of getting what we want, and to ask whether we might instead seek the Divine for Itself, in whom all genuine fulfilment is already contained.
💡 Key Takeaway
When desire narrows our vision, we chase gifts and forget the Giver — notice when devotion has shrunk to a means of getting.
Related Verses
बलं बलवतां चाहं कामरागविवर्जितम् | धर्माविरुद्धो भूतेषु कामोऽस्मि भरतर्षभ ||७-११||
balaṃ balavatāṃ cāhaṃ kāmarāgavivarjitam . dharmāviruddho bhūteṣu kāmo.asmi bharatarṣabha ||7-11||
7.11 Of the strong, I am the strength devoid of desire and attachment, and in (all) beings, I am the desire unopposed to Dharma, O Arjuna.
त्रिभिर्गुणमयैर्भावैरेभिः सर्वमिदं जगत् | मोहितं नाभिजानाति मामेभ्यः परमव्ययम् ||७-१३||
tribhirguṇamayairbhāvairebhiḥ sarvamidaṃ jagat . mohitaṃ nābhijānāti māmebhyaḥ paramavyayam ||7-13||
7.13 Deluded by these Natures (states or things) composed of the three alities of Nature all this world does not know Me as distinct from them and immutable.
न मां दुष्कृतिनो मूढाः प्रपद्यन्ते नराधमाः | माययापहृतज्ञाना आसुरं भावमाश्रिताः ||७-१५||
na māṃ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ . māyayāpahṛtajñānā āsuraṃ bhāvamāśritāḥ ||7-15||
7.15 The evil-doers and the deluded who are the lowest of men do not seek Me; they whose knowledge is destroyed by illusion follow the ways of demons.