Articles Practice. Texts like The Upanishads and the Dhammapada are also part of this epic poem, but it is the Bhagavad Gita which is often cited as the one that holds the key to personal transformation: As the third of the classics, the Bhagavad Gita is a map and a guidebook.
The Bhagavad Gita is entirely representational and highly symbolic. There is no real battlefield or fight to be won; the entire text is a representation of the battle that goes on in our minds. Share article. Emma Newlyn Emma is a hr registered yoga teacher, writer and holistic therapist based in Sussex, UK. With a passion for yoga philosophy and Ayurveda, she loves bringing these ancient methods to the modern world in an accessible and easy-to-implement way through her writing and courses.
Try for free Classes Programs Playlists. Articles Resources. Newsletter signup Teachers Workshops Academy. The reason for this conclusion is that the human life is especially meant for spiritual inquiry because in no other species of life here on earth does the living being have the faculty, such as the intelligence and the means to understand spiritual knowledge. Otherwise, this implies that there is little difference in the purpose of life between humans and animals who are mostly interested in merely eating, sleeping, mating, and defending what they think is theirs.
However, human life is not merely the means to acquire knowledge from the teachings and explanations of others, but it also offers the facility to realize it within oneself by practice. This is more than merely accepting something on faith alone, but it is a matter of attaining direct perception of what the Vedic literature discusses. So, from the second chapter of the Bhagavad-gita , we begin to learn our real identity as the soul within these bodies.
The Bhagavad-gita explains the size and nature of the soul, and how it is completely transcendental or beyond the body itself. It is beyond time and beyond the effects of the three dimensional world. It is beyond the limitations of the body and mind. This teaches us many things. It shows that regardless of our physical limitations, we can rise above them because, spiritually, we are already above them.
We simply have to realize that. What does it mean to realize it? It means to directly perceive that truth, to see it as plain as day. And then live according to that realization. This teaches us that regardless of our situation, socially or physically or economically, we can rise to higher levels of existence, both in this world and in the next.
This teaches us that no matter what kind of pressures we may feel from our classmates at school, or what good or bad biases that may come from our fellow workers, or what kind of labels they put on us, or how much they may purposefully demean or criticize us, or even how great we think we are, we can be grounded, fixed in understanding who and what we really are as a spiritual being inside the limited material body.
That is how we should see ourselves. And then we can be confident that regardless of what others may say, we know who we are and can go through life fixed in perceiving our real identity and our purpose in this life and what really is our higher potential. As an old saying points out, it is better to see yourself truly than to care how others see you. When you are spiritually grounded, it is no longer necessary to always try to convince others of your self-worth, or of your social status, or of trying to make it into the right clique or group of people.
We become convinced of who we are. We work in our own way to provide a contribution to society, to make something of ourselves that has meaning, beyond the typical superficialities and meaningless and worldly gossip that occupy the minds of most youth and adults today.
We know that as long as we keep working in our own way, both intellectually and spiritually, attaining the skills that will enable us to do something significant, that our time will come when we can make a mark on this world in our own sphere of influence, which may continue to expand from there.
So we may be popular in school or not, or recognized in our career or not, but by our spiritual knowledge, as provided in the Bhagavad-gita , and by the confidence it gives us, we work to always become better, more uplifted, more refined, and more realized than we are, always making ourselves into a better person. Then we can help ourselves and others in more effective ways. This is just some of what the second chapter of the Bhagavad-gita can provide if we look into it carefully and understand who we really are and what is our greater potential.
As we proceed through the Bhagavad-gita , in Chapter Three, Lord Krishna discusses Karma-yoga, the knowledge of how every action creates an opposite and equal reaction. Fifty years ago in this country of the USA, hardly anyone spoke of karma, unless they were students of yoga or Eastern philosophy. Now everyone talks of karma, it is a part of the vocabulary, whether they really understand it or not.
But the point is, where do you think that came from? How do you think they started to know about karma, or yoga for that matter, except for the fact that the teachings of the East and yoga, which are centered around the Bhagavad-gita , continued to spread throughout the West. Similarly, considering all the knowledge that the Bhagavad-gita has within it, do you think that you will learn such things in the colleges or university courses?
You have to go beyond that. You have to take separate or alternative studies, like in studying the Bhagavad-gita or other Vedic texts, or listening to those who know about it. Then you can also begin to learn the basic laws of the universe as outlined in the Bhagavad-gita , as in the laws of karma. Otherwise, how will you begin to understand that your present circumstances and tendencies may be carry-overs from a previous existence?
Or even from many previous existences that we have experienced. You only begin to understand these things by studying the Bhagavad-gita , the teachings of which are also expanded in the Upanishads , and then even more elaborated in the Puranas and other Vedic texts and commentaries.
In Chapter Four, called Transcendental Knowledge, it is explained to Arjuna how this knowledge was given down through the parampara , or disciplic succession. Lord Krishna explains the purpose and the transcendental nature of His appearance in this world. And then to see all else, all things around you with a steady mind, free from desires and possessiveness.
Then Lord Krishna gives instructions on how to practice yoga and meditation so that we can eventually perceive the spiritual dimension all around us, of which we are a part. Then we can enter and experience boundless transcendental joy and bliss, free from maya or illusion, and in touch with the Supreme Consciousness.
Then such a person can see God everywhere and every being in God. They all change with time. We move ahead. Universe forgets old things and moves forwars, so do we. We should not stick on one point, this will make our existence much more problematic in this world. We should not repent about our past or worry about the future as the present is going on. We should know that God has planned everything for us. He will not let anything bad happen to us.
Whatever happens is for our good only. We should be optimistic and should not stress our self with these baseless worries of past and future. If things are not favourable, they surely would be.
Just have faith in the supreme personality of Godhead. This world is not immortal. One who takes birth dies one day and that is the ultimate truth of this world.
Nothing exists permanently. One has to leave this world, even though he wishes not to. No magic can actually help a person to stay forever. Everyone has their set life periods. They vanish after completing them. No matter how great one is or how power one posses, all have to die one day. Our soul never dies. Even after our death, it exists. It is immortal. It just changes bodies after the death of a person. It also gives us a lot of worries about the result.
We may also feel disheartened if our task or action does not yield good outputs. These were some of the major teachings of Bhagavad Gita. Adhere to them if you really want to achieve peace and inner satisfaction in your life. It is very aptly written and calls for selfless action.
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