In plain words
This being so, one who, because of unrefined buddhi, sees the pure Ātman as the doer does not truly see; his understanding is perverse.
Word for word
This being so, he who, because his buddhi is unrefined, sees the pure Self as the doer, he, of perverse understanding, does not see.
तत्रैवं सति कर्तारमात्मानं केवलं तु यःपश्यत्यकृतबुद्धित्वान्न स पश्यति दुर्मतिः
Other commentaries
The commentators
▸Bhagavadgītābhāṣyam· bhāṣya
तत्र इति प्रकृतेन सम्बध्यते । एवं सति एवं यथोक्तैः पञ्चभिः हेतुभिः निर्वर्त्ये सति कर्मणि । तत्रैवं सति इति दुर्मतित्वस्य हेतुत्वेन सम्बध्यते । तत्र एतेषु आत्मानन्यत्वेन अविद्यया परिकल्पितैः क्रियमाणस्य कर्मणः ‘अहमेव कर्ता’ इति कर्तारम् आत्मानं केवलं शुद्धं तु यः पश्यति अविद्वान् ; कस्मात् ? वेदान्ताचार्योपदेशन्यायैः अकृतबुद्धित्वात् असंस्कृतबुद्धित्वात् ; योऽपि देहादिव्यतिरिक्तात्मवादी आत्मानमेव केवलं कर्तारं पश्यति, असावपि अकृतबुद्धिः ; अतः अकृतबुद्धित्वात् न सः पश्यति आत्मनः तत्त्वं कर्मणो वा इत्यर्थः । अतः दुर्मतिः, कुत्सिता विपरीता दुष्टा अजस्रं जननमरणप्रतिपत्तिहेतुभूता मतिः अस्य इति दुर्मतिः । सः पश्यन्नपि न पश्यति, यथा तैमिरिकः अनेकं चन्द्रम् , यथा वा अभ्रेषु धावत्सु चन्द्रं धावन्तम् , यथा वा वाहने उपविष्टः अन्येषु धावत्सु आत्मानं धावन्तम् ॥ १६ ॥
In plain words
'There' connects back to what we've already been discussing. 'Thus being so' means: once action has been brought about by these five causes just described. And 'there, thus being so' is what functions as the cause of a corrupted mind. Among these five factors — imagined by ignorance to be no different from the Self — regarding the action performed through them, whoever thinks 'I alone am the agent' and sees the Self, wrongly, as the sole, pure agent, that person is ignorant. Why? Because, measured against what the teachers of Vedānta actually teach, his intellect is simply unrefined, unpurified. Even someone who correctly holds that the Self is distinct from the body still falls into this trap if he sees the Self alone as the sole agent — he too has an unrefined intellect. And because his intellect is unrefined, he fails to see the real nature of either the Self or of action — that's what is meant. That is exactly why he is called 'durmati' — one whose mind is base, perverse, corrupted, ceaselessly driving the whole cycle of birth and death. Such a person, though he sees, does not truly see — like someone with a disease of the eyes who sees many moons where there is one; or like someone who, watching clouds race by, sees the moon itself racing; or like someone sitting in a moving vehicle who sees himself moving while it is really everything else around him that moves.
Close to the Sanskrit
'There' is connected with what is under discussion. 'Thus being so' means: when action is accomplished by the five causes as previously stated. 'There, thus being so' is connected as the cause of the state of corrupted mind. There, among these five factors, imagined by ignorance as non-different from the Self, regarding action being performed by them — 'I alone am the agent', thus — whoever sees the Self, alone, pure, as the agent, is the ignorant one; from what cause does this arise? By the standards of the teaching of Vedānta teachers, because of having an unrefined, unpurified intellect; even one who asserts the Self is distinct from the body and the rest, if he too sees the Self alone, solely, as the agent, he too is of unrefined intellect; therefore, because of having an unrefined intellect, he does not see the truth of the Self, or of action — this is the meaning. Therefore, 'durmati' — a base, perverse, corrupted mind, continually the cause of the experience of birth and death, is the mind of this one — thus is 'durmati'. He, though seeing, does not truly see — just as one afflicted with an eye-disease sees many moons, or just as, the clouds running, one sees the moon running, or just as, seated in a vehicle, one sees himself running, while other things run.