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The Bhagavat Gita, also known as the Gita, is a Hindu scripture – part of the great epic in Hinduism – Mahabharata. The Gita is a set of a dialogues between the Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide, brother-in-law, cousin and charioteer lord Krishna. Before the start of the war of Kurkshetra between the cousin brothers -Pandavas and Kauravas, Arjuna is left in moral dilemma and despair about the violence and death that the war will cause in the battle against his own brothers. Lord Krishna who is dear to Arjuna, answers all his questions and these answers constitute the Bhagavat Gita, that we see today.
Bhagavat Gita is considered of great significance and it is popularly believed to have the solution to any and every kind of problem one faces. Upon reading this epic completely, one is said to have imparted thorough knowledge about the way of life and other truths in life. In the Gita itself, there is a mention of how powerful and knowledgeable are the teachings of Lord Krishna to Arjuna.
राजविद्या राजगुह्यं पवित्रमिदमुत्तमम् |
प्रत्यक्षावगमं धर्म्यं सुसुखं कर्तुमव्ययम्
rāja-vidyā rāja-guhyaṁ pavitram idam uttamam
pratyakṣhāvagamaṁ dharmyaṁ su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam
Translation: This knowledge is the king of sciences and the most profound of all secrets. It purifies those who hear it. It is directly realizable, in accordance with dharma, easy to practice, and everlasting in effect.
• Here, Rāja means “king”. Lord Krishna is said to have used the metaphor rāja to emphasize the paramount position of the knowledge that He is going to reveal to Arjuna.
• Vidyā means “science”. He does not refer to His teachings as creed, religion, dogma, doctrine, or belief. He declares that what He is going to describe to Arjun is the king of sciences.
• Guhya means “secret”. This knowledge is also the supreme secret. The lord merely makes us aware of the consequences of what we choose, either way, and then leaves it to us to decide the path we wish to follow.
• Pavitram means “pure”. Knowledge of devotion is supremely pure because it is untainted by petty selfishness. It inspires sacrifice of the self at the altar of divine love for the Supreme Lord. Bhakti also purifies the devotee by destroying pāp (past sins), bīja (impurities of the heart), and avidyā(ignorance).
• Pratyakṣha means “directly perceptible”. The practice of the science of bhakti begins with a leap of faith and results in direct perception of God. It is not unlike the methodology of other sciences, where we begin an experiment with a hypothesis and conclude with a verified result.
• Dharmyam means “virtuous.” Devotion performed without desire for material rewards is the most virtuous action. It is continuously nourished by righteous acts such as service to the Guru.
• Kartum susukham means “very easy to practice.” God does not need anything from us; He is attained very naturally if we can learn to love Him.
It can also be said that the Bhagavat Gita can be interpreted differently by different people. However, each of these interpretations ultimately drive one towards the path of righteousness and the right way of living. One such important message of the Bhagavat Gita is described in the form of a verse that is considered to be quite popular.
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन |
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि
“karmaṇy-evādhikāras te mā phaleṣhu kadāchana
mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇi”
Translation: Your right is to work only, to perform your prescribed duties, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions; let not the fruit-of-action be your motive. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, nor be attached to inaction.
The above verse is a widely popular verse of the Bhagavad Gita and in Hinduism. It offers deep insights into the proper spirit of work and this verse is often brough up whenever the concept of karma yoga (Karma translates to work in Sanskrit) is being discussed. These lines said by lord Krishna gives four major instructions regarding the science of work:
1. Do your duty, but do not concern yourself with the results.
2. The fruits of your actions are not for your enjoyment.
3. Even while working, give up the pride of doer-ship.
4. Do not be attached to inaction.
Bhagavat Gita stands as the theological science spoken by lord Krishna to his disciple Arjuna, five thousand years ago. It is associated with the supreme in its doctrines as the principles of religion were enunciated by God Himself. Amongst the other classifications in or themes that have been illustrated in the Bhagavad Gita, the subject of the Bhagavat Gita entails understanding five basic truths of life:
Ishvara – God or The Supreme Lord,
Jiva – The Living Entity or Soul
Karma – Activities or Actions
Prakruti – The Material Nature
Kala – Eternal Time
These five aspects are explained through the verses from the Bhagavat Gita itself. Each of them is considered to be highly significant and are given high importance in Hinduism.
1. Ishvara (God)
As far as the concept of Ishvara is considered, Lord Krishna explains that those who truly know the divine nature of his birth and past times attain him. Further, he then confirms that legions of human beings in all ages became God-realized by this means. They achieved this goal by purifying their minds through Bhakti (devotion).
वीतरागभयक्रोधा मन्मया मामुपाश्रिता: |
बहवो ज्ञानतपसा पूता मद्भावमागता: || 10||
vīta-rāga-bhaya-krodhā man-mayā mām upāśhritāḥ
bahavo jñāna-tapasā pūtā mad-bhāvam āgatāḥ
Translation: Being freed from attachment, fear, and anger, becoming fully absorbed in me, and taking refuge in me, many persons in the past became purified by knowledge of me, and thus they attained my divine love.
ये यथा मां प्रपद्यन्ते तांस्तथैव भजाम्यहम् |
मम वर्त्मानुवर्तन्ते मनुष्या: पार्थ सर्वश: || 11||
ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāns tathaiva bhajāmyaham
mama vartmānuvartante manuṣhyāḥ pārtha sarvaśhaḥ
Translation: In whatever way people surrender unto me, I reciprocate with them accordingly. Everyone follows my path, knowingly or unknowingly, O son of Pritha.
In the above verse, Lord Krishna states that he, being the ultimate Lord, reciprocates with everyone as they surrender to him. For those who deny the existence of God, he is said to meet them in the form of the law of karma—he sits inside their hearts, notes their actions, and dispenses the results. But such atheists too cannot get away from serving him; they are obliged to serve God’s material energy, Maya (ignorance), in its various apparitions, as wealth, luxuries, relatives, prestige, etc. Maya holds them under the sway of anger, lust, and greed. On the other hand, for those who turn their mind away from worldly attractions and look upon God as the goal and refuge, he takes care of them just as a mother takes care of her child.
2. Jiva (Soul or living entity)
न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचि
नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूय: |
अजो नित्य: शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो
न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे || 20||
na jāyate mriyate vā kadāchin
nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ
ajo nityaḥ śhāśhvato ’yaṁ purāṇo
na hanyate hanyamāne śharīre
Translation: The soul is neither born, nor does it ever die; nor having once existed, does it ever cease to be. The soul is without birth, eternal, immortal, and ageless. It is not destroyed when the body is destroyed.
Through this verse, the eternal nature of the soul has been established and explained. The soul is said to be ever-existing and beyond birth and death. Consequently, it is a combination of the six types of transformations: asti, jāyate, vardhate, vipariṇamate, apakṣhīyate, and vinaśhyati. “Existence in the womb, birth, growth, procreation, diminution, and death.” These are transformations of the body, not of one’s self. What we call as death is merely the destruction of the body, but the immortal self remains unaffected by all bodily changes.
न तद्भासयते सूर्यो न शशाङ्को न पावक: |
यद्गत्वा न निवर्तन्ते तद्धाम परमं मम ||
na tad bhāsayate sūryo na śhaśhāṅko na pāvakaḥ
yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama
Translation: Neither the sun nor the moon, nor fire can illumine that Supreme Abode of Mine. Having gone There, one does not return to this material world again.
Here, Lord Krishna briefly describes his divine Abode, which he says is self-luminous. No sun, moon or fire is required to light it up. As the material realm is created by Maya (material energy), it is full of defects and dualities. Whereas, the divine realm is created by Yogmaya (spiritual energy), which is both transcendental and perfect. It is also described as sat-chit-ānand (full of bliss, knowledge, and eternality).
ममैवांशो जीवलोके जीवभूत: सनातन: |
मन:षष्ठानीन्द्रियाणि प्रकृतिस्थानि कर्षति ||
mamaivānśho jīva-loke jīva-bhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ
manaḥ-ṣhaṣhṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛiti-sthāni karṣhati
Through this verse, the embodied souls in this material world are known to be the eternal fragmental parts of the Lord. However, bound by material nature, these parts are struggling with the six senses including the mind. In the previous verse, Shree Krishna explained that all the perfected souls who find Him go to His Abode and never return to the material world. Now in this verse he says, but those who remain in the material world are also His Anśh or fragmental parts.
3. Karma (Activities or Actions)
sri-bhagavan uvaca
loke ‘smin dvi-vidha nistha
pura prokta mayanagha
jnana-yogena sankhyanam
karma-yogena yoginam
Translation: The Blessed Lord said, “O sinless Arjuna, I have already explained that there are two classes of men who realize the Self. Some are inclined to understand Him by empirical, philosophical speculation, and others are inclined to know Him by devotional work.
In the Second Chapter of the Bhagavat Gita, Lord Krishna explained two kinds of procedures—namely sankhya-yoga and karma-yoga, or buddhi-yoga. In this verse, the Lord explains the same more clearly.
• Sankhya-yoga, or the analytical study of the nature of spirit and matter, is the subject matter for persons who are inclined to speculate and understand things by experimental knowledge and philosophy.
• By working by the principles of buddhi-yoga, or Lord Krishna’s consciousness, one can be relieved from the bonds of action; and, furthermore, there is no flaw in the process and in this way all the senses can be brought under control very easily.
Therefore, both the yogas are interdependant, as religion and philosophy. Religion without philosophy is sentiment, or sometimes fanaticism, while philosophy without religion is mental speculation. The whole process is to understand the real position of the self in relation to the Superself.
4. Prakrithi (Material Nature)
प्रकृतिं पुरुषं चैव विद्ध्यनादी उभावपि |
विकारांश्च गुणांश्चैव विद्धि प्रकृतिसम्भवान् || 20||
prakṛitiṁ puruṣhaṁ chaiva viddhy anādī ubhāv api
vikārānśh cha guṇānśh chaiva viddhi prakṛiti-sambhavān
Translation: Know that prakṛiti (material nature) and puruṣh (the individual souls) are both beginningless. Also know that all transformations of the body and the three modes of nature are produced by material energy.
The material nature is called Maya, or prakṛiti. Being an energy of God, it has existed ever since He has existed; in other words, it is eternal. The soul is also eternal, and here it is called puruṣh (the living entity), while God Himself is called param puruṣh (the Supreme Living Entity).
5. Kala (Time)
श्रीभगवानुवाच |
कालोऽस्मि लोकक्षयकृत्प्रवृद्धो
लोकान्समाहर्तुमिह प्रवृत्त: |
ऋतेऽपि त्वां न भविष्यन्ति सर्वे
येऽवस्थिता: प्रत्यनीकेषु योधा: || 32||
Translation: The Supreme Lord said, “ I am mighty Time, the source of destruction that comes forth to annihilate the worlds. Even without your participation, the warriors arrayed in the opposing army shall cease to exist.”
In response to Arjun’s question regarding who he is, Lord Krishna reveals his nature as all-powerful Time, the destroyer of the universe. The word kāla is derived from kalayati, which is synonymous with gaṇayati, meaning “to take count of.” This implies that all events in nature get buried in time. Time counts and controls the lifespan of all beings. It will determine when the great personalities like Bheeshma, Dronacharya, and Karna will meet their end. It will destroy the enemy army arrayed on the battlefield even without Arjuna’s participating in the fight, because the Lord wants it to happen as a part of his grand scheme for the world.
Conclusion
Lord Krishna also pinpoints lust, anger, and greed as the three causes for one’s destruction. Previously, the Pandava prince, Arjun had asked him why people are impelled to commit sin, even unwillingly, as if by force. Lord Krishna had answered that it is lust, which later transforms into anger, and is the all-devouring enemy of the world. Greed is also a transformation of lust. Together, lust, anger, and greed are the foundations from which the demoniac vices develop. They fester in the mind and make it a suitable ground for all other vices to take root. Consequently, Lord Krishna labels them as gateways to hell, and strongly advices to shun them to avoid self-destruction. Those desirous of welfare should learn to avoid these three and carefully avoid their presence in their own personality.
त्रिविधं नरकस्येदं द्वारं नाशनमात्मन: |
काम: क्रोधस्तथा लोभस्तस्मादेतत्त्रयं त्यजेत् || 21||
tri-vidhaṁ narakasyedaṁ dvāraṁ nāśhanam ātmanaḥ
kāmaḥ krodhas tathā lobhas tasmād etat trayaṁ tyajet
Translation: There are three gates leading to the hell of self-destruction for the soul—lust, anger, and greed. Therefore, all should abandon these three.
