ESSENCE OF BHAGAVAT GITHA

ESSENCE OF BHAGAVAT GITHA

INTRODUCTION

I used to tell stories from our puranas to my grand children when they were young. After growing up also, they will come to me and ask some important clarifications on our religion and Sanathana Dharma. Recently they posed a question to me- You have read Bhagavat Gita in your young age and recently. What difference you find?

It is a very good question and I thought over this deeply. What difference Githa has made in our life style when we were young and when we are old?

When I was young, my Elders impressed up on us that Gita should be read to persons who are on the deathbed. There was wrong notion that you will become a sanyasi if we read Githa. There was also a wrong argument that the Sankya Yoga is meant for sanyasins.

Many parents in those days were afraid to place before the children-Gita for fear of they may turn into sanyasin in later years.

All these thoughts are due to ignorance of the golden treasure handed over to us down the ages.

You will be amazed to note that Geetha has been translated in 32- languages of the world.

Lord Krishna spoke the Bhagavad-Gita on the battlefield of Kuruksetra in 3102 B.C.; just prior to the commencement of the Mahabharata war. This date corresponds to 1700 years before Moses, 2500 years before Buddha, 3000 years before Jesus and 3800 years before Mohammed. Therefore, first it should be clearly understood that Buddhism, Christianity, Hebrewism or Islam has not influenced the eternal knowledge of the Bhagavad-Gita; for these religions did not exist at that time and were established millenniums later.

Many great and notable individuals from modern times as well as bygone eras have read the Bhagavad-Gita and have extolled its universal message. We are naming some of them:


Truly speaking no one has the power to describe in words the glory of Gita since it is a book containing the highest form of doctrines- in short the essence of Vedas.
In olden days, there was no ink, pencil, or notebook to preserve this great work. Therefore, people should know the slokas by heart. To enable and make it easy to recite the composition of each sloka is composed on simple 2-lines poems.

Many eminent personalities like Ramanuja, Sankarachariar, and Madhvachariar have written Sri Bhashyam on Githa. What we try to explain will be only a peel of any fruit. Then why this attempt?

It is only to recollect the teachings of Bhagavan that is more relevant - we become old and more matured to understand the significance and essence of the Gita and how far we have adopted the same in our lives.

This attempt may be a good attempt if it helps many of our younger generation and older generations to correct our paths, which we have erred and join the mainstream and lead the correct way propounded by not less than the Bhagavan Himself to the humanity.

All men irrespective of Varna and Asrama posses the right to study Gita-the only qualification needed is faith and reverence. Bhagavan says that women, vaisyas, Sudras and even men and women born of sinful wombs can attain salvation if they cultivate devotion to the lord. All men and women have equal rights to God-realization.

THE STORY OF BHARATHA AND GITA

Many great and notable individuals from modern times as well as bygone eras have read the Bhagavad-Gita and have extolled its universal message. We are naming some of them:

Albert Einstein stated that when reading the Bhagavad-Gita he thinks about how God created the universe and then everything else seemed so superfluous.

Mahatma Gandhi stated that the Bhagavad-Gita calls on humanity to dedicate mind, body and soul to purity.

Dr. Albert Schweizer stated that the Bhagavad-Gita has a profound influence on the spirit of humanity by its devotion to God, which is manifested in all actions.

Sri Aurobindo stated the Bhagavad-Gita has a new message for every age and every civilization.

Herman Hesse stated that the wonder of the Bhagavad-Gita is its beautiful revelation of life's wisdom, which has made philosophy blossom into religion.

Ramanuja has stated that the Bhagavad-Gita reveals the goal of the all the Vedic scriptures.

Aldous Huxley stated that the Bhagavad-Gita is the most comprehensive statement of perennial philosophy.

Bhagavath Gita is part of the story of Mahabharatha. At the start of the war, the armies of pandavas and Dhuryodana were in lines on both sides. Arjuna wanted to know the strength of the opponent army and asked lord Krishna to take the chariot to the middle of the line.

After seeing his Guru, close relatives and Friends in the line Arjuna was dejected and felt that this war will not be of use to anyone-after losing all the above people- He dropped his bow and arrow and sat down. Lord who was on the chariot as driver understood the predicament of Arjuna and wanted to boost the morale of Arjuna-began his Famous Bhagavat Gita.

Though Bhagavath Gita is part of the whole, yet it is entirely independent and is a science of living or art of living. This is considered another Upanishad. We should forgetthe bharatha Story when we read Gita- and study as a Science and Art of Living.

If any one with sincerity and faith read even few slokas from Gita-, his life will certainly turn for better. All our thoughts and actions are based on the foundation of unfailing belief on our Sanadhana Dharma and Gita is part and parcel of it.

Gita comprises 18-chapters and 700 slokas. In the following blogs, we try to take the essence of each chapter and see how it is relevant to day and how we can adopt the same to our lives.

R.Jagannathan.