Bhagavad Gita 9.11
अवजानन्ति मां मूढा मानुषीं तनुमाश्रितम् | परं भावमजानन्तो मम भूतमहेश्वरम् ||
avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam | paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto mama bhūta-maheśvaram ||
Translation
The deluded despise me, having taken on a human form, not knowing my higher being as the great lord of beings.
Reflection
Whom are you patronizing because you only see the surface?
Read this verse in its chapter: Chapter Nine
Krishna names the most common error. The deluded see Him in the human form He has taken on, fail to perceive the higher being behind it, and treat Him as merely a man. Avajananti is a strong word. They look down. They patronize. The verse is autobiographical in a sense. Krishna is standing in front of Arjuna in a recognizable body. To anyone who only sees what is in front of him, Krishna is a charioteer, a relative, a useful man. The verse warns Arjuna and warns the listener. The senses are not enough. The form that Krishna takes on is a real form, but it is not the whole. To see only the form and miss the source is the basic mistake the chapter will keep returning to.