an introduction to the gita

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dear friends,

the gita satsang has already begun...and it's too late for

an introductory post on the gita.well, i had sent one introductory post to

madhavaji which he did'nt find suitable(it seems ) for posting.anyway i am

pasting below the introduction that i had prepared, with the hope that at

least one sadhaka finds it to be of some worth.om--devendra.

 

 

 

Dear Madhavaji,

The Ranganathanandaji introduction i speak of is a

small booklet of about 70 pages.Since we require a concise and succinct

introduction ,i am sending the introduction of Swami Swarupananda's(of RkM)

Translation of the Gita.Hope it is found to be useful.

 

 

"The Srimad'-Bhagavad-Gita occurs in the Bhisma Parva of the Mahabharata

and comprises 18 chapters from the 25th to the 42nd.The discourse between

Arjuna and Krsna on the battlefield on the eve of the the war which forms

the subject-matter of the work,was strung together in seven hundred verses

and put in it's place in the body of this great history by Vyasa.

The Gita opens with Dhrtarastra's query to Sanjaya about the progress of

events.In the second chapter of the Bhisma Parva,we find Vyasa offering the

power of sight to the blind king,that he might see the war.Dhrtarastra

declined to have it,saying he did not care to have eyes with which only to

see the death of his own people;but he would like to hear what was

happening.On this the great Rishi Vyasa said,that all the occurences in

connection with the war would be reflected in the mind of Sanjaya,and he

would faithfully report them to Dhrtarastra.

The Gita is called an Upanishad,because it contains the essence of

Self-knowledge,and because it's teachings,like those of the Vedas,are

divided into three sections,Karma(work),Upasana(devotion), and

Jnana(knowledge).

The first chapter is introductory.The second is a summary of the whole

work,e.g.,in 2-48 and the connected Shlokas,selfless work devoid of desire

for fruits,is taught for the purification of the heart;in 2-61 and the

connected Shlokas devotion is taught to the pure-hearted,to qualify them

further for the highest Sanyasa,which is taught in 2-71 and the connected

Shlokas.

It is also usual to divide the work into three sections illustrative of the

three terms of the Mahavakya of the Sama-Veda,"Thou art

That"(Chandogya.Upanishad.,6.-8.7.).In this view the first six chapters

explain the path of work without desire for fruits,and the nature of

"Thou".The next six chapters deal with devotion and the nature of "That".The

last six describe the state of the highest knowledge and the nature of the

middle term of the Mahavakya,in other words,the means of re-establishing the

identity of "Thou" and "That".

The central teaching of the Gita is the attainment of Freedom, by the

performance of one's Svadharma or duty in life."Do the duty without an eye

to the results thereof.Thus shouldst thou gain the purification of heart

which is essential for Moksa"--seems to be the keynote of Krsna's teachings

to Arjuna.

It is well known why the Gita came into existence. It was owing to Arjuna's

unwillingness to do his duty as a Kshatriya--to fight for a just

cause--because it involved the destruction of his own people.Not that Arjuna

did not recognise the justice and right of the cause,but he would rather

renounce the world and try for Moksa than kill his relatives and

friends.Krsna's characterisation of this weakly sentimental attitude of

Arjuna is well known.He called it "Un-Arya-like delusion,contrary to the

attainment alike of heaven and honour" and exhorted Partha to "yield not to

unmanliness" but to "cast off this mean faint-heartedness"(2.2-3)."Could a

coward who fails to do his duty,be worthy to attain Moksa?" seems to be

Krsna's rejoinder.Could a man not purified by the fire ordeal of

Svadharma,could a renegade,a slave ,attain Moksa? No! says the Lord.And this

is the lesson we Indians have forgotten all these years ,though we have been

reading and discussing the Gita all the time."

 

 

The following are some thoughts of Swami.Vivekananda on the Gita:

"According to some ,the Kurukshetra war is only an allegory.When we sum

up the esoteric significance,it means the war which is constantly going on

within man between the tendencies of good and evil.This meaning,too,may not

be irrational.Even if the historicity of the whole thing is proved to be

absolutely false today,it will not in the least be any loss to us.Our real

aim is the knowledge that leads to the acquirement of Dharma.If one reads

this one Shloka--Klaibyam masma gamah Partha naitat tvayy upapadyate|sudram

hrdaya-daurbalyam tyaktv ottistha paramtapa||---one gets all the merit s of

reading the entire Gita;for in this one Shloka lies embedded the whole

message of the Gita."

 

 

 

*** i would like to add---There are 18 chapters in the Gita,chapters 1 to

6 deal with Karma-Yoga and Raja-Yoga.Chapters 7 to 12 deal with Bhakti-Yoga

and finally 13 to 18 deal with Jnana-Yoga.Each chapter also deals with a

specific aspect of Spirituality and hence each chapter is designated as a

Yoga.

 

-devendra

 

 

 

 

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