Chapter VII · Śloka 24
Śrī Kṛṣṇa uvāca
अव्यक्तं व्यक्तिमापन्नं मन्यन्ते मामबुद्धयः ।
परं भावमजानन्तो ममाव्ययमनुत्तमम् ॥
परं भावमजानन्तो ममाव्ययमनुत्तमम् ॥
avyaktaṃ vyaktim āpannaṃ manyante mām abuddhayaḥ |
paraṃ bhāvam ajānanto mamāvyayam anuttamam ||
paraṃ bhāvam ajānanto mamāvyayam anuttamam ||
The unintelligent think that I, the Unmanifest, have taken on a manifest form, not knowing My supreme nature, which is imperishable and unsurpassed.
This verse warns against the error of reducing the Absolute to a merely human or finite figure. Krishna's human form is a gracious descent (avatāra) of the unmanifest, not a limitation of it; those who mistake the finger pointing at the moon for the moon itself miss the avyaya (imperishable), anuttama (unsurpassed) reality.