We falsely think that we are independent, but we are not independent. We are completely under the clutches of māyā: prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ. We are acting under the influence of the modes of nature. Some of us are working under the influence of goodness, some of us are working under the influence of passion, and some of us are working under the influence of ignorance. But the paraṁ satyam, the Supreme Lord, He is not under the influence of any modes of material nature. Therefore it is expressed here, dhāmnā svena nirasta-kuhakaṁ: He is completely independent, and there is no influence of māyā. There is no influence. Nirasta-kuhakaṁ.
Here it is illusion. We are living under the influence of material nature, but we are thinking that we are independent. This is kuha, illusion. This is called māyā. And so long we do not understand this defect of our materialistic way of life, that is called defeat. Whatever we are doing, that is defeat. We are not conquering, but we are being defeated by the exigency of the material energy, which is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā: daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14).
So we are all under the influence of māyā, illusion. Ahaṁ mameti, janasya moho ayam (SB 5.5.8). Ayam, this feature of our life: ahaṁ, "I am independent, and whatever I have created, that is mine," this is illusion. Janasya moho ayam. These are all explained in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in different places. So our author of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Vyāsadeva, he says, "Just aim your objective to the Absolute Truth, satyaṁ paraṁ, not to the relative truth." Here everything is in relative truth, for the time, but it appears to be truth. But actually it is not truth. Śrīdhara Svāmī comments in this connection: satvanam savac svadu bhutendriya devata rupa amrisa satvam jasya sattvatoya mithyā savovi satvavat pratitayate.