Bhagavad Gita · Raja Vidya Raja Guhya YogaChapter 9, Shloka 11 (9.11)
Original Sanskrit · श्रीभगवान्
अवजानन्ति मां मूढा मानुषीं तनुमाश्रितम्
परं भावमजानन्तो मम भूतमहेश्वरम्
॥ 9.11 ॥
avajānanti māṃ mūḍhā mānuṣīṃ tanumāśritam
paraṃ bhāvamajānanto mama bhūtamaheśvaram
Translation
"Not knowing my supreme nature as the great Lord of all beings, the deluded think little of me when I have taken on a human body."
Interpretation
Shankaracharya. Avajānanti avajñāṃ paribhavaṃ kurvanti … mānuṣīṃ … tanuṃ … manuṣya-dehena vyavaharantam — they look with contempt on me as I act through a human body; paraṃ … bhāvaṃ paramātma-tattvam ākāśa-kalpam ākāśād api antaratamam — the supreme reality, like space, more inward than even space; tasya mama avajñāna-bhāvanena āhatāḥ te varākāḥ — those poor souls are struck down by their attitude of contempt for me.
Acharya Ramanuja — mistaking compassion for weakness. Parama-kāruṇikatayā sarva-samāśrayaṇīyatvāya mānuṣīṃ tanum āśritaṃ — out of supreme compassion, to be within reach of all, I took a human form; sva-kṛtaiḥ pāpa-karmabhiḥ mūḍhā avajānanti — prākṛta-manuṣya-samaṃ manyante — deluded by their own sinful deeds, people take me to be an ordinary human being; apāra-kāruṇyaudārya-sauśīlya-vātsalyādi-nibandhanaṃ manuṣyatva-samāśrayaṇa-lakṣaṇam imaṃ paraṃ bhāvam ajānantaḥ — my becoming human is the result of my boundless compassion, generosity, saushilya (the great one mixing freely with the small) and tender love — not knowing this "supreme nature".
The difference (beautiful): For Ramanuja the "supreme nature" is itself the compassion of becoming human — the Lord's greatness lies in his coming down.
AI-assisted draft translation — under review.