Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16, Verse 20

English Translation

Being born among the demoniacal species in births after births, the foods, without ever reaching Me, O son of Kunti, attain conditions lower than that.

Detailed Commentary

16.20. Explanation: After attaining *Asuri Yoni*, the Lord states that these human beings who do not attain Me continue to take birth in animal and bird forms. I granted them the human body so they could liberate themselves, yet they fail to attain Me and descend to a degraded state (*adhamā gati*). Even after obtaining a human body, regardless of how evil-minded they may be, there remains an opportunity to attain the Lord. The Gita reveals that the attainment of the Lord is accessible to all. While animals and birds lack the specific capacity, there is no prohibition from the Lord's side. However, these *Asuri* humans lose the opportunity to attain the Lord and fall into a degraded state. *Tato yāntyadhamāṁ gatim* (Hence they go to the lowest state) -- These beings are compelled to enter *Asuri Yonis* and their dreadful degraded state, which is Naraka (hell). The opportunity to attain the Lord exists only as long as they are in a human body. Within *Asuri Yonis*, based on their *karmas*, some individuals are of a gentle nature while others are cruel. Even when they receive a human body through the Lord's grace, their evil dispositions such as *kama* (lust/desire), *krodha* (anger), etc., inherent in their ego (*ahaṁtā*), persist as before. Therefore, the opportunity to transform one's nature is available only in the human body. The crucial point is that even after obtaining this body, intended for the purpose of attaining the Lord, human beings become subservient to *kāmanā* (desire), self-interest (*svārtha*), and ego (*abhimāna*). The adverse effects of this manifest in their *saṁskāras* and *karmas*. Now, in the next verse, the Lord explains the actual cause for entering such degraded *Yonis* and Naraka.