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The Bhagavad Gita is known as the Song Celestial. It is the most important
sacred text in the Hindu tradition. The Bhagavad Gita is some 700 verses and
is a part of the great epic Mahabharata.
The backdrop to the Bhagavad Gita is the battle of Kurukshetra between the
Pandavas and the Kauravas. Arjuna finds himself reluctantly fighting for the
Pandavas against his cousins the Kauravas. Before the start of the battle Arjuna
is a given a choice between having the help of either his beloved friend Krishna
or the entire army of Krishna. Without hesitation Arjuna chose to have Sri
Krishna as an adviser, rather than his army. Most of the Bhagavad Gita
comprises the discourse that Sri Krishna gave to his disciple Arjuna on the
battlefield of Kurushetra. The battle becomes a synopsis for life and provides
Sri Krishna the opportunity to explain to Arjuna the philosophy of Yoga and
Vedanta, in a practical and meaningful way.
The Gita begins with Sri Krishna explaining the essence of man is not the body
but the immortal soul. On the eve of battle Arjuna is filled with deep
misgivings; he feels to kill his relatives and friends would be a great sin. But Sri
Krishna replies that Arjuna should not seem himself as the doer. It is only God
who gives and takes life away.
Furthermore the death of the body does not harm the soul. As the immortal
quote of the Gita runs.
“The soul migrates from body to body. Weapons cannot cleave it, nor fire
consume it, nor water drench it, nor wind dry it. This is the soul and this is
what is meant by the existence of the soul.”
When I read the Bhagavad-Gita and reflect about how God created this
Whatever you do, make it an offering to me -- the food you eat, the sacrifices
you make, the help you give, even your sufferings.
with perfection.
A gift is pure when it is given from the heart to the right person at the right
time and at the right place, and when we expect nothing in return.
No one who does good work will ever come to a bad end, either here or in the
world to come.
As a man can drink water from any side of a full tank, so the skilled theologian
can wrest from any scripture that which will serve His purpose.
Balance of mind is called Yoga.
It is true that the mind is restless and difficult to control. But it can be
conquered, through regular practice and detachment. Those who lack self-
control will find it difficult to progress in meditation; but those who are self-
controlled, striving earnestly through the right means, will attain the goal.
Knowledge, the object of knowledge and the knower are the three factors, which
motivate action; the senses, the work and the doer comprise the threefold basis
of action.
For certain is death for the born... And certain is birth for the dead... Therefore,
over
Neither in this world nor elsewhere is there any happiness in store for him who
always doubts.
There has never been a time when you and I have not existed, nor will there be
a time when we will cease to exist. As the same person inhabits the body
through childhood, youth, and old age, so too at the time of death he attains
Those who eat too much or eat too little, who sleep too much or sleep too little,
will not succeed in meditation. But those who are temperate in eating and
sleeping, work and recreation, will come to the end of sorrow through
meditation.
Still your mind in me, still yourself in me, and without a doubt you shall be
As person abandons worn-out clothes and acquires new ones, so when the
body is worn out a new one is acquired by the Self, who lives within.
Out of compassion I destroy the darkness of their ignorance. From within them
light the lamp of wisdom and dispel all darkness from their lives.
No work stains a man who is pure, who is in harmony, who is master of his
The happiness which comes from long practice, which leads to the end of
suffering, which at
first is like poison, but at last like nectar - this kind of happiness arises from
own mind.
The knowledge sacrifice is superior to any material sacrifice.
No one is even equal to You in the three worlds how can there be one greater
But, you are not able to see Me with your physical eye therefore, I give you the
Yatra yogesvarah krsno yatra partho dhanur-dharah tatra srir vijayo bhutir
dhruva nitir matir mama || 18-78 ||
Wherever there is Krishna, the master of all mystics (Yoga and wisdom), and
wherever there is Arjuna (True Devotee), the supreme archer (performer of
his/her duties), there will always certainly be opulence, victory, extraordinary
power, and morality (policy).
devotion to God
"When doubts haunt me, when disappointments stare me in the face, and I see
not one ray of hope on the horizon, I turn to Bhagavad-Gita and find a verse to
sorrow. Those who meditate on the Gita will derive fresh joy and new meanings
- Mahatma Gandhi
Bhagavad Gita... in comparison with which... our modern world and its
rather than a book, with a new message for every age and a new meaning for
Krishna has all the attributes of the full-fledged montheistic deity and at the
same time the attributes of the Upanisadic absolute." - Ralph Waldo Emerson