O Partha, those who lack discernment speak flowery words. Delighting in the letter of the Vedas, they declare, “There is nothing else”…
Explanation
Krishna is speaking to Arjuna about people whose minds are scattered, contrasting them with the single resolved intellect (vyavasāyātmikā buddhi) of the previous verse. He describes those lacking discernment (avipaścit) who are absorbed in the Vedas' words (vedavāda) and utter ornate speech about rewards, insisting nothing higher exists. The sentence continues into the next verse. Traditions differ on whether this criticizes the ritual portion of the Vedas itself or only a narrow, reward-seeking use of it.