Bhagavad GitaFor other uses, seeBhagavad Gita (disambiguation)."Gita" redirects here. For other uses, seeGita (disambiguation).TheBhagavad Gita(Sanskrit:भगवद्गीता,bhagavad-gītāinIAST,Sanskrit pronunciation: [ˈbʱaɡəʋəd̪ ɡiːˈt̪aː]; lit. "Song of theLord"[1]), often referred to as simplythe Gita, is a 700[2][3]verseHinduscripture inSanskritthat is part of theHindu epicMahabharata(chapters 23–40 of the 6th book ofMahabharata).Bhagavad GitaKrishna and Arjuna atKurukshetra, c. 1820 paintingInformationReligionHinduismAuthorVyasaLanguageSanskritVerses700TheGitais set in a narrative framework of a dialogue betweenPandavaprinceArjunaand his guide and charioteerLord Krishna. Facing the duty as a warriorto fight theDharmaYudhhaor righteous war between Pandavas and Kauravas, Arjuna is counselled by Lord Krishna to "fulfill hisKshatriya(warrior) duty as a warrior and establishDharma."[4]Inserted[4]in this appeal tokshatriya dharma(chivalry)[5]is "a dialogue ... between diverging attitudes concerning methods toward the attainment of liberation (moksha)".[6]TheBhagavad Gitapresents a synthesis[7][8]of the concept ofDharma,[7][8][9]theisticbhakti,[10][9]theyogicideals[8]of moksha[8]throughjnana,bhakti,karma, andRaja Yoga(spoken of in the 6th chapter)[10]andSamkhyaphilosophy.[web 1][note 1]It is aBhagavataexplanation of thePurusha Suktaand thePurushamedhaSrautayajnadescribed in theSatapatha Brahmana.[11]Numerous commentaries have been written on theBhagavad Gitawith widely differing views on the essentials.Vedantacommentators read varying relations between Self andBrahmanin the text:Advaita Vedantasees the non-dualism ofAtman(soul) and Brahman as its essence,[12]whereasBhedabhedaandVishishtadvaitasee Atman and Brahman as both different and non-different, andDvaitasees them as different. The setting of theGitain a battlefield has been interpreted as an allegory forthe ethical and moral struggles of the human life.TheBhagavad Gita's call for selfless action inspired many leaders of theIndian independence movementincludingBal Gangadhar TilakandMahatma Gandhi. Gandhi referred to theGitaas his "spiritual dictionary".[13]Composition and significanceBronzechariot, depicting discourse of Krishna and Arjuna inKurukshetraAuthorshipThe epicMahabharatais traditionally ascribed to the SageVyasa; theBhagavad Gita, being a part of theMahabharata'sBhishma Parva, is also ascribed to him.[14]Date of compositionBazaar art print 1940s - GitopadeshaTheories on the date of composition of theGitavary considerably. Scholars accept dates from the fifth century to the second century BCE as the probable range. Professor Jeaneane Fowler, in her commentary on theGita, considers second century BCE to be the likely date of composition.[15]Kashi Nath Upadhyaya, aGitascholar, on the basis of the estimated dates ofMahabharata,Brahma sutras, and other independent sources, concludes that theBhagavad Gitawas composed in the fifth or fourth century BCE.[16]It is generally agreed that, "Unlike the Vedas, which have to be preserved letter-perfect, theGitawas a popular work whose reciters would inevitably conform to changes in language and style", so the earliest "surviving" components of this dynamic text are believed to be no older than the earliest "external"references we have to theMahabharataepic, which may include an allusion in Panini's fourth century BCE grammar. It is estimated that the text probably reached something of a "final form" by the early Gupta period (about the 4th century CE). The actual dates of composition of theGitaremain unresolved.[14]Bhagavad Gita in ancient sanskrit literatureThere is no reference to the Bhagavad Gita in Buddhist literature, theTripitaka. TheBuddharefers to 3Vedasrather than 4 Vedas.Hindu synthesis andsmritiSee also:Smarta TraditionDue to its presence in theMahabharata, theBhagavad Gitais classified as aSmrititext or "that which is remembered".[note 2]Thesmrititexts of the period between 200 BCE and 100 CE belong to the emerging "Hindu Synthesis", proclaiming the authority of theVedaswhile integrating various Indian traditions and religions. Acceptance of the Vedas became a central criterion for defining Hinduism over and against the heterodoxies, which rejected the Vedas.[17]The so-called "Hindu Synthesis" emerged during the early Classical period (200 BCE – 300 CE) of Hinduism.[17][8][18]According toAlf Hiltebeitel, a period of consolidation in the development of Hinduism took place between the time of the late Vedic Upanishad (ca. 500 BCE) and the period of the rise of theGuptas(ca. 320–467 CE) which he calls the "Hindu Synthesis", "Brahmanic Synthesis", or"Orthodox Synthesis".[17]It developed in interaction with other religions and peoples:The emerging self-definitions of Hinduism were forged in the contextof continuous interaction with heterodox religions (Buddhists, Jains, Ajivikas) throughout this whole period, and with foreign people (Yavanas, or Greeks; Sakas, or Scythians; Pahlavas, or Parthians; and Kusanas, or Kushans) from the third phase on [between the Mauryan empire and the rise of the Guptas].[17]TheBhagavad Gitais the sealing achievement of thisHindu Synthesis, incorporating various religious traditions.[17][10][8][web 1][9]According to Hiltebeitel,Bhaktiforms an essential ingredient of this synthesis, which incorporatesBhaktiintoVedanta.[17]According to Deutsch and Dalvi, theBhagavad Gitaattempts "to forge a harmony"[19]between different strands of Indian thought: jnana, dharma and bhakti.[10]Deutsch and Dalvi note that the authors of theBhagavad Gita"must have seen the appeal of the soteriologies both of the "heterodox"traditions of Buddhism and Jainism and of the more"orthodox" ones of Samkhya and Yoga",[7]while the Brahmanic tradition emphasised "the significance ofdharmaas the instrument of goodness".[7]Scheepersmentions theBhagavat Gitaas a Brahmanical text which uses theshramanicand Yogic terminology to spread the Brahmanic idea of living according to one's duty ordharma, in contrast to the yogic ideal ofliberation from the workings of karma.[8]According to Basham,TheBhagavadgitacombines many different elements from Samkhya and Vedanta philosophy. In matters of religion, its important contribution was the new emphasis placed on devotion, which has since remained a central path in Hinduism. In addition, the popular theism expressed elsewhere in theMahabharataand the transcendentalism of the Upanishads converge, and a God of personal characteristics is identified with the brahman of the Vedic tradition. TheBhagavadgitathus gives a typology of the three dominant trends of Indian religion: dharma-based householder life, enlightenment-based renunciation, and devotion-based theism.[web 1]Bhagavad Gitaas a synthesis:TheBhagavadgitamay be treated as a great synthesis of the ideas of the impersonal spiritual monism with personalistic monotheism, of theyogaof action with theyogaof transcendence of action, and these again withyogasof devotion and knowledge.[9]The influence of theBhagavad Gitawas such, that itssynthesis was adapted to and incorporated into specific Indian traditions. Nicholson mentions theShiva Gitaas an adaptation of the Vishnu-orientedBhagavat Gitainto Shiva-oriented terminology,[20]and theIsvara Gitaas borrowing entire verses from the Krishna-orientedBhagavad Gitaand placing them into a new Shiva-oriented context.[21]StatusTheBhagavad Gitais part of thePrasthanatrayi, which also includes theUpanishadsandBrahma sutras. These are the key texts for theVedanta,[22][23][24]which interprets these texts to give a unified meaning.Advaita Vedantasees the non-dualism of Atman and Brahman as its essence,[12]whereasBhedabhedaandVishishtadvaitasee Atman and Brahman as both different and non-different, andDvaitasees them as different. In recent times the Advaita interpretation has gained worldwide popularity, due to theNeo-VedantaofVivekanandaandRadhakrishnan, while theAchintya Bheda Abhedainterpretation has gained worldwide popularity via theHare Krishnas, a branch ofGaudiyaVaishnavism.[25]Although early Vedanta gives an interpretation of thesrutitexts of the Upanishads, and its main commentary the Brahman Sutras, the popularity of theBhagavad Gitawas such that it could not be neglected.[6]It is referred to in the Brahman Sutras, andShankara,BhaskaraandRamanujaall three wrote commentaries on it.[6]TheBhagavad Gitais different from the Upanishads in format and content, and accessible to all, in contrast to thesruti, which are only to be read and heard by the higher castes.[6]Some branches of Hinduism give it the status of an Upanishad, and consider it to be a Śruti or "revealed text".[26][27]According to Pandit, who gives a modern-orthodox interpretation of Hinduism, "since theBhagavad Gitarepresents a summary of the Upanishadic teachings, it is sometimes called 'the Upanishad of the Upanishads'."[28]As an explanation of the PurushamedhaThe Bhagavad Gita is aBhagavataexplanation of thePurusha Suktaand thePurushamedhaSrautayajnadescribed in theSatapatha Brahmana.[11]Chapters 7and 8 of the Bhagavad Gita describe the relationship between teacher and disciple, where the teacher is viewed as the absolute person, PurusaNarayana.[11]In Chapters 10 and 11 of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna begins to instruct Arjuna about the directions of space-time within himself reflecting what is written inthe Satapatha Brahmana and Purusa Sukta.[11]The vision of Krishna in his universal form shows the self-devouring nature of the absolute person, as described in the Satapatha Brahmana and Purusa Sukta.[11]Chapters 12 describes the two paths one chooses after one completes the Purushamedha yajna i.e. become a renunciate or remain as a householder.[11]Chapter 14 is the highest teaching within the Bhagavad Gita, the knowledge to achieve the same state as Purusa Narayana, which is the goal of the Purushamedha.[29]ContentA manuscript illustration of the battle of Kurukshetra, fought between the Kauravas and the Pandavas, recorded in theMahabharata.NarrativeIn the epicMahabharata, afterSanjaya—counsellor of theKurukingDhritarashtra—returns from the battlefield to announce the death ofBhishma, he begins recounting the details of theMahabharatawar.Bhagavad Gitaforms the content of this recollection.[30]TheGitabegins before the start of the climacticKurukshetra War, where the Pandava prince Arjuna is filled with doubt on the battlefield. Realising that his enemies are his own relatives, beloved friends, and revered teachers, he turns to his charioteer and guide, God Incarnate Lord Shri Krishna, for advice. Responding to Arjuna's confusionand moral dilemma, Krishna explains to Arjuna hisdutiesas a warrior and prince, elaborating on a variety of philosophical concepts.[31]Characters*.Arjuna, one of thePandavas*.Lord Shri Krishna, Arjuna's charioteer andguruwho was actually an incarnation ofLord Vishnu*.Sanjaya, counselor of the Kuru king Dhritarashtra*.Dhritarashtra, Kuru king.[citation needed]Overview of chaptersBhagavad Gitacomprises 18 chapters (section 25 to 42)[32][web 2]in theBhishma Parvaof the epicMahabharataand consists of 700 verses.[33]Because of differences inrecensions, the verses of theGitamay be numbered in the full text of theMahabharataas chapters 6.25–42 or as chapters 6.23–40.[web 3]According to the recension of theGitacommented on byAdi Shankara, a prominent philosopher of theVedantaschool, the number of verses is 700, but there is evidence to show that old manuscripts had 745 verses.[34]The verses themselves, composed with similes and metaphors, are poetic in nature. The verses mostly employ the range and style of the SanskritAnustubhmetre(chhandas), and in a few expressive verses theTristubhmetre is used.[35]The Sanskrit editions of theGitaname each chapter as a particular form of yoga. However, these chapter titles do not appear in the Sanskrit text of theMahabharata.[web 3]Swami Chidbhavanandaexplains that each of the eighteen chapters is designated as a separate yoga because each chapter,like yoga, "trains the body and the mind". He labels the first chapter "Arjuna Vishada Yogam" or the"Yoga of Arjuna's Dejection".[36]SirEdwin Arnoldtranslates this chapter as "The Distress of Arjuna"[37]Krishna displays hisVishvarupa(Universal Form) to Arjuna on thebattlefield of Kurukshetra(chapter 11).Gita Dhyanam: (contains 9 verses) TheGita Dhyanamis not a part of the main Bhagavad Gita, but it is commonly published with the Gītā as a prefix. The verses of theGita Dhyanam(also calledGītā DhyānaorDhyāna Ślokas) offer salutations to a variety of sacred scriptures,figures, and entities, characterise the relationshipof the Gītā to theUpanishads, and affirm the power of divine assistance.[38]It is a common practice to recite these before reading theGita.[web 4][39]1.Prathama adhyaya[40](The Distress of Arjuna[37]contains 46 verses): Arjuna has requested Krishna to move hischariotbetween the two armies. His growing dejection is described as he fears losing friends and relatives as a consequence of war.[web5]2.Sankhya yoga(The Book of Doctrines[37]contains 72 verses): After asking Krishna for help, Arjuna is instructed into various subjects such as,Karma yoga, Gyaana yoga, Sankhya yoga, Buddhi yoga and the immortal nature of the soul.Sankhyahere refers to one of six orthodox schools of theHindu Philosophy. This chapter is often considered the summary of the entireBhagavad Gita.[web 6]3.Karma yoga(Virtue in Work[37]orVirtue Of Actionscontains 43 verses): Krishna explains how Karma yoga, i.e. performance of prescribed duties, but without attachment to results, is the appropriate course of action for Arjuna.[web 7]4.Gyaana–Karma-Sanyasa yoga(The Religion of Knowledge[37]contains 42 verses): Krishna revealsthat he has lived through many births, always teaching yoga for the protection of the pious and the destruction of the impious and stresses the importance of accepting a guru.[web 8]5.Karma–Sanyasa yoga(Religion by Renouncing Fruits of Works[37]contains 29 verses): Arjuna asks Krishna if it is better to forgo action or to act ("renunciation or discipline of action").[41]Krishna answers that both are ways to the same goal,[web 9]but that acting in Karma yoga is superior.6.Dhyan yogaorAtmasanyam yoga(Religion by Self-Restraint[37]contains 47 verses): Krishna describes theAshtanga yoga. He further elucidatesthe difficulties of the mind and the techniques by which mastery of the mind might be gained.[web 10]7.Gyaana–ViGyaana yoga(Religion by Discernment[37]contains 30 verses): Krishna describes the absolute reality and its illusory energyMaya.[web 11]8.Aksara–Brahma yoga(Religion by Devotion to the One Supreme God[37]contains 28 verses): This chapter containseschatologyof theBhagavad Gita. Importance of the last thought before death, differences between material and spiritual worlds, and light and dark paths that a soul takes after death are described.[web 12]9.Raja–Vidya–Raja–Guhya yoga(Religion by the Kingly Knowledge and the Kingly Mystery[37]contains 34 verses): Krishna explains how His eternal energy pervades, creates, preserves, and destroys the entire universe.[web 13]According to theologian Christopher Southgate, verses of this chapter of theGitaarepanentheistic,[42]while German physicist and philosopherMax Bernhard Weinsteindeems the workpandeistic.[43]10.Vibhuti–Vistara–yoga(Religion by the Heavenly Perfections[37]contains 42 verses): Krishna is described as the ultimate cause of all material andspiritual existence. Arjuna accepts Krishna as the Supreme Being, quoting great sages who have also done so.[web 14]11.Visvarupa–Darsana yoga(The Manifesting of theOne and Manifold[37]contains 55 verses): On Arjuna's request, Krishna displays his "universal form" (Viśvarūpa),[web 15]atheophanyof a beingfacing every way and emitting the radiance of a thousand suns, containing all other beings and material in existence.12.Bhakti yoga(The Religion of Faith[37]contains 20 verses): In this chapter Krishna glorifies the path of devotion to God. Krishna describes the process of devotional service (Bhakti yoga). He also explains different forms of spiritual disciplines.[web 16]13.Ksetra–Ksetrajna Vibhaga yoga(Religion by Separation of Matter and Spirit[37]contains 35 verses): The difference between transient perishable physical body and the immutable eternal soul is described. The difference between individual consciousness and universal consciousness is also made clear.[web 17]14.Gunatraya–Vibhaga yoga(Religion by Separationfrom the Qualities[37]contains 27 verses): Krishna explains the three modes (gunas) of material nature pertaining to goodness, passion, and nescience. Their causes, characteristics, and influence on a living entity are also described.[web 18]15.Purusottama yoga(Religion by Attaining the Supreme[37]contains 20 verses): Krishna identifies the transcendental characteristics of God such as,omnipotence,omniscience, andomnipresence.[web 19]Krishna also describes a symbolic tree (representing material existence), which has its roots in the heavens and its foliage on earth. Krishna explains that this tree should be felled with the "axe of detachment", after which one can go beyond to hissupreme abode.16.Daivasura–Sampad–Vibhaga yoga(The Separateness of the Divine and Undivine[37]contains 24 verses): Krishna identifies the human traits of the divine and the demonic natures. He counsels that to attain the supreme destination one must give up lust, anger, greed, and discern between right and wrong action by discernment through Buddhi and evidence from the scriptures.[web 20]17.Sraddhatraya-Vibhaga yoga(Religion by the Threefold Kinds of Faith[37]contains 28 verses): Krishna qualifies the three divisions of faith, thoughts, deeds, and even eating habits corresponding to the three modes (gunas).[web 21]18.Moksha–Sanyasa yoga(Religion by Deliverance and Renunciation[37]contains 78 verses): In this chapter, the conclusions of previous seventeen chapters are summed up. Krishna asks Arjuna to abandon all forms of dharma and simply surrender unto him and describes this as the ultimate perfection of life.[web 22]ThemesBhagavad Gita, a 19th-century manuscriptDharmaMain article:DharmaThe termdharmahas a number of meanings.[44]Fundamentally, it means "what is right".[44]Early in the text, responding to Arjuna's despondency, Krishna asks him to follow hisswadharma,[45][note 3]"thedharmathat belongs to a particular man (Arjuna) as a member of a particularvarna, (i.e., thekshatriya)."[45]Many traditional followers accept andbelieve that every man is unique in nature(svabhava) and hence svadharma for each and every individual is also unique and must be followed strictly with sole bhakthi and shraddha.[citation needed]According to Vivekananda:If one reads this one Shloka, one gets all the merits of reading the entireGita; for in this one Shloka lies imbedded the whole Message of theGita."[46]क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते । क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परंतप॥klaibhyaṁ mā sma gamaḥ pārtha naitattvayyupapadyate, kṣudraṁ hṛdayadaurbalyaṁ tyaktvottiṣṭha paraṁtapa.Do not yield to unmanliness, O son of Prithā. It does not become you. Shake off this base faint-heartedness and arise, O scorcher of enemies! (2.3)Dharma and heroismTheBhagavad Gitais set in the narrative frame of theMahabharata, which valuesheroism, "energy, dedication and self-sacrifice",[4]as thedharma, "holyduty"[47]of the Kshatriya (Warrior).[47][4][48]Axel Michaels in his bookHinduism: Past and Presentwrites that in theBhagavad Gita, Arjuna is "exhorted by his charioteer, Kṛiṣhṇa, among others, to stop hesitating and fulfil his Kṣatriya (warrior) duty as a warrior and kill."[4]According to Malinar, the dispute between the two parties in theMahabharatacentres on the question how to define "the law of heroism".[49][note 4]Malinar gives a description of thedharmaof a Kshatriya (warrior) based on theUdyogaparvan, the fifth book of theMahabharata:This duty consists first of all in standing one's ground and fighting for status. The main duty of a warrior is never to submit to anybody. A warrior must resist any impulse to self-preservation that would make him avoid a fight. In brief, he ought to be a man (puruso bhava; cf. 5.157.6; 13;15). Some of the most vigorous formulations of what called the "heart" or the"essence" of heroism (ksatrahrdaya)come from the ladies of the family. They bare shown most unforgiving with regard to the humiliations they have gone through, the loss of their status and honour, not to speak of the shame of having a weak man in the house, whether husband, son orbrother.[5][note 5]Michaels defines heroism as "power assimilated withinterest in salvation".[50]According to Michaels:Even though the frame story of theMahabharatais rather simple, the epic has an outstanding significance for Hindu heroism. The heroism of the Pandavas, the ideals of honor and courage in battle, are constant sources of treatises in which it is not sacrifice, renunciation of the world, or erudition that is valued, but energy, dedication and self-sacrifice. TheBhagavad Gita, inserted in the sixth book (Bhishmaparvan), and probably completed in the second century CE, is such a text, that is, a philosophical and theistic treatise, with which the Pandava is exhorted by his charioteer, Krishna, among others, to stop hesitating and fulfill his Kṣatriya (warrior) duty as a warrior and kill.[4]According to Malinar, "Arjuna's crisis and some of the arguments put forward to call him to action are connected to the debates on war and peace in theUdP[Udyoga Parva]".[51]According to Malinar, theUdPemphasises that one must put up with fate and, theBhGpersonalises the surrender one's personal interests to the power of destiny by "propagating the view that accepting and enacting the fatal course of events is an act of devotion to this god [Krsna] and his cause."[51]Modern interpretations ofdharmaSvadharmaandsvabhavaThe eighteenth chapter of theGitaexamines the relationship betweensvadharmaandsvabhava.[note6][52]This chapter uses thegunasof Shankya philosophy to present a series of typologies, and usesthe same term to characterise the specific activities of the fourvarnas, which are distinguished by the"gunas proceeding from their nature."[52]Aurobindo modernises the concept ofdharmaandsvabhavaby internalising it, away from the social order and its duties towards one's personal capacities, which leads to a radical individualism,[53]"finding the fulfilment of the purpose of existence in the individual alone."[53]He deduced from theGitathe doctrine that "the functions of a man ought to be determined by his natural turn, gift, and capacities",[53]that the individual should "develop freely"[53]andthereby would be best able to serve society.[53]Gandhi's view differed from Aurobindo's view.[54]He recognised in the concept ofswadharmahis idea ofswadeshi, the idea that "man owes his service above all to those who are nearest to him by birth and situation."[54]To him,swadeshiwas "swadharmaapplied to one's immediate environment."[55]The Field of DharmaThe first reference todharmain theBhagavad Gitaoccurs in its first verse, where Dhritarashtra refers to the Kurukshetra, the location of the battlefield, as theField of Dharma, "The Field of Righteousness or Truth".[44]According to Fowler,dharmain this verse may refer to thesanatana dharma, "what Hindus understand as their religion, for it is a term that encompasses wide aspects of religious and traditional thought and is more readily used for""religion".[44]Therefore, 'Field of action' implies the field of righteousness, where truth will eventually triumph.[44]"The Field of Dharma" is also called the "Field of action" bySri Aurobindo, a freedom fighter and philosopher.[44]Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, a philosopher and the second president of India, saw"The Field of Dharma" as the world (Bhavsagar), which is a "battleground for moral struggle