1. Arjuna Visada Yoga (Arjuna's Dilemma)
The first chapter of the Bhagavad Gita - "Arjuna Vishada Yoga" introduces the setup, the setting, the characters and the circumstances that led to the epic battle of Mahabharata, fought between the Pandavas and the Kauravas. It outlines the reasons that led to the revelation of the of Bhagavad Gita. As both armies stand ready for the battle, the mighty warrior Arjuna, on observing the warriors on both sides becomes increasingly sad and depressed due to the fear of losing his relatives and friends and the consequent sins attributed to killing his own relatives. So, he surrenders to Lord Krishna, seeking a solution. Thus, follows the wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita.
- Verse 1: Dhritarashtra said, "What did my people and the sons of Pandu do when they had assembled together, eager for battle, on the holy plain of Kurukshetra, O Sanjaya?"
- Verse 2: Sanjaya said: Having seen the army of the Pandavas drawn up in battle array, King Duryodhana approached his teacher, Drona, and spoke these words.
- Verse 3: Behold, O Teacher! This mighty army of the sons of Pandu, arrayed by the son of Drupada, thy wise disciple.
- Verse 4: Here are heroes, mighty archers, equal in battle to Bhima and Arjuna, Yuyudhana (Satyaki), Virata, and Drupada—all mighty warriors.
- Verse 5: Dhrishtaketu, Chekitana, the valiant king of Kasi, Purujit, Kuntibhoja, and Saibya—the best of men.
- Verse 6: The strong Yudhamanyu and the brave Uttamaujas, the son of Subhadra (Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadra and Arjuna), and the sons of Draupadi, all of them great charioteers (great heroes)."
- Verse 7: Know also, O best among the twice-born! the names of those who are the most distinguished amongst ourselves, the leaders of my army; these I name to you for your information.
- Verse 8: "Thou thyself, Bhishma, Karna, Kripa, the victorious in war, Asvatthama, Vikarna, and Bhurisrava, the son of Somadatta—all these are ready for battle."
- Verse 9: And also many other heroes, ready to give up their lives for my sake, armed with various weapons and missiles, all well-skilled in battle.
- Verse 10: Our army, marshalled by Bhishma, is insufficient, whereas theirs, marshalled by Bhima, is sufficient.
- Verse 11: Therefore, do all of you, stationed in your respective positions in the several divisions of the army, protect Bhishma alone.
- Verse 12: His glorious grandsire, the oldest of the Kauravas, roared like a lion to cheer Duryodhana and blew his conch.
- Verse 13: Then, suddenly, conches, kettledrums, tabors, drums, and cow horns blared forth from the Kaurava side, and the sound was tremendous.
- Verse 14: Then, Madhava (Krishna) and the son of Pandu (Arjuna), seated in the magnificent chariot yoked with white horses, blew divine conches.
- Verse 15: Hrishikesha blew the Panchajanya, Arjuna blew the Devadatta, and Bhima, the wolf-bellied doer of terrible deeds, blew the great conch Paundra.
- Verse 16: King Yudhishthira, the son of Kunti, blew the Anantavijaya; Nakula and Sahadeva blew the Sughosha and the Manipushpaka.
- Verse 17: The king of Kasi, an excellent archer, Sikhandi, the mighty car-warrior, Dhrishtadyumna, Virata, and Satyaki, the unconquered.
- Verse 18: Drupada and the sons of Draupadi, O Lord of the Earth, and the son of Subhadra, the mighty-armed, blew their conches each separately.
- Verse 19: The tumultuous sound rent the hearts of Dhritarashtra's party, reverberating through both heaven and earth.
- Verse 20: Then, seeing the people of Dhritarashtra's party standing arrayed and the discharge of weapons about to begin, Arjuna, the son of Pandu whose ensign was a monkey, took up his bow and said the following to Krishna, O Lord of the Earth.
- Verse 21: Arjuna said, "O Krishna, place my chariot in the middle between the two armies, so that I may behold those who stand here, desirous to fight, and know with whom I must fight when the battle is about to commence."
- Verse 22: Arjuna said, "O Krishna, place my chariot in the middle between the two armies, so that I may behold those who stand here, desirous to fight, and know with whom I must fight when the battle is about to commence."
- Verse 23: For I desire to observe those who are assembled here to fight, wishing to please in battle the evil-minded Duryodhana—the son of Dhritarashtra.
- Verse 24: Sanjaya said, Thus addressed by Arjuna, Krishna stationed the best of chariots, O Dhritarashtra, in the midst of the two armies.
- Verse 25: In front of Bhishma and Drona, and all the rulers of the earth, he said: "O Arjuna, son of Pritha, behold these Kurus gathered together."
- Verse 26: Then, Arjuna (son of Pritha) saw there (in the armies) stationed fathers, grandfathers, teachers, maternal uncles, brothers, sons, grandsons, and friends.
- Verse 27: He saw fathers-in-law and friends in both the armies. The son of Kunti, Arjuna, seeing all those kinsmen thus standing arrayed, spoke sorrowfully, deeply filled with pity.
- Verse 28: Arjuna said, "O Krishna, seeing my kinsmen arrayed here, eager to fight,
- Verse 29: My limbs fail, my mouth is parched, my body quivers, and my hair stands on end.
- Verse 30: The Gandiva slips from my hand, and my skin burns all over; I am unable to stand, and my mind is reeling, as it were.
- Verse 31: And I see ill omens, O Kesava. I do not see any good in slaying my kinsmen in battle.
- Verse 32: I desire not victory, O Krishna, nor kingdom, nor pleasures. What use is dominion to us, O Krishna, or pleasures or even life?
- Verse 33: Those for whose sake we desire kingdom, enjoyments, and pleasures stand here in battle, having renounced life and wealth.
- Verse 34: Teachers, fathers, sons, and grandfathers, maternal uncles, fathers-in-law, grandsons, brothers-in-law, and other relatives—
- Verse 35: These I do not wish to kill, O Krishna, even though they kill me, for the sake of dominion over the three worlds; leave alone killing them for the sake of the earth."
- Verse 36: By killing these sons of Dhritarashtra, what pleasure could be ours, O Janardana? Only sin would accrue to us from killing these felons.
- Verse 37: Therefore, we should not kill the sons of Dhritarashtra, our relatives; for how can we be happy by killing our own kin, O Madhava (Krishna)?
- Verse 38: Though they, with intelligence overpowered by greed, see no evil in the destruction of families and no sin in hostility to friends,
- Verse 39: Why should we not, who clearly see the evil in the destruction of families, learn to turn away from this sin, O Janardana (Krishna)?
- Verse 40: In the destruction of a family, the immemorial religious rites of that family perish; on the destruction of spirituality, impiety indeed, overwhelms the whole family.
- Verse 41: O Krishna, by the prevalence of impiety, the women of the family become corrupt; and, when women are corrupted, O Varshenya (descendant of Vrishni), intermingling of castes arises.
- Verse 42: Confusion of castes leads to hell for the slayers of the family, for their forebears fall, deprived of the offerings of rice-balls and libations of water.
- Verse 43: By these evil deeds of the destroyers of the family, which cause confusion of castes, the eternal religious rites of the caste and the family are destroyed.
- Verse 44: We have heard, O Janardana, that those men in whose families the religious practices have been destroyed are inevitably destined to dwell in hell for an unknown period.
- Verse 45: Alas! We are involved in a great sin, for we are prepared to kill our kinsmen, out of greed for the pleasures of a kingdom.
- Verse 46: If the sons of Dhritarashtra, with weapons in hand, should slay me in battle, unresisting and unarmed, that would be better for me.
- Verse 47: Sanjaya said, Having thus spoken in the midst of the battlefield, Arjuna cast away his bow and arrow and, his mind overwhelmed with sorrow, sat down on the seat of the chariot.
2. Sankhya Yoga (Transcendental Knowledge)
The second chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Sankhya Yoga". This is the most important chapter of the Bhagavad Gita as Lord Krishna condenses the teachings of the entire Gita in this chapter. This chapter is the essence of the entire Gita. "Sankhya Yoga" can be categorized into 4 main topics - 1. Arjuna completely surrenders himself to Lord Krishna and accepts his position as a disciple and Krishna as his Guru. He requests Krishna to guide him on how to dismiss his sorrow. 2. Explanation of the main cause of all grief, which is ignorance of the true nature of Self. 3. Karma Yoga - the discipline of selfless action without being attached to its fruits. 4. Description of a Perfect Man - One whose mind is steady and one-pointed.
- Verse 1: Sanjaya said: To him, who was thus overcome with pity, despondent, with eyes full of tears and agitated, Madhusudana (the destroyer of Madhu) or Krishna spoke these words.
- Verse 2: The Blessed Lord said, "From whence has this perilous strait come upon you, this dejection which is unworthy of you, disgraceful, and which will close the gates of heaven upon you, O Arjuna?"
- Verse 3: Do not yield to impotence, O Arjuna, son of Pritha. It does not befit you. Cast off this mean weakness of the heart! Stand up, O conqueror of foes!
- Verse 4: Arjuna said, "O Madhusudana, how can I fight in battle with arrows against Bhishma and Drona, who are worthy of being worshipped, O destroyer of enemies?"
- Verse 5: Better it is, indeed, in this world to accept alms than to slay the most noble teachers. But if I were to kill them, even in this world, all my enjoyments of wealth and fulfilled desires would be stained with their blood.
- Verse 6: I can hardly tell which would be better, that we should conquer them or that they should conquer us. Even the sons of Dhritarashtra, whom we do not wish to slay, stand facing us.
- Verse 7: My heart is overpowered by the taint of pity; my mind is confused as to my duty. I ask Thee: Tell me decisively what is good for me. I am Thy disciple; instruct me, who has taken refuge in Thee.
- Verse 8: I do not see that this sorrow that burns up my senses would be removed, even if I were to attain prosperous and unrivaled dominion on earth or lordship over the gods.
- Verse 9: Sanjaya said: Having spoken thus to Hrishikesha, the Lord of the senses, Arjuna, the conqueror of sleep and destroyer of foes, said, "I will not fight," and became silent.
- Verse 10: To him who was despondent in the midst of the two armies, Krishna, smiling, O Bharata, spoke these words.
- Verse 11: The Blessed Lord said, "You have grieved for those who should not be grieved for; yet, you speak words of wisdom. The wise grieve neither for the living nor for the dead."
- Verse 12: Nor, at any time, was I not, nor thou, nor these rulers of men; nor, verily, shall we ever cease to be hereafter.
- Verse 13: Just as the embodied soul passes through childhood, youth, and old age in this body, so too does it pass into another body; the steadfast one does not grieve over this.
- Verse 14: The contact of the senses with the objects, O son of Kunti, which causes heat and cold, pleasure and pain, has a beginning and an end; they are impermanent; endure them bravely, O Arjuna.
- Verse 15: That firm man, whom surely these afflictions do not, O chief among men, to whom pleasure and pain are the same, is fit for attaining immortality.
- Verse 16: The unreal has no being; there is no non-being of the real; the truth about both has been seen by the knowers of the truth (or the seers of the essence).
- Verse 17: Know that to be indestructible, by which all this is pervaded. No one can cause the destruction of that, the Imperishable.
- Verse 18: These bodies of the embodied Self, which are eternal, indestructible, and immeasurable, are said to have an end. Therefore, fight, O Arjuna.
- Verse 19: He who takes the Self to be the slayer and he who thinks it is slain, neither of them knows. It does not slay, nor is it slain.
- Verse 20: It is not born, nor does it ever die; after having been, it again does not cease to be; unborn, eternal, changeless, and ancient, it is not killed when the body is killed.
- Verse 21: Whoever knows it to be indestructible, eternal, unborn, and inexhaustible, how can that person slay, O Arjuna, or cause to be slain?
- Verse 22: Just as a man casts off worn-out clothes and puts on new ones, so too the embodied Self casts off worn-out bodies and enters others that are new.
- Verse 23: Weapons cannot cut it, fire cannot burn it, water cannot wet it, wind cannot dry it.
- Verse 24: This Self cannot be cut, burned, wetted, nor dried up; it is eternal, all-pervasive, stable, immovable, and ancient.
- Verse 25: This Self is said to be unmanifested, unthinkable, and unchangeable. Therefore, knowing this to be so, you should not grieve.
- Verse 26: But even if thou thinkest of It as constantly being born and constantly dying, even then, O mighty-armed one, thou shouldst not grieve.
- Verse 27: For the born, death is certain, and for the dead, birth is certain; therefore, you should not grieve over the inevitable.
- Verse 28: Beings are unmanifest in their beginning, manifest in their middle state, O Arjuna, and unmanifest again in their end. What is there to grieve about?
- Verse 29: One sees this (the Self) as a wonder; another speaks of it as a wonder; another hears of it as a wonder; yet, having heard, none understands it at all.
- Verse 30: This indweller in the body of everyone is ever indestructible, O Arjuna; therefore, you should not grieve for any creature.
- Verse 31: Further, having regard to your duty, you should not waver, for there is nothing higher for a Kshatriya than a righteous war.
- Verse 32: Happy are the Kshatriyas, O Arjuna! who are called to fight in such a battle that comes of its own accord as an open door to heaven.
- Verse 33: But if you will not fight this righteous war, then having abandoned your own duty and reputation, you will incur sin.
- Verse 34: People will also recount your everlasting dishonor; and for one who has been honored, dishonor is worse than death.
- Verse 35: The great chariot-warriors will think that you have withdrawn from the battle out of fear, and you will be held in low esteem by those who have held you in high regard.
- Verse 36: Your enemies, scoffing at your power, will speak many abusive words—what could be more painful than this?
- Verse 37: Slain, you will obtain heaven; victorious, you will enjoy the earth; therefore, stand up, O son of Kunti, resolved to fight.
- Verse 38: Having made pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat equal, engage in battle for the sake of battle; thus, you shall not incur sin.
- Verse 39: This, which has been taught to you, is wisdom concerning Sankhya. Now listen to wisdom concerning Yoga, endowed with which, O Arjuna, you shall cast off the bonds of action.
- Verse 40: In this, there is no loss of effort, nor is there any harm produced, nor any transgression. Even a little of this knowledge protects one from great fear.
- Verse 41: Here, O joy of the Kurus, there is only one single-pointed determination; many-branched and endless are the thoughts of the indecisive.
- Verse 42: The unwise, taking pleasure in the eulogizing words of the Vedas, utter flowery speech, saying, "There is nothing else," O Arjuna.
- Verse 43: Full of desires, with heaven as their goal, (they speak words that are directed to ends) leading to new births as the result of their works, and prescribe various methods abounding in specific actions, for the attainment of pleasure and power.
- Verse 44: For those who are attached to pleasure and power, whose minds are drawn away by such teachings, their determinate reason is not formed which is steadily bent on meditation and Samadhi (superconscious state).
- Verse 45: The Vedas deal with the three attributes; be thou above these three attributes. O Arjuna, free yourself from the pairs of opposites and ever remain in the quality of Sattva, freed from acquisition and preservation, and be established in the Self.
- Verse 46: To the Brahmana who has known the Self, all the Vedas are of as much use as a reservoir of water would be in a place where there is a flood.
- Verse 47: Your right is only to work, but not to its results; do not let the results of action be your motive, nor let your attachment be to inaction.
- Verse 48: Perform action, O Arjuna, being steadfast in Yoga, abandoning attachment and balanced in success and failure; evenness of mind is called Yoga.
- Verse 49: Far lower than the Yoga of wisdom is action, O Arjuna. Seek thou refuge in wisdom; wretched are those whose motive is the fruit.
- Verse 50: Endowed with wisdom and evenness of mind, one casts off in this life both good and evil deeds; therefore, devote yourself to Yoga; Yoga is skill in action.
- Verse 51: The wise, possessing knowledge, having abandoned the fruits of their actions, and being freed from the bonds of birth, go to the place which is beyond all evil.
- Verse 52: When your intellect passes beyond the mire of delusion, then you will attain indifference to what has been heard and what has yet to be heard.
- Verse 53: When your intellect, which is perplexed by the Vedic texts you have read, stands immovable and steady in the Self, then you will attain Self-realization.
- Verse 54: Arjuna said, "O Krishna, what is the description of one who has steady wisdom and is merged in the superconscious state? How does one of steady wisdom speak, how do they sit, and how do they walk?"
- Verse 55: The Blessed Lord said, "When a man completely casts off, O Arjuna, all the desires of the mind and is satisfied in the Self by the Self, then he is said to be one of steady wisdom."
- Verse 56: He whose mind is not shaken by adversity, who does not long for pleasures, and is free from attachment, fear, and anger, is called a sage of steady wisdom.
- Verse 57: He who is everywhere without attachment, upon encountering anything good or bad, neither rejoices nor hastens; his wisdom is firm.
- Verse 58: When, like the tortoise which withdraws all its limbs on all sides, he withdraws his senses from the sense-objects, then his wisdom becomes steady.
- Verse 59: The objects of the senses turn away from the abstinent man, leaving the longing behind; but his longing also turns away upon seeing the Supreme.
- Verse 60: The turbulent senses, O Arjuna, can violently carry away the mind of a wise person, even though they are striving to control them.
- Verse 61: Having restrained them all, he should sit steadfast, intent on Me; his wisdom is steady whose senses are under control.
- Verse 62: When one thinks of objects, attachment to them arises; from attachment, desire is born; from desire, anger arises.
- Verse 63: Anger leads to delusion, which causes loss of memory; this, in turn, leads to the destruction of discrimination, resulting in destruction.
- Verse 64: But the self-controlled man, moving among objects with the senses restrained and free from attraction and repulsion, attains peace.
- Verse 65: In that peace, all pains are destroyed; for the intellect of the tranquil-minded soon becomes steady.
- Verse 66: There is no knowledge of the Self for the unsteady, and no meditation is possible for the unsteady, and no peace for the unmeditative, and how can there be happiness for one who has no peace?
- Verse 67: For the mind, which follows in the wake of the wandering senses, carries away his discrimination, as the wind carries away a boat on the waters.
- Verse 68: Therefore, O mighty-armed Arjuna, his knowledge is steady whose senses are completely restrained from sense objects.
- Verse 69: That which is night to all beings, in that the self-controlled man is awake; when all beings are awake, that is night for the sage who sees.
- Verse 70: He attains peace into whom all desires enter, just as waters enter the ocean which, filled from all sides, remains unmoved; but not the man who is full of desires.
- Verse 71: That person attains peace who, abandoning all desires, moves about without longing, without the sense of ownership, and without egoism.
- Verse 72: O son of Pritha, this is the eternal state, the Brahmic seat. Attaining this, one is not deluded. Being established in it, one attains oneness with Brahman even at the end of life.
3. Karma Yoga (Path of Selfless Service)
The third chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Karma Yoga" or the "Path of Selfless Service". Here Lord Krishna emphasizes the importance of karma in life. He reveals that it is important for every human being to engage in some sort of activity in this material world. Further, he describes the kinds of actions that lead to bondage and the kinds that lead to liberation. Those persons who continue to perform their respective duties externally for the pleasure of the Supreme, without attachment to its rewards get liberation at the end.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said: If Thou thinkest that knowledge is superior to action, O Krishna, why then, O Kesava, doest Thou ask me to engage in this terrible action?
- Verse 2: With this seemingly perplexing speech, you seem to be confusing my understanding; therefore, tell me one certain way by which I may attain bliss.
- Verse 3: The Blessed Lord said, "In this world, there is a twofold path, as I said before, O sinless one: the path of knowledge of the Sankhyas and the path of action of the Yogins."
- Verse 4: Man does not reach actionlessness by not performing actions; nor does he attain perfection by mere renunciation.
- Verse 5: Verily, no one can remain for even a moment without performing action; for everyone is made to act helplessly, indeed, by the qualities born of Nature.
- Verse 6: He who, restraining the organs of action, sits thinking of the sense-objects in his mind, he of deluded understanding is called a hypocrite.
- Verse 7: But whoever, controlling the senses by the mind, O Arjuna, engages himself in Karma Yoga with the organs of action, without attachment, he excels.
- Verse 8: Perform your bounden duty, for action is superior to inaction, and even the maintenance of the body would not be possible for you through inaction.
- Verse 9: The world is bound by actions other than those performed for the sake of sacrifice; do thou, therefore, O son of Kunti (Arjuna), perform actions for that sake alone, free from attachment.
- Verse 10: The Creator, having in the beginning created mankind together with sacrifice, said, "By this shall you propagate; let this be the milch cow of your desires—the cow that yields all the desired objects."
- Verse 11: With this, nourish the gods, and may the gods nourish you; thus, nourishing each other, you shall attain the highest good.
- Verse 12: The gods, nourished by the sacrifice, will give you the desired objects. So, he who enjoys the objects given by the gods without offering anything in return is indeed a thief.
- Verse 13: The righteous who eat the remnants of the sacrifice are freed from all sins; but those sinful ones who cook food solely for their own sake indeed consume sin.
- Verse 14: From food come forth beings; from rain, food is produced; from sacrifice arises rain, and sacrifice is born of action.
- Verse 15: Know that action comes from Brahma, and Brahma comes from the Imperishable. Therefore, the all-pervasive Brahma ever rests in sacrifice.
- Verse 16: He who does not follow the wheel thus set in motion, who is of sinful life, rejoicing in the senses, lives in vain, O Arjuna.
- Verse 17: But for that man who rejoices only in the Self, who is satisfied with the Self and is content in the Self alone, indeed there is nothing to do.
- Verse 18: For him, there is no interest whatsoever in what is done or not done; nor does he depend on any being for any purpose.
- Verse 19: Therefore, without attachment, always perform the actions that should be done; for by performing actions without attachment, one reaches the Supreme.
- Verse 20: Janaka and others attained perfection indeed through action alone; even with the intention of protecting the masses, you should perform action.
- Verse 21: Whatever a great man does, others also do; whatever he establishes as the standard, the world follows.
- Verse 22: There is nothing in the three worlds, O Arjuna, that needs to be done by Me, nor is there anything unattained that needs to be attained; yet I engage Myself in action.
- Verse 23: For, should I not ever engage myself in action, unwearied, people would in every way follow my path, O Arjuna.
- Verse 24: These worlds would perish if I did not perform action; I would be the author of confusion of castes and destruction of these beings.
- Verse 25: As the ignorant act out of attachment to action, O Bharata, so should the wise act without attachment, wishing for the welfare of the world.
- Verse 26: Let no wise man unsettle the minds of ignorant people who are attached to action; he should engage them in all actions, himself fulfilling them with devotion.
- Verse 27: All actions are wrought in all cases by the qualities of Nature alone. He whose mind is deluded by egoism thinks, "I am the doer."
- Verse 28: But he who knows the Truth, O mighty-armed Arjuna, about the divisions of the qualities and their functions, knowing that the Gunas, as senses, move amidst the Gunas, as the sense-objects, is not attached.
- Verse 29: Those deluded by the qualities of Nature are attached to the functions of the qualities. The man of perfect knowledge should not unsettle the foolish one who is of imperfect knowledge.
- Verse 30: Renouncing all actions in Me, with the mind centered on the Self, free from hope and egoism, and from mental fever, fight thou.
- Verse 31: Those who constantly practice this teaching of Mine with faith and without caviling, they too are freed from actions.
- Verse 32: But those who criticize My teaching and do not practice it, deprived of all knowledge and lacking discernment, know them to be doomed to destruction.
- Verse 33: Even a wise man acts in accordance with his own nature; beings will follow their nature; what can restraint do?
- Verse 34: Attachment and aversion for the objects of the senses abide in the senses; let no one come under their sway; for, they are his enemies.
- Verse 35: Better is one's own duty, though devoid of merit, than the duty of another well discharged. Better is death in one's own duty; the duty of another is fraught with fear.
- Verse 36: Arjuna said, "But what compels man to commit sin, even against his wishes, O Varshneya (Krishna), as if constrained by force?"
- Verse 37: The Blessed Lord said, "It is desire and it is anger, both of the quality of Rajas, all-devouring and all-sinful; know this as the foe here in this world."
- Verse 38: As fire is enveloped by smoke, as a mirror is covered by dust, and as an embryo is surrounded by the amniotic sac, so is this enveloped by that.
- Verse 39: O Arjuna, wisdom is enveloped by this constant enemy of the wise, in the form of desire, which is insatiable like fire.
- Verse 40: The senses, the mind, and the intellect are said to be its seat; through these, it deludes the embodied one, veiling their wisdom.
- Verse 41: Therefore, O best of the Bharatas, control your senses first and then kill this sinful thing, which destroys knowledge and realization.
- Verse 42: They say that the senses are superior to the body; the mind is superior to the senses; the intellect is superior to the mind; and He (the Self) is superior even to the intellect.
- Verse 43: Thus, knowing Him who is superior to the intellect and restraining the self by the Self, slay thou, O mighty-armed Arjuna, the enemy in the form of desire, hard to conquer.
4. Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga (Path of Knowledge and the Disciplines of Action)
The fourth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna glorifies the Karma Yoga and imparts the Transcendental Knowledge (the knowledge of the soul and the Ultimate Truth) to Arjuna. He reveals the reason behind his appearance in this material world. He reveals that even though he is eternal, he reincarnates time after time to re-establish dharma and peace on this Earth. His births and activities are eternal and are never contaminated by material flaws. Those persons who know and understand this Truth engage in his devotion with full faith and eventually attain Him. They do not have to take birth in this world again.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said, "I taught this imperishable Yoga to Vivasvan; he then told it to Manu; Manu proclaimed it to Ikshvaku.
- Verse 2: This, handed down in regular succession by the royal sages, was known. This Yoga, however, has been lost here over time, O Parantapa (burner of the foes).
- Verse 3: That same ancient yoga has been today taught to you by me, for you are my devotee and my friend; it is the supreme secret.
- Verse 4: Arjuna said, "Later was Thy birth, and prior to it was the birth of Vivasvan (the Sun); how am I to understand that Thou hast taught this Yoga from the beginning?"
- Verse 5: The Blessed Lord said, "Many births of Mine have passed, as well as of thine, O Arjuna; I know them all, but thou knowest not, O Parantapa (scorcher of foes)."
- Verse 6: Though I am unborn and of imperishable nature, and though I am the Lord of all beings, yet, governing my own nature, I am born by my own Maya.
- Verse 7: Whenever there is a decline of righteousness and an increase of unrighteousness, O Arjuna, then I manifest Myself.
- Verse 8: For the protection of the good, for the destruction of the wicked, and for the establishment of righteousness, I am born in every age.
- Verse 9: He who thus knows, in their true light, My divine birth and actions, having abandoned the body, is not born again; he comes to Me, O Arjuna.
- Verse 10: Freed from attachment, fear, and anger, absorbed in Me, taking refuge in Me, purified by the fire of knowledge, many have attained My Being.
- Verse 11: In whatever way men approach Me, even so do I reward them; My path do men tread in all ways, O Arjuna.
- Verse 12: Those who long for success in action in this world sacrifice to the gods; for success is quickly attained by men through action.
- Verse 13: The fourfold caste has been created by Me according to the differentiation of Guna and Karma; though I am the author of it, know Me as non-doer and immutable.
- Verse 14: Actions do not taint Me, nor do I have a desire for the fruit of actions. He who knows Me thus is not bound by actions.
- Verse 15: Having known this, the ancient seekers of freedom also performed action; therefore, do thou also perform action, as the ancients did in days of yore.
- Verse 16: What is action? What is inaction? Even the wise are confused about this. Therefore, I shall teach you the nature of action and inaction, by knowing which you will be liberated from the evil of Samsara, the wheel of birth and death.
- Verse 17: For verily, the true nature of action enjoined by the scriptures should be known, as well as that of forbidden or unlawful action, and of inaction; the nature of action is hard to understand.
- Verse 18: He who sees inaction in action and action in inaction, he is wise among men; he is a yogi and performer of all actions.
- Verse 19: He whose undertakings are all devoid of desires and selfish purposes, and whose actions have been burned by the fire of knowledge, the wise call him a sage.
- Verse 20: Having abandoned attachment to the fruits of the action, ever content, depending on nothing, he does not do anything even while being engaged in activity.
- Verse 21: Without hope, controlling the mind and the self, having abandoned all covetousness, and performing only bodily actions, one incurs no sin.
- Verse 22: Content with what comes to him without effort, free from the pairs of opposites and envy, even-minded in success and failure, he acts yet is not bound.
- Verse 23: To one who is devoid of attachment, who is liberated, whose mind is established in knowledge, and who works for the sake of sacrifice (for the sake of God), the whole action is dissolved.
- Verse 24: Brahman is the oblation; Brahman is the melted butter (ghee); by Brahman is the oblation poured into the fire of Brahman; Brahman indeed shall be attained by one who always sees Brahman in action.
- Verse 25: Some yogis perform sacrifice to the gods alone; while others, who have realized the Self, offer the Self as sacrifice in the fire of Brahman alone.
- Verse 26: Some again offer the organ of hearing and other senses as a sacrifice in the fire of restraint; others offer sound and other objects of the senses as a sacrifice in the fire of the senses.
- Verse 27: Others again sacrifice all the functions of the senses and those of the breath (vital energy, or Prana) in the fire of the Yoga of self-restraint, kindled by knowledge.
- Verse 28: Others again offer wealth, austerity, and Yoga as sacrifice, while ascetics of self-restraint and rigid vows offer the study of scriptures and knowledge as sacrifice.
- Verse 29: Others offer as sacrifice the outgoing breath into the incoming, and the incoming into the outgoing, restraining the flow of the outgoing and the incoming breaths, solely absorbed in the restraint of the breath.
- Verse 30: Others who regulate their diet offer life-breaths in each life-breath. All these are knowers of sacrifice, whose sins are destroyed through sacrifice.
- Verse 31: Those who eat the remnants of the sacrifice, which are like nectar, go to the eternal Brahman. This world is not for the one who does not perform sacrifice; how then can they have the other, O Arjuna?
- Verse 32: Thus, manifold sacrifices are spread out before Brahman at the face of Brahman. Know them all to be born of action, and thus knowing, you shall be liberated.
- Verse 33: Superior is wisdom-sacrifice to the sacrifice with objects, O Parantapa (scorcher of the foes). All actions in their entirety, O Arjuna, culminate in knowledge.
- Verse 34: Know that the wise who have realized the truth will instruct thee in that knowledge through long prostration, supplication, and service.
- Verse 35: Knowing that thou shalt not, O Arjuna, again be deluded like this; and by that thou shalt see all beings in thyself and also in me.
- Verse 36: Even if thou art the most sinful of all sinners, yet thou shalt surely cross over all sins by the raft of knowledge.
- Verse 37: As the blazing fire reduces fuel to ashes, O Arjuna, so does the fire of knowledge reduce all actions to ash.
- Verse 38: Verily, there is no purifier in this world like knowledge. He who is perfected in Yoga finds it within the Self in due time.
- Verse 39: The one who is full of faith, devoted to it, and has subdued their senses obtains this knowledge; and upon obtaining the knowledge, they attain the supreme peace immediately.
- Verse 40: The ignorant, the faithless, and the doubting self go to destruction; there is neither this world nor the other, nor happiness for the doubting one.
- Verse 41: He who has renounced actions through Yoga, whose doubts have been dispelled by knowledge, and who is self-possessed—such a one is not bound by actions, O Arjuna.
- Verse 42: Therefore, with the sword of knowledge (of the Self), cut asunder the doubt of the self, born of ignorance, residing in your heart, and take refuge in Yoga. Arise, O Arjuna!
5. Karma Sanyasa Yoga (Path of Renunciation)
The fifth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Karma Sanyasa Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna compares the paths of renunciation in actions (Karma Sanyas) and actions with detachment (Karma Yoga) and explains that both are means to reach the same goal and we can choose either. A wise person should perform his/her worldly duties without attachment to the fruits of his/her actions and dedicate them to God. This way they remain unaffected by sin and eventually attain liberation.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said, "O Krishna, you praise renunciation of actions and also yoga. Please tell me conclusively which is better of the two."
- Verse 2: The Blessed Lord said, "Renunciation and the Yoga of action both lead to the highest bliss; but of the two, the Yoga of action is superior to the renunciation of action."
- Verse 3: He should be known as a perpetual Sannyasi who neither hates nor desires; for, free from the pairs of opposites, O mighty-armed Arjuna, he is easily freed from bondage.
- Verse 4: Children, not the wise, speak of knowledge and the Yoga of action, or the performance of action, as though they are distinct and different; he who is truly established in one, obtains the fruits of both.
- Verse 5: That place which is reached by the Sankhyas or the Jnanis is also reached by the Yogis (Karma Yogis). He who sees knowledge and the performance of action (Karma Yoga) as one, sees truly.
- Verse 6: But, O mighty-armed Arjuna, renunciation is hard to attain without Yoga; the sage who is in harmony with Yoga quickly goes to Brahman.
- Verse 7: He who is devoted to the path of action, whose mind is pure, who has conquered the self, who has subdued his senses, and who realizes his Self as the Self in all beings, though acting, is not tainted.
- Verse 8: I do nothing at all," thus would the harmonized knower of Truth think, seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, going, sleeping, and breathing.
- Verse 9: Speaking, letting go, seizing, opening, and closing the eyes, one should be convinced that the senses move among the sense-objects.
- Verse 10: He who does actions, offering them to Brahman and abandoning attachment, is not tainted by sin, just as a lotus leaf is not tainted by water.
- Verse 11: Yogis, having abandoned attachment, perform actions only through the body, mind, intellect, and even the senses, for the purification of the self.
- Verse 12: The one who is united (the well-poised or harmonized) having abandoned the fruit of action attains eternal peace; whereas the one who is not united (the unsteady or unbalanced), impelled by desire and attached to the fruit, is bound.
- Verse 13: Mentally renouncing all actions and being self-controlled, the embodied one happily rests in the nine-gated city, neither acting nor causing others (body and senses) to act.
- Verse 14: Neither does the Lord create agency nor actions for the world, nor union with the fruits of actions; rather, it is Nature that acts.
- Verse 15: The Lord takes neither the demerit nor the merit of any; knowledge is enveloped by ignorance, and beings are deluded.
- Verse 16: But to those whose ignorance is destroyed by knowledge of the Self, like the sun, knowledge reveals the Supreme Brahman.
- Verse 17: Their intellect absorbed in That, their self being That, established in That, with That as their supreme goal, they go whence there is no return, their sins dispelled by knowledge.
- Verse 18: Sages look with an equal eye on a Brahmana endowed with learning and humility, on a cow, an elephant, a dog, and even an outcaste.
- Verse 19: Even here in this world, those whose minds rest in reality overcome birth; Brahman is indeed spotless and real; therefore they are established in Brahman.
- Verse 20: Resting in Brahman, with a steady intellect and undeluded, the knower of Brahman neither rejoices upon obtaining what is pleasant nor grieves upon obtaining what is unpleasant.
- Verse 21: With the self unattached to external contacts, he finds happiness in the Self; with the self engaged in the meditation of Brahman, he attains endless happiness.
- Verse 22: The enjoyments that arise from contact are only sources of pain, for they have a beginning and an end, O Arjuna; the wise do not rejoice in them.
- Verse 23: He who is able, while still here in this world, to withstand the impulse born out of desire and anger before the liberation from the body, he is a Yogi, and he is a happy man.
- Verse 24: He who is happy within, who rejoices within, and who is illuminated within, that Yogi attains absolute freedom, or Moksha, becoming Brahman himself.
- Verse 25: The sages obtain absolute freedom or Moksha when their sins have been destroyed, their dualities have been torn asunder, they are self-controlled, and they are intent on the welfare of all beings.
- Verse 26: Absolute freedom exists on all sides for those self-controlled ascetics who are free from desire and anger, who have controlled their thoughts, and who have realized the Self.
- Verse 27: Shutting out all external contacts and fixing the gaze between the eyebrows, realizing the outgoing and incoming breaths moving within the nostrils.
- Verse 28: With the senses, mind, and intellect ever controlled, having liberation as their supreme goal, free from desire, fear, and anger, the sage is truly liberated forever.
- Verse 29: He who knows Me as the enjoyer of sacrifices and austerities, the great Lord of all the worlds, and the friend of all beings, attains peace.
6. Dhyana Yoga (Path of Meditation)
The sixth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Dhyana Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna reveals the "Yoga of Meditation" and how to practise this Yoga. He discusses the role of action in preparing for Meditation, how performing duties in devotion purifies one's mind and heightens one's spiritual consciousness. He explains in detail the obstacles that one faces when trying to control their mind and the exact methods by which one can conquer their mind. He reveals how one can focus their mind on Paramatma and unite with the God.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said: He who performs his bounden duty without depending on the fruits of his actions—he is a sannyasi and a yogi, not he who is without fire and without action.
- Verse 2: Do you, O Arjuna, know that Yoga is what they call renunciation; no one indeed becomes a Yogi who has not renounced their thoughts.
- Verse 3: For a sage who wishes to attain to Yoga, action is said to be the means; for the same sage who has attained Yoga, inaction is said to be the means.
- Verse 4: When a person is not attached to the sense-objects or to actions, having renounced all thoughts, then they are said to have attained Yoga.
- Verse 5: One should raise oneself by one's own self alone; let not one lower oneself; for the self alone is one's own friend, and the self alone is one's own enemy.
- Verse 6: The Self is the friend of the self of him by whom the Self has been conquered; but to the unconquered self, this Self stands in the position of an enemy, like an external foe.
- Verse 7: The Supreme Self of him who is self-controlled and peaceful remains balanced in cold and heat, pleasure and pain, as well as in honor and dishonor.
- Verse 8: The Yogi who is satisfied with the knowledge and wisdom of the Self, who has conquered the senses, and to whom a clod of earth, a piece of stone, and gold are all the same, is said to have attained Nirvikalpa Samadhi.
- Verse 9: He who is of the same mind towards the good-hearted, friends, enemies, the indifferent, the neutral, the hateful, the relatives, the righteous, and the unrighteous, excels.
- Verse 10: Let the yogi constantly strive to keep the mind steady, remaining in solitude, alone, with the body and mind controlled, and free from hope and greed.
- Verse 11: In a clean spot, having established a firm seat of his own, neither too high nor too low, made of cloth, skin, and kusha grass layered one over the other.
- Verse 12: There, having made the mind one-pointed, with the actions of the mind and senses controlled, let him, seated on the seat, practice Yoga for the purification of the self.
- Verse 13: Let him firmly hold his body, head, and neck erect and still, gazing at the tip of his nose without looking around.
- Verse 14: Serene-minded, fearless, firm in the vow of a Brahmachari, having controlled their mind, thinking of Me and balanced in mind, let them sit, having Me as their supreme goal.
- Verse 15: Thus, always keeping the mind balanced, the yogi, with the mind controlled, attains the peace abiding in Me, culminating in liberation.
- Verse 16: Verily, Yoga is not possible for him who eats too much, nor for him who does not eat at all, nor for him who sleeps too much, nor for him who is always awake, O Arjuna.
- Verse 17: Yoga becomes the destroyer of pain for him who is moderate in eating and recreation (such as walking, etc.), who exercises moderation in action, and who is moderate in sleep and wakefulness.
- Verse 18: When the perfectly controlled mind rests in the Self alone, free from longing for any of the objects of desire, then it is said, 'He is united'.
- Verse 19: As a lamp placed in a windless spot does not flicker, so is the Yogi of a controlled mind, who practices Yoga in the Self, compared.
- Verse 20: When the mind, restrained by the practice of yoga, attains quietude, and when one sees the Self by the Self, they are satisfied in their own Self.
- Verse 21: When he (the Yogi) feels that infinite bliss which can be grasped by the pure intellect and which transcends the senses, and is established therein, never moving away from the reality.
- Verse 22: Having obtained it, he thinks there is no other gain superior to it; established in it, he is not moved even by heavy sorrow.
- Verse 23: Let this be known by the name of Yoga, the severance from union with pain. This Yoga should be practiced with determination and with an undespairing mind.
- Verse 24: Abandoning unreservedly all desires born of Sankalpa (thought and imagination) and completely restraining the whole group of senses by the mind from all sides.
- Verse 25: Little by little, let him attain steadiness of the intellect by holding it firmly; having made the mind establish itself in the Self, let him not think of anything else.
- Verse 26: From whatever cause the restless and unsteady mind wanders away, let him restrain it from that and bring it under the control of the Self alone.
- Verse 27: Supreme Bliss indeed comes to this Yogi whose mind is made peaceful, whose passion is quelled, who has become Brahman, and who is free from sin.
- Verse 28: The yogi, always engaging the mind thus (in the practice of yoga), is freed from sins and easily enjoys the infinite bliss of contact with Brahman (the Eternal).
- Verse 29: With the mind harmonized by Yoga, he sees the Self abiding in all beings and all beings in the Self; he sees the same everywhere.
- Verse 30: He who sees Me everywhere and sees everything in Me, never becomes separated from Me, nor do I from him.
- Verse 31: He who, being established in unity, worships Me, who dwells in all beings, that yogi abides in Me, whatever their mode of living may be.
- Verse 32: He who, through the likeness of the Self, O Arjuna, sees reality everywhere, be it pleasure or pain, is regarded as the highest Yogi.
- Verse 33: Arjuna said, "O Krishna, I do not see how this Yoga of equanimity, which you have taught me, can be maintained steadily, due to the restlessness of the mind."
- Verse 34: The mind is indeed restless, turbulent, strong, and unyielding, O Krishna; I consider it as difficult to control as controlling the wind.
- Verse 35: The Blessed Lord said, "Undoubtedly, O mighty-armed Arjuna, the mind is difficult to control and restless; but with practice and dispassion, it can be restrained."
- Verse 36: I think Yoga is hard to be attained by one with an uncontrolled self, but the self-controlled and striving one can attain it by the appropriate means.
- Verse 37: Arjuna said, "He who is unable to control himself, even though he has faith, and whose mind wanders away from Yoga, what end does he meet, having failed to attain perfection in Yoga, O Krishna?"
- Verse 38: Fallen from both, does he not perish like a rent cloud, supportless, O mighty-armed one, deluded on the path of Brahman?
- Verse 39: O Krishna, please completely dispel this doubt of mine, for it is not possible for anyone but You to do so.
- Verse 40: The Blessed Lord said, "O Arjuna, neither in this world nor in the next will there be destruction for him; none, indeed, who does good, O my son, ever comes to grief."
- Verse 41: Having attained to the worlds of the righteous and having dwelt there for everlasting years, he who fell from Yoga is born in a house of the pure and wealthy.
- Verse 42: Or he is born in a family of even the wisest of yogis; verily, such a birth is very difficult to obtain in this world.
- Verse 43: Then he comes into contact with the knowledge acquired in his former body and strives even more for perfection, O Arjuna.
- Verse 44: By that same former practice, he is borne on in spite of himself. Even he who merely wishes to know Yoga goes beyond the Brahmanic word.
- Verse 45: But the Yogi who strives assiduously, purified of sins and perfected gradually over many births, reaches the highest goal.
- Verse 46: The yogi is thought to be superior to the ascetics, even superior to those who have knowledge obtained through the study of scriptures; he is also superior to men of action; therefore, be thou a yogi, O Arjuna.
- Verse 47: And among all the Yogis, he who, full of faith and with his inner self merged in Me, worships Me is deemed by Me to be the most devoted.
7. Gyaan Vigyana Yoga (Self-Knowledge and Enlightenment)
The seventh chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Gyaan Vigyana Yoga ". In this chapter, Krishna reveals that he is the Supreme Truth, the principal cause and the sustaining force of everything. He reveals his illusionary energy in this material world called Maya, which is very difficult to overcome but those who surrender their minds unto Him attain Him easily. He also describes the four types of people who surrender to Him in devotion and the four kinds that don't. Krishna confirms that He is the Ultimate Reality and those who realize this Truth reach the pinnacle of spiritual realization and unite with the Lord.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said, "O Arjuna, hear how you shall, without doubt, know Me fully, with your mind intent on Me, practicing Yoga and taking refuge in Me."
- Verse 2: I will declare to you in full this knowledge combined with realization, after knowing which nothing else remains to be known here.
- Verse 3: Among thousands of men, one may perchance strive for perfection; even among those successful strivers, only one may perchance know Me in essence.
- Verse 4: Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intellect, and egoism—thus is My Nature divided eightfold.
- Verse 5: O mighty-armed Arjuna, this is the inferior Prakriti; know it as distinct from My higher Prakriti, the very life-element, by which this world is upheld.
- Verse 6: Know that these two are the womb of all beings; thus, I am the source and dissolution of the whole universe.
- Verse 7: There is nothing higher than Me, O Arjuna. All this is strung on Me, like clusters of gems on a string.
- Verse 8: I am the flavor in water, O Arjuna; I am the light in the moon and the sun; I am the syllable Om in all the Vedas, sound in the ether and virility in men.
- Verse 9: I am the sweet fragrance in the earth and the brilliance in the fire, the life in all beings, and I am the austerity of ascetics.
- Verse 10: Know Me, O Arjuna, as the eternal seed of all beings; I am the intelligence of the intelligent, and the splendour of the splendid objects.
- Verse 11: Of the strong, I am the strength devoid of desire and attachment, and in all beings, I am the desire in accordance with Dharma, O Arjuna.
- Verse 12: Whatever beings (and objects) that are pure, active, and inert, know that they proceed from Me. They are in Me, yet I am not in them.
- Verse 13: Deluded by these Natures, composed of the three qualities of Nature, all this world does not know Me as distinct from them and immutable.
- Verse 14: Verily, this divine illusion of Mine, composed of the three qualities, is difficult to cross over; those who take refuge in Me alone, can cross over this illusion.
- Verse 15: The evil-doers and the deluded, who are the lowest of men, do not seek Me; those whose knowledge is destroyed by illusion follow the ways of demons.
- Verse 16: Four kinds of virtuous men worship Me, O Arjuna, and they are the distressed, the seekers of knowledge, the seekers of wealth, and the wise, O Lord of the Bharatas.
- Verse 17: Of them, the wise who are ever steadfast and devoted to the One, excel; for I am exceedingly dear to the wise, and they are dear to Me.
- Verse 18: Indeed, all these are noble; however, I consider the wise man as My very Self; for, he is steadfast in mind and established in Me alone as the supreme goal.
- Verse 19: At the end of many births, the wise man comes to Me, realizing that all this is Vaasudeva (the innermost Self); such a great soul (Mahatma) is very hard to find.
- Verse 20: Those whose wisdom has been taken away by this or that desire, go to other gods, following this or that rite, led by their own nature.
- Verse 21: Whatever form any devotee desires to worship with faith, I make that same faith of his firm and unflinching.
- Verse 22: Endowed with that faith, he engages in the worship of that form and obtains his desired outcome, which is ordained by Me alone.
- Verse 23: Verily, the reward (fruit) that accrues to those men of small intelligence is finite. The worshippers of the gods go to them, whereas My devotees come to Me.
- Verse 24: The foolish think of Me, the Unmanifest, as having manifestation, not knowing My higher, immutable, and most excellent nature.
- Verse 25: I am not manifest to all, veiled as I am by the Yoga-Maya. This deluded world does not know Me, who am unborn and imperishable.
- Verse 26: I know, O Arjuna, the beings of the past, the present, and the future; however, no one knows Me.
- Verse 27: O Bharata, all beings are subject to delusion at birth due to the delusion of the pairs of opposites arising from desire and aversion, O Parantapa.
- Verse 28: But those men of virtuous deeds, whose sins have come to an end and who are freed from the delusion of the pairs of opposites, worship Me steadfastly, with their vows.
- Verse 29: Those who strive for liberation from old age and death, taking refuge in Me, realize in full that Brahman, the whole knowledge of the Self, and all action.
- Verse 30: Those who know Me with the Adhibhuta (pertaining to the elements), Adhidaiva (pertaining to the gods), and the Adhiyajna (pertaining to the sacrifice) know Me even at the time of death, remaining steadfast in mind.
8. Akshara Brahma Yoga (Path of the Eternal God)
The eighth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Akshara Brahma Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna reveals the importance of the last thought before death. If we can remember Krishna at the time of death, we will certainly attain him. Thus, it is very important to be in constant awareness of the Lord at all times, thinking of Him and chanting His names at all times. By perfectly absorbing their mind in Him through constant devotion, one can go beyond this material existence to Lord's Supreme abode.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said, "What is Brahman? What is Adhyatma? What is action, O best among men? What is Adhibhuta declared to be? And, what is Adhidaiva said to be?"
- Verse 2: Who and how is Adhiyajna here in this body, O destroyer of Madhu? And how, at the time of death, are You to be known by the self-controlled?
- Verse 3: The Blessed Lord said, "Brahman is the Imperishable, the Supreme; its essential nature is called Self-knowledge; the offering (to the gods) that causes the existence and manifestation of beings and sustains them is called action."
- Verse 4: Adhibhuta—knowledge of the elements—pertains to My perishable nature, and the Purusha, or the Soul, is the Adhidaiva; I alone am the Adhiyajna here in this body, O best among the embodied.
- Verse 5: And whoever, leaving their body, goes forth remembering Me alone at the time of death, they will attain My Being; there is no doubt about this.
- Verse 6: Whoever at the end leaves the body, thinking of any being, to that being only does he go, O son of Kunti (Arjuna), due to his constant thought of that being.
- Verse 7: Therefore, at all times, remember Me only and fight. With your mind and intellect fixed on Me, you will undoubtedly come to Me alone.
- Verse 8: With the mind not moving towards any other thing, made steadfast through the practice of habitual meditation, and constantly meditating, one goes to the Supreme Person, the Resplendent, O Arjuna.
- Verse 9: Whosoever meditates on the Omniscient, the Ancient, the Ruler of the whole world, minuter than an atom, the supporter of all, of inconceivable form, effulgent like the sun and beyond the darkness of ignorance.
- Verse 10: At the time of death, with an unwavering mind, endowed with devotion, by the power of Yoga, fixing the whole life-breath in the middle of the two eyebrows, he reaches that resplendent Supreme Person.
- Verse 11: That which is declared to be Imperishable by those who know the Vedas, that which the self-controlled (ascetics or Sannyasins) and passion-free enter, that goal, desiring which celibacy is practised, I will declare to thee in brief.
- Verse 12: Having closed all the gates, confined the mind in the heart, and fixed the life-breath in the head, engage in the practice of concentration.
- Verse 13: Uttering the one-syllabled Om, the Brahman, and remembering Me, he who departs, leaving the body, attains the Supreme Goal.
- Verse 14: I am easily attainable by that ever-steadfast yogi who constantly and daily remembers me for a long time, not thinking of anything else with a single-minded or one-pointed focus, O Partha.
- Verse 15: Having attained Me, these great souls do not take birth again here—a place of pain and impermanence—but have reached the highest perfection of liberation.
- Verse 16: All the worlds, including the world of Brahma, are subject to return again, O Arjuna; but he who reaches Me, O son of Kunti, has no rebirth.
- Verse 17: Those who know the day of Brahma, which lasts a thousand Yugas, and the night, which also lasts a thousand Yugas, know day and night.
- Verse 18: From the Unmanifested, all the manifested worlds proceed upon the arrival of the 'day'; upon the arrival of the 'night', they dissolve indeed into that which is known as the Unmanifested.
- Verse 19: This same multitude of beings, being born again and again, helplessly dissolves, O Arjuna, into the Unmanifested at the coming of the night and comes forth at the coming of the day.
- Verse 20: But verily, there exists higher than this Unmanifested, another Unmanifested Eternal, which is not destroyed even when all beings are destroyed.
- Verse 21: What is known as the Unmanifested and the Imperishable, That is said to be the highest goal. Those who reach It do not return (to this Samsara). That is My supreme abode (place or state).
- Verse 22: That highest Purusha, O Arjuna, is attainable by unswerving devotion to Him alone, within Whom all beings dwell and by Whom all this is pervaded.
- Verse 23: Now I will tell you, O chief of the Bharatas, the times of departure at which the Yogis will return or not return.
- Verse 24: Fire, light, daytime, the bright fortnight, the six months of the northern path of the sun (the northern solstice) departing, then men who know Brahman go to Brahman.
- Verse 25: Attaining the lunar light through smoke, night time, the dark fortnight, and the six months of the southern path of the sun (the southern solstice), the yogi returns.
- Verse 26: The bright and dark paths of the world are thought to be eternal; one leads to no return, and the other leads to return.
- Verse 27: Knowing these paths, O Arjuna, no yogi is deluded; therefore, at all times, be steadfast in yoga.
- Verse 28: Whatever fruit of merit is declared (in the scriptures) to accrue from (the study of) the Vedas, (the performance of) sacrifices, (the practice of) austerities, and gifts, beyond all this goes the Yogi, having known this; and he attains to the Supreme, Primeval (first or ancient) Abode.
9. Raja Vidya Yoga (Yoga through the King of Sciences)
The ninth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Raja Vidya Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna explains that He is Supreme and how this material existence is created, maintained and destroyed by His Yogmaya and all beings come and go under his supervision. He reveals the Role and the Importance of Bhakti (transcendental devotional service) towards our Spiritual Awakening. In such devotion, one must live for the God, offer everything that he possesses to Him and do everything for Him only. One who follows such devotion becomes free from the bonds of this material world and unites with the Lord.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said, "I shall now declare to thee, who does not cavil, the greatest secret—the knowledge combined with experience (Self-realisation). Having known this, thou shalt be free from evil."
- Verse 2: This is the royal science, the royal secret, the supreme purifier, realizable by direct intuitive knowledge, according to righteousness, very easy to perform and imperishable.
- Verse 3: Those who have no faith in this Dharma, O Parantapa, return to the path of this world without attaining Me.
- Verse 4: All of this world is pervaded by Me in My unmanifest aspect; all beings exist within Me, but I do not dwell within them.
- Verse 5: Nor do beings exist in Me (in reality); behold, My divine Yoga, which supports all beings, but does not dwell in them, is My Self, the efficient cause of beings.
- Verse 6: As the mighty wind, moving everywhere, always rests in the ether, so too, know that all beings rest in Me.
- Verse 7: All beings, O Arjuna, go into My Nature at the end of a Kalpa; I send them forth again at the beginning of the next Kalpa.
- Verse 8: Animating My Nature, I again and again send forth all this multitude of beings, helpless under the force of Nature.
- Verse 9: These acts do not bind Me, O Arjuna, sitting as one indifferent, unattached to those acts.
- Verse 10: Under Me, as supervisor, Nature produces the moving and the unmoving; therefore, O Arjuna, the world revolves.
- Verse 11: Fools disregard Me, clad in human form, not knowing My higher Being as the great Lord of all beings.
- Verse 12: They are possessed of the deceitful nature of demons and undivine beings, filled with vain hopes, vain actions, and vain knowledge that is senseless.
- Verse 13: But the great souls, O Arjuna, partaking of My divine nature, worship Me with a single-minded devotion, knowing Me as the imperishable source of all beings.
- Verse 14: Always glorifying Me, striving, firm in their vows, prostrating themselves before Me, they worship Me with steadfast devotion.
- Verse 15: Others also, sacrificing with the wisdom-sacrifice, worship Me, the All-Faced, as one, distinct, and manifold.
- Verse 16: I am Kratu; I am Yajna; I am the offering to the manes; I am the medicinal herbs and all plants; I am the Mantra; I am also the ghee or melted butter; I am the fire; I am the oblation.
- Verse 17: I am the father of this world, the mother, the dispenser of the fruits of actions, and the grandfather; the one thing to be known, the purifier, the sacred monosyllable (Om), and also the Rik, Sama, and Yajur Vedas.
- Verse 18: I am the goal, the supporter, the Lord, the witness, the abode, the shelter, the friend, the origin, the dissolution, the foundation, the treasure-house, and the imperishable seed.
- Verse 19: As the sun, I give heat; I withhold and send forth the rain; I am immortality and also death, existence and non-existence, O Arjuna.
- Verse 20: The knowers of the three Vedas, the drinkers of Soma, purified of all sins, worshipping Me through sacrifices, pray for the way to heaven; they reach the holy world of the Lord of the gods and enjoy the divine pleasures of the gods in heaven.
- Verse 21: They, having enjoyed the vast heaven, enter the world of mortals when their merit is exhausted; thus abiding by the injunctions of the three (Vedas) and desiring objects of desires, they attain to the state of coming and going.
- Verse 22: For those men who worship Me alone, thinking of no one else, for those ever-united, I secure what they have not already possessed and preserve what they already possess.
- Verse 23: Even those devotees who, endowed with faith, worship other gods, worship Me alone, O Arjuna, but by the wrong method.
- Verse 24: For I alone am the enjoyer and Lord of all sacrifices; but they do not know Me in reality, and thus they return to this mortal world.
- Verse 25: The worshippers of the gods go to them; the ancestor-worshippers go to the manes; the worshippers of the deities who preside over the elements go to them; but My devotees come to Me.
- Verse 26: Whoever offers Me with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or a little water, that, so offered devotedly by the pure-minded, I accept.
- Verse 27: Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer in sacrifice, whatever you give, whatever austerity you practice, O Arjuna, do it as an offering to Me.
- Verse 28: Thus, you shall be freed from the bonds of actions yielding good and evil fruits; with the mind steadfast in the Yoga of renunciation, and liberated, you shall come to Me.
- Verse 29: I am the same to all beings; there is none hateful or dear to Me; but those who worship Me with devotion are in Me, and I am also in them.
- Verse 30: Even if the most sinful worships Me, with devotion to no one else, he should indeed be regarded as righteous, for he has rightly resolved.
- Verse 31: Soon he becomes righteous and attains eternal peace; O Arjuna, proclaim thou for certain that My devotee never perishes.
- Verse 32: For, taking refuge in Me, they who, O Arjuna, may be of a sinful birth—women, Vaisyas, and Sudras—attain the Supreme Goal.
- Verse 33: How much more easily, then, do Brahmins and devoted royal saints attain the goal? Having come to this impermanent and unhappy world, do thou worship Me.
- Verse 34: Fix your mind on Me; be devoted to Me; sacrifice to Me; bow down to Me; having thus united your whole self to Me, taking Me as the supreme goal, you will come to Me.
10. Vibhooti Yoga (Yoga through Appreciating the Infinite Opulences of God)
The tenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Vibhooti Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna reveals Himself as the cause of all causes. He describes His various manifestations and opulences in order to increase Arjuna's Bhakti. Arjuna is fully convinced of Lord's paramount position and proclaims him to be the Supreme Personality. He prays to Krishna to describe more of His divine glories which are like nectar to hear.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said, Again, O mighty-armed Arjuna, listen to my supreme word which I will declare to you, who are beloved, for your welfare.
- Verse 2: Neither the hosts of the gods nor the great sages know My origin; for I am the source of all the gods and the great sages in every way.
- Verse 3: He who knows Me as unborn and beginningless, as the great Lord of the worlds, he among mortals is undeluded and is liberated from all sins.
- Verse 4: Intellect, wisdom, non-delusion, forgiveness, truth, self-restraint, calmness, happiness, pain, existence or birth, non-existence or death, fear, and also fearlessness.
- Verse 5: Non-injury, equanimity, contentment, austerity, beneficence, fame, and ill-fame—these different qualities of beings arise from Me alone.
- Verse 6: The seven great sages, the ancient four, and the Manus, possessing powers like Mine (due to their minds being fixed on Me), were born from My mind; from them, these creatures have been born in this world.
- Verse 7: He who truly knows these manifold manifestations of My Being and this Yoga-power of Mine, becomes established in unshakable Yoga; there is no doubt about it.
- Verse 8: I am the source of all; from me everything evolves; Understanding this, the wise, endowed with meditation, worship me.
- Verse 9: With their minds and lives wholly absorbed in Me, they enlighten each other and ever speak of Me, being satisfied and delighted.
- Verse 10: To those who are ever steadfast, worshipping me with love, I give the yoga of discrimination, by which they come to me.
- Verse 11: Out of mere compassion for them, I, dwelling within their selves, destroy the darkness born of ignorance with the luminous lamp of knowledge.
- Verse 12: Arjuna said, "You are the Supreme Brahman, the supreme abode, the supreme purifier, eternal, divine Person, the primeval God, unborn, and omnipresent."
- Verse 13: All the sages have thus declared Thee, as also the divine sage Narada; so also Asita, Devala, and Vyasa; and now Thou Thyself dost say so to me.
- Verse 14: I believe all that You have said to me to be true, O Krishna; indeed, O blessed Lord! Neither the gods nor the demons know Your manifestation (origin).
- Verse 15: Verily, Thou Thyself knowest Thyself by Thyself, O Supreme Person, O source and Lord of all beings, O God of gods, O ruler of the world!
- Verse 16: You should indeed tell, without reserve, of your divine glories by which you exist, pervading all these worlds. (No one else can do so.)
- Verse 17: How shall I, ever meditating, know you, O Yogin? In what aspects or things, O blessed Lord, should I think of you?
- Verse 18: Tell me again in detail, O Krishna, of your yogic power and glory; for I am not satiated with what I have heard of your life-giving and nectar-like speech.
- Verse 19: The Blessed Lord said, "Very well! Now I will declare to you My divine glories in their prominence, O Arjuna; there is no end to their detailed description."
- Verse 20: I am the Self, O Gudakesa, seated in the hearts of all beings; I am the beginning, the middle, and the end of all beings.
- Verse 21: Among the twelve Adityas, I am Vishnu; among luminaries, the radiant sun; among the seven or forty-nine Maruts, I am Marichi; among stars, I am the moon.
- Verse 22: Among the Vedas, I am the Sama-Veda; among the gods, I am Vasava; among the senses, I am the mind; and among living beings, I am intelligence.
- Verse 23: And among the Rudras, I am Sankara; among the Yakshas and Rakshasas, the Lord of Wealth (Kubera); among the Vasus, I am Pavaka (Fire); and among the seven mountains, I am Meru.
- Verse 24: And, among the household priests of kings, O Arjuna, know Me to be the chief, Brihaspati; among the army generals, I am Skanda; among lakes, I am the ocean.
- Verse 25: Among the great sages, I am Bhrigu; among words, I am the one syllable (Om); among sacrifices, I am the sacrifice of silent repetition; among the immovable things, I am the Himalayas.
- Verse 26: Among all the trees, I am the Peepul; among the divine sages, I am Narada; among the Gandharvas, I am Chitraratha; among the perfected, I am the sage Kapila.
- Verse 27: Know Me as Ucchaisravas, born of nectar, among horses; Airavata among lordly elephants; and the king among men.
- Verse 28: Among weapons, I am the thunderbolt; among cows, I am the wish-fulfilling cow called Kamadhenu; I am the progenitor, the god of love; among serpents, I am Vasuki.
- Verse 29: I am Ananta among the Nagas; I am Varuna among water-deities; Aryaman among the Manes; I am Yama among the governors.
- Verse 30: And I am Prahlada among the demons, I am Time among reckoners, I am the lion among beasts, and Vainateya (Garuda) among birds.
- Verse 31: Among the purifiers, I am the wind; among the warriors, I am Rama; among the fishes, I am the shark; among the streams, I am the Ganga.
- Verse 32: Among creations I am the beginning, the middle, and the end, O Arjuna; among the sciences, I am the science of the Self; and I am the logic among controversialists.
- Verse 33: Among the letters of the alphabet, I am the letter 'A' and the dual among compounds. I am verily the inexhaustible and everlasting time; I am the dispenser of the fruits of actions, having faces in all directions.
- Verse 34: And I am the all-devouring Death, and the source of prosperity for those who are to be prosperous; among the feminine qualities, I am fame, prosperity, speech, memory, intelligence, firmness, and forgiveness.
- Verse 35: Among the hymns, I am the Brihatsaman; among meters, I am Gayatri; among months, I am Margasirsha; among seasons, I am the flowery season.
- Verse 36: I am the gambling of the deceitful; I am the splendor of the splendid; I am victory; I am the resolve of the resolute; I am the goodness of the good.
- Verse 37: Among the Vrishnis, I am Vaasudeva; among the Pandavas, I am Arjuna; among the sages, I am Vyasa; among the poets, I am Usanas, the poet.
- Verse 38: Of those who punish, I am the scepter; among those who seek victory, I am statesmanship; and among secrets, I am silence; I am knowledge among knowers.
- Verse 39: And whatever is the seed of all beings, that too am I, O Arjuna; there is no being, be it moving or unmoving, that can exist without Me.
- Verse 40: There is no end to My divine glories, O Arjuna, but this is a brief statement by Me of the particulars of My divine glory.
- Verse 41: Whatever being there is glorious, prosperous, or powerful, know that to be a manifestation of a part of My splendor.
- Verse 42: But, of what avail is the knowledge of all these details to you, O Arjuna? I exist, supporting this whole world with one part of Myself.
11. Vishwaroopa Darshana Yoga (Yoga through Beholding the Cosmic Form of God)
The eleventh chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Vishwaroopa Darshana Yoga". In this chapter, Arjuna requests Krishna to reveal His Universal Cosmic Form that encompasses all the universes, the entire existence. Arjuna is granted divine vision to be able to see the entirety of creation in the body of the Supreme Lord Krishna.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said, By this explanation of the highest secret concerning the Self which Thou hast spoken, for the sake of blessing me, my delusion has been dispelled.
- Verse 2: The origin and destruction of beings have been heard in detail from You, O lotus-eyed Lord, and also Your inexhaustible greatness.
- Verse 3: Now, O Supreme Lord, as Thou hast thus described Thyself, O Supreme Person, I wish to behold Thy divine form.
- Verse 4: If Thou, O Lord, thinkest it possible for me to see it, do Thou, then, O Lord of the Yogis, show me Thy imperishable Self.
- Verse 5: The Blessed Lord said, "Behold, O Arjuna, forms of Mine, by the hundreds and thousands, of different sorts, divine, and of various colors and shapes."
- Verse 6: Behold the Adityas, the Vasus, the Rudras, the two Asvins, and the Maruts; behold many wonders never before seen, O Arjuna.
- Verse 7: Now, behold, O Arjuna, in this My body, the entire universe centered in one, including the moving and the unmoving, and whatever else you desire to see.
- Verse 8: But you are not able to behold Me with these your own eyes; I give you the divine eye; behold My lordly Yoga.
- Verse 9: Sanjaya said, Having thus spoken, O king, the great Lord of Yoga, Hari (Krishna), showed Arjuna His supreme form as the Lord.
- Verse 10: With numerous mouths and eyes, with numerous wondrous sights, with numerous divine adornments, with numerous divine weapons uplifted, such a form He showed.
- Verse 11: Wearing divine garlands and apparel, anointed with divine unguents, the all-wonderful, resplendent Being is endless with faces on all sides.
- Verse 12: If the splendour of a thousand suns were to blaze out simultaneously in the sky, that would be the splendour of that mighty being.
- Verse 13: There, in the body of the God of gods, Arjuna then saw the entire universe resting in one, with its myriad of divisions.
- Verse 14: Then, Arjuna, filled with wonder and his hair standing on end, bowed his head to the God and spoke with palms joined.
- Verse 15: Arjuna said, "O God, I see all the gods in Your body, as well as hosts of various classes of beings, Brahma the Lord seated on the lotus, all the sages, and the celestial serpents."
- Verse 16: I see You with boundless form on every side, with many arms, stomachs, mouths, and eyes; neither the end nor the middle nor the beginning do I see, O Lord of the Universe, O Cosmic Form.
- Verse 17: I see You with the diadem, club, and discus, a mass of radiance shining everywhere, very hard to look at, blazing all around like a burning fire and the sun, and immeasurable.
- Verse 18: You are the Imperishable, the Supreme Being, worthy of being known. You are the great treasure-house of this universe; You are the imperishable protector of the eternal Dharma; You are the Primal Person, I believe.
- Verse 19: I see You without beginning, middle, or end, infinite in power, with endless arms, the sun and moon as Your eyes, the burning fire Your mouth, heating the entire universe with Your radiance.
- Verse 20: This space between the earth and the heavens, and all the quarters, is filled by You alone; having seen this, Your wonderful and terrible form, the three worlds are trembling with fear, O great-souled Being.
- Verse 21: Verily, these hosts of gods enter into Thee; some extol Thee with joined palms in fear, saying, 'May it be well!' Bands of great sages and perfected ones praise Thee with complete hymns.
- Verse 22: The Rudras, Adityas, Vasus, Sadhyas, Visvedevas, the two Asvins, Maruts, the Manus, and the hosts of celestial singers, Yakshas, demons, and the perfected ones, all look upon Thee with great amazement.
- Verse 23: Having seen Your immeasurable form with many mouths and eyes, O mighty-armed one, with many arms, thighs, and feet, with many stomachs and fearsome with many teeth, the worlds are terrified, and so am I.
- Verse 24: On seeing Thee, touching the sky, shining in many colors, with mouths wide open, with large fiery eyes, I am terrified at heart and find neither courage nor peace, O Vishnu.
- Verse 25: Having seen Thy mouths fearful with teeth blazing like the fires of cosmic dissolution, I know not the four quarters, nor do I find peace. Have mercy, O Lord of the gods, O abode of the universe.
- Verse 26: All the sons of Dhritarashtra, along with the hosts of kings of the earth, Bhishma, Drona, and Karna, as well as the chief among our warriors.
- Verse 27: Some hurry into Your mouths with their terrible teeth, fearful to behold. Some are found stuck in the gaps between the teeth, their heads crushed to powder.
- Verse 28: Verily, just as many torrents of rivers flow towards the ocean, so too these heroes in the world of men enter Thy flaming mouths.
- Verse 29: As moths hurriedly rush into a blazing fire, leading to their own destruction, so too these creatures hurry into Your mouths, leading to their own destruction.
- Verse 30: Thou lickest up, devouring all the worlds on every side with Thy flaming mouths. Thy fierce rays, filling the whole world with radiance, burn, O Vishnu!
- Verse 31: Tell me, who you are, so fierce of form. I offer my salutations to you, O God Supreme; have mercy on me. I desire to know you, the original Being. I do not indeed know your workings.
- Verse 32: The Blessed Lord said, "I am the full-grown, world-destroying Time, now engaged in destroying the worlds. Even without you, none of the warriors arrayed in the hostile armies will live."
- Verse 33: Therefore, stand up and obtain fame. Conquer the enemies and enjoy the unparalleled kingdom. Verily, by Me they have already been slain; be thou a mere instrument, O Arjuna.
- Verse 34: Drona, Bhishma, Jayadratha, Karna, and other brave warriors have already been slain by Me; do not be distressed with fear; fight and you shall conquer your enemies in battle.
- Verse 35: Sanjaya said, Having heard that speech of Lord Krishna, Arjuna, with joined palms, trembling, prostrated himself, again addressing Krishna in a choked voice, bowing down, overwhelmed with fear.
- Verse 36: Arjuna said, "It is fitting, O Krishna, that the world delights and rejoices in Your praise; demons fly in fear in all directions and the hosts of the perfected ones bow to You."
- Verse 37: And why should they not, O great Soul, bow to Thee Who art greater than all else, the primal cause even of the Creator (Brahma), O Infinite Being, O Lord of the gods, O Abode of the universe; Thou art the imperishable, the Being, the non-being, and That which is supreme—that which is beyond the Being and the non-being.
- Verse 38: You are the primal God, the ancient Purusha, the supreme refuge of this universe, the knower, the knowable, and the supreme Abode. Through You, the universe is pervaded, O Being of infinite forms.
- Verse 39: You are Vayu, Yama, Agni, Varuna, the moon, the Creator, and the great-grandfather. I offer my salutations to You a thousand times, and again I offer my salutations to You.
- Verse 40: Salutations to You in front and behind! Salutations to You on every side! O All! You, infinite in power and prowess, pervade all; therefore You are all.
- Verse 41: Whatever I have presumptuously said from carelessness or love, addressing You as O Krishna! O Yadava! O Friend! regarding You merely as a friend, unknowing of Your greatness.
- Verse 42: In whatever way I may have insulted You for the sake of fun, while at play, reposing, sitting, or at meals, when alone (with You), O Krishna, or in company, that I implore You, immeasurable one, to forgive.
- Verse 43: Thou art the Father of this world, both moving and unmoving. Thou art to be adored by this world; Thou, the greatest Guru; for none exists who is equal to Thee; how then could there be another superior to Thee in the three worlds, O Being of unrivaled power?
- Verse 44: Therefore, bowing down and prostrating my body, I crave Thy forgiveness, O adorable Lord. As a father forgives his son, a friend his dear friend, a lover his beloved, even so may Thou forgive me, O God.
- Verse 45: I am delighted, having seen something never seen before; yet my mind is distressed with fear. Show me that form only, O God; have mercy, O God of gods, O Abode of the universe.
- Verse 46: I desire to see You as before, crowned, bearing a mace, with the discus in hand, in Your former form only, having four arms, O thousand-armed, Cosmic Being.
- Verse 47: The Blessed Lord said, "O Arjuna, this Cosmic Form has graciously been shown to you by Me through My own Yogic power. It is full of splendour, primeval, and infinite; this Cosmic Form of Mine has never been seen before by anyone other than you."
- Verse 48: Neither by the study of the Vedas, nor by gifts, nor by sacrifices, nor by severe austerities, can I be seen in this form in the world of men by any other than yourself, O great hero of the Kurus (Arjuna).
- Verse 49: Do not be afraid, nor be bewildered on seeing such a terrible form of Mine; with your fear dispelled and with a gladdened heart, now behold again this former form of Mine.
- Verse 50: Sanjaya said, Having thus spoken to Arjuna, Krishna again showed His own form. The great Soul, assuming His gentle form, then consoled Arjuna, who was terrified.
- Verse 51: Arjuna said, "Having seen this Thy gentle human form, O Krishna, now I am composed and have been restored to my own nature."
- Verse 52: The Blessed Lord said, "It is very hard indeed to see this form of Mine which thou hast seen; even the gods are ever longing to behold it."
- Verse 53: Neither by the Vedas, nor by austerity, nor by gift, nor by sacrifice can I be seen in this form as thou hast seen Me so easily.
- Verse 54: But by single-minded devotion, I can be known, seen, and entered into in reality, O Arjuna.
- Verse 55: He who does all actions for Me, who regards Me as the Supreme, who is devoted to Me, who is free from attachment, who bears no enmity towards any creature, he comes to Me, O Arjuna.
12. Bhakti Yoga (The Yoga of Devotion)
The twelfth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Bhakti Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna emphasizes the superiority of Bhakti Yoga (the path of devotion) over all other types of spiritual disciplines and reveals various aspects of devotion. He further explains that the devotees who perform pure devotional service to Him, with their consciousness, merged in Him and all their actions dedicated to Him, are quickly liberated from the cycle of life and death. He also describes the various qualities of the devotees who are very dear to Him.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said, "Which of them are better versed in Yoga—those who steadfastly worship You, or those who worship the imperishable and the unmanifested?"
- Verse 2: The Blessed Lord said, "In My opinion, those who fix their minds on Me, worship Me ever steadfastly, and are endowed with supreme faith, are the best in Yoga."
- Verse 3: Those who worship the imperishable, the indefinable, the unmanifest, the omnipresent, the unthinkable, the immovable, and the eternal.
- Verse 4: Having restrained all the senses, being even-minded everywhere, and intent on the welfare of all beings, they verily come unto Me.
- Verse 5: Greater is their trouble whose minds are set on the unmanifested, for the goal of the unmanifested is very hard for the embodied to reach.
- Verse 6: But to those who worship Me, renouncing all actions in Me, regarding Me as the supreme goal, meditating on Me with single-minded yoga.
- Verse 7: To those whose minds are set on Me, O Arjuna, verily I soon become the savior out of the ocean of Samsara.
- Verse 8: Fix your mind on Me, and your intellect in Me. Then you will certainly live in Me alone hereafter.
- Verse 9: If you are unable to fix your mind steadily on Me, then seek to reach Me through the yoga of constant practice, O Arjuna.
- Verse 10: If you are unable to practice even this Abhyasa Yoga, be intent on doing actions for My sake; even by doing actions for My sake, you will attain perfection.
- Verse 11: If you are unable to do even this, then, resort to union with Me and renounce the fruits of all actions with self-control.
- Verse 12: Better indeed is knowledge than practice; better than knowledge is meditation; better than meditation is the renunciation of the fruits of actions: peace immediately follows renunciation.
- Verse 13: He who hates no creature, is friendly and compassionate to all, is free from attachment and egoism, is balanced in pleasure and pain, and is forgiving.
- Verse 14: Ever content, steady in meditation, self-controlled, possessing firm conviction, with the mind and intellect dedicated to Me, he, My devotee, is dear to Me.
- Verse 15: He whom the world does not agitate, and who cannot be agitated by the world, and who is freed from joy, anger, fear, and anxiety—he is dear to Me.
- Verse 16: He who is free from wants, pure, expert, unconcerned, and free from pain, renouncing all undertakings and commencements, he who is devoted to Me is dear to Me.
- Verse 17: He who neither rejoices nor hates, nor grieves nor desires, renouncing both good and evil, and who is full of devotion, is dear to Me.
- Verse 18: He who is the same to foe and friend, and also in honor and dishonor, who is the same in cold and heat, in pleasure and pain, and who is free from attachment.
- Verse 19: He to whom censure and praise are equal, who is silent, content with anything, homeless, of a steady mind, and full of devotion; that man is dear to me.
- Verse 20: They who follow this immortal Dharma, endowed with faith and regarding Me as their supreme goal, are exceedingly dear to Me.
13. Ksetra Ksetrajna Vibhaaga Yoga (Yoga through Distinguishing the Field and the Knower of the Field)
The thirteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Ksetra Ksetrajna Vibhaaga Yoga". The word "kshetra" means "the field", and the "kshetrajna" means "the knower of the field". We can think of our material body as the field and our immortal soul as the knower of the field. In this chapter, Krishna discriminates between the physical body and the immortal soul. He explains that the physical body is temporary and perishable whereas the soul is permanent and eternal. The physical body can be destroyed but the soul can never be destroyed. The chapter then describes God, who is the Supreme Soul. All the individual souls have originated from the Supreme Soul. One who clearly understands the difference between the body, the Soul and the Supreme Soul attains the realization of Brahman.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said, "I wish to learn about Nature and the Spirit, the field and the knower of the field, knowledge and that which ought to be known, O Kesava."
- Verse 2: The Blessed Lord said, "O Arjuna, this body is called the field; he who knows it is called the knower of the field by those who know them."
- Verse 3: Do thou also know Me as the knower of the field in all fields, O Arjuna. Knowledge of both the field and the knower of the field is considered by Me to be the knowledge.
- Verse 4: Hear from Me in brief what the field is, of what nature it is, what its modifications are, whence it is, who He is, and what His powers are.
- Verse 5: Sages have sung in many ways, with various distinctive chants and also with suggestive words indicative of the Absolute, full of reasoning and decisive.
- Verse 6: The great elements, egoism, intellect, and also the Unmanifested Nature, the ten senses, and one mind, and the five objects of the senses.
- Verse 7: Desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, the aggregate (body), intelligence, and fortitude—the field has thus been briefly described with its modifications.
- Verse 8: Humility, unpretentiousness, non-injury, forgiveness, uprightness, service to the teacher, purity, steadfastness, and self-control.
- Verse 9: Indifference to the objects of the senses and also absence of egoism; perceiving the evil in birth, death, old age, sickness, and pain.
- Verse 10: Non-attachment, non-identification of the Self with son, wife, home, and the rest, and constant even-mindedness in the face of the attainment of both desirable and undesirable.
- Verse 11: Unswerving devotion to Me through the Yoga of non-separation, resorting to solitary places, and a distaste for the company of people.
- Verse 12: Constancy in Self-knowledge, the perception of the end of true knowledge—this is declared to be knowledge, and what is opposed to it is ignorance.
- Verse 13: I will declare that which is to be known, knowing which one attains immortality; the beginningless Supreme Brahman, which is neither being nor non-being.
- Verse 14: With hands and feet everywhere, with eyes, heads, and mouths everywhere, with ears everywhere, He exists in the worlds, enveloping all.
- Verse 15: Shining by the functions of all the senses, yet without being attached to them; unattached, yet supporting all; devoid of qualities, yet the experiencer of them.
- Verse 16: It is within and without all beings, both the unmoving and the moving; It is subtle and unknowable, and It is near and far away.
- Verse 17: Undivided yet, It exists as if divided in beings; It is to be known as the supporter of beings; It devours and It generates.
- Verse 18: That Light of all lights is said to be beyond darkness: knowledge, the knowable, and the goal of knowledge, seated in the hearts of all.
- Verse 19: Thus, the field, as well as knowledge and the knowable, have been briefly stated. My devotee, knowing this, enters into My being.
- Verse 20: Know that Nature (matter) and the Spirit are both beginningless, and know also that all modifications and qualities are born from Nature.
- Verse 21: In the production of the effect and the cause, Nature (matter) is said to be the cause; in the experience of pleasure and pain, the soul is said to be the one responsible.
- Verse 22: The soul seated in Nature experiences the qualities born of Nature; attachment to the qualities is the cause of its birth in good and evil wombs.
- Verse 23: The Supreme Soul in this body is also called the observer, the permitter, the sustainer, the enjoyer, the great Lord, and the Supreme Self.
- Verse 24: He who thus knows the Spirit and Matter together with their qualities, in whatever condition he may be, he is not reborn.
- Verse 25: Some behold the Self within themselves through meditation, others through the Yoga of knowledge, and still others through the Yoga of action.
- Verse 26: Others, too, who do not know thus, worship, having heard of It from others; they, too, cross beyond death, regarding what they have heard as the supreme refuge.
- Verse 27: Wherever a being is born, whether unmoving or moving, know thou, O best of the Bharatas (Arjuna), that it is from the union of the field and its knower.
- Verse 28: He who sees the Supreme Lord existing truly in all beings, the imperishable within the perishable, sees indeed.
- Verse 29: For he who truly sees the same Lord dwelling everywhere does not destroy the Self by the self; rather, he attains the highest goal.
- Verse 30: He sees, who sees that all actions are performed solely by Nature and that the Self is without action.
- Verse 31: When a person sees all beings as resting in the One and emanating from the One alone, they then become Brahman.
- Verse 32: Being without beginning, devoid of any qualities, the Supreme Self, imperishable, though dwelling in the body, O Arjuna, neither acts nor is tainted.
- Verse 33: As the all-pervading ether is not tainted, due to its subtlety, so the Self seated everywhere in the body is not tainted either.
- Verse 34: Just as the one sun illuminates the entire world, so too does the Lord of the field (Supreme Self) illuminate the entire field, O Arjuna.
- Verse 35: They who, by the eye of knowledge, perceive the distinction between the field and its knower, as well as the liberation from the Nature of being, go to the Supreme.
14. Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga (Yoga through Understanding the Three Modes of Material Nature)
The fourteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna reveals the three gunas (modes) of the material nature - goodness, passion and ignorance which everything in the material existence is influenced by. He further explains the essential characteristics of each of these modes, their cause and how they influence a living entity affected by them. He then reveals the various characteristics of the persons who have gone beyond these gunas. The chapter ends with Krishna reminding us of the power of pure devotion to God and how attachment to God can help us transcend these gunas.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said, "I will again declare to thee that supreme knowledge, the best of all knowledge, having known which all the sages have gone to supreme perfection after this life."
- Verse 2: Those who, having taken refuge in this knowledge, have attained unity with Me, are neither born at the time of creation nor disturbed at the time of dissolution.
- Verse 3: My womb is the great Brahma; in it I place the germ; thence, O Arjuna, is the birth of all beings.
- Verse 4: Whatever forms are produced, O Arjuna, in any womb whatsoever, the great Brahma is their womb, and I am the seed-giving father.
- Verse 5: These qualities, O Arjuna, born of Nature, bind fast in the body of the embodied, the indestructible: purity, passion, and inertia.
- Verse 6: Of these, sattva, which is luminous and healthy due to its stainlessness, binds one by attachment to happiness and knowledge, O sinless one.
- Verse 7: Know, O Arjuna, that Rajas is of the nature of passion, the source of thirst and attachment; it binds fast the embodied one by attachment to action.
- Verse 8: But know thou Tamas to be born of ignorance, deluding all embodied beings; it binds fast, O Arjuna, through heedlessness, indolence, and sleep.
- Verse 9: Sattva attaches to happiness, Rajas to action, O Arjuna, while Tamas, verily shrouding knowledge, attaches to heedlessness.
- Verse 10: Now, O Arjuna, Sattva prevails, having overpowered Rajas and Tamas; then Rajas, having overpowered Sattva and Tamas; and then Tamas, having overpowered Sattva and Rajas.
- Verse 11: When the wisdom-light shines through every gate of this body, then it may be known that Sattva is predominant.
- Verse 12: Greed, activity, the undertaking of actions, restlessness, and longing—these arise when Rajas is predominant, O Arjuna.
- Verse 13: Darkness, inertia, carelessness, and delusion—these arise when Tamas is predominant, O Arjuna.
- Verse 14: If the embodied one meets death when Sattva is predominant, then they attain the spotless worlds of the knowers of the Highest.
- Verse 15: Meeting death in Rajas, he is born among those who are attached to action; and dying in Tamas, he is born in the womb of the thoughtless.
- Verse 16: They say that the fruit of good action is Sattvic and pure; indeed, the fruit of Rajas is pain, and the fruit of Tamas is ignorance.
- Verse 17: From Sattva arises knowledge, and greed from Rajas; heedlessness and delusion arise from Tamas, and also ignorance.
- Verse 18: Those seated in Sattva ascend; those of Rajasic nature dwell in the middle; and those of Tamasic nature, abiding in the function of the lowest Guna, descend.
- Verse 19: When the seer beholds no agent other than the Gunas and knows that which is higher than them, he attains to My Being.
- Verse 20: The embodied one, having crossed beyond these three Gunas from which the body is evolved, is freed from birth, death, decay, and pain, and attains immortality.
- Verse 21: Arjuna said, "What are the marks of one who has transcended the three qualities, O Lord? What is their conduct, and how do they go beyond these three qualities?"
- Verse 22: The Blessed Lord said, "When light, activity, and delusion are present, he does not hate them, nor does he long for them when they are absent.
- Verse 23: He who, seated like one unconcerned, is not moved by the dualities, and who, knowing that the dualities are active, is self-centered and does not move.
- Verse 24: Who is the same in pleasure and pain, who dwells in the Self, to whom a clod of earth, a stone, and gold are all alike, who is the same to the dear and the unfriendly, who is firm, and to whom censure and praise are one and the same.
- Verse 25: Who is the same in honor and dishonor, the same to friend and foe, abandoning all undertakings, he is said to have transcended the dualities.
- Verse 26: And he who serves Me with unwavering devotion, he, crossing beyond the dualities, is fit for becoming Brahman.
- Verse 27: For I am the abode of Brahman, the immortal, immutable, and everlasting Dharma, and absolute bliss.
15. Purushottama Yoga (The Yoga of the Supreme Divine Personality)
The fifteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Purushottama Yoga". In Sanskrit, Purusha means the "All-pervading God", and Purushottam means the timeless & transcendental aspect of God. Krishna reveals that the purpose of this Transcendental knowledge of the God is to detach ourselves from the bondage of the material world and to understand Krishna as the Supreme Divine Personality, who is the eternal controller and sustainer of the world. One who understands this Ultimate Truth surrenders to Him and engages in His devotional service.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said: They (the wise) speak of the indestructible peepul tree, with its roots above and branches below, whose leaves are the meters or hymns; he who knows it is a knower of the Vedas.
- Verse 2: Its branches spread below and above, nourished by the Gunas; its buds are sense-objects, and its roots stretch forth below in the world of men, originating action.
- Verse 3: Its form is not perceived here as such, nor its end, origin, foundation, or resting place; having cut asunder this firmly rooted peepul tree with the strong axe of non-attachment.
- Verse 4: Then, that goal should be sought for, to which, having gone, none returns again. I seek refuge in that Primeval Purusha, from whence streamed forth the ancient activity or energy.
- Verse 5: Free from pride and delusion, victorious over the evil of attachment, dwelling constantly in the Self, their desires having completely turned away, freed from the pairs of opposites known as pleasure and pain, they, the undeluded, reach the eternal goal.
- Verse 6: Neither does the sun illuminate there, nor the moon, nor the fire; having gone there, they do not return; that is My supreme abode.
- Verse 7: An eternal portion of Myself having become a living soul in the world of life, draws to itself the five senses, with the mind as the sixth, abiding in Nature.
- Verse 8: When the Lord, as the individual soul, obtains a body and when He leaves it, He takes these with Him, just as the wind takes the scents from their seats (flowers, etc.).
- Verse 9: Presiding over the ears, eyes, touch, taste, smell, and mind, it enjoys the objects of the senses.
- Verse 10: The deluded do not see Him who departs, stays, and enjoys; but those who possess the eye of knowledge behold Him.
- Verse 11: The yogis striving for perfection behold Him dwelling in the Self; but, the unrefined and unintelligent, even though striving, do not see Him.
- Verse 12: That light which resides in the sun, illuminating the whole world; that which is in the moon and in the fire—know that light to be Mine.
- Verse 13: Permeating the earth, I support all beings with My energy; and having become the watery moon, I nourish all herbs.
- Verse 14: Having become the fire Vaisvanara, I abide in the bodies of living beings and, associated with the Prana and the Apana, digest the fourfold food.
- Verse 15: And I am seated in the hearts of all; from Me come memory and knowledge, as well as their absence. I am verily That which has to be known by all the Vedas; I am indeed the author of the Vedanta and the knower of the Vedas.
- Verse 16: Two Purushas there are in this world: the perishable and the imperishable. All beings are perishable, and the Kutastha—the unchanging—is called the imperishable.
- Verse 17: But distinct is the Supreme Purusha, called the highest Self, indestructible and Lord, who pervades the three worlds and sustains them.
- Verse 18: As I transcend the perishable and am even higher than the imperishable, I am declared to be the highest Purusha in the world and in the Vedas.
- Verse 19: He who, undeluded, knows Me as the highest Purusha, he, knowing all, worships Me with his whole being (heart), O Arjuna.
- Verse 20: Thus, I have imparted to you this most secret science, O sinless one; by knowing this, one becomes wise, and all their duties are accomplished, O Arjuna.
16. Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga (Yoga through Discerning the Divine and Demoniac Natures)
The sixteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna describes explicitly the two kinds of natures among human beings - divine and demoniac. Those who possess demonaic qualities associate themselves with the modes of passion and ignorance do not follow the regulations of the scriptures and embrace materialistic views. These people attain lower births and further material bondage. But people who possess divine qualities, follow the instructions of the scriptures, associate themselves with the mode of goodness and purify the mind through spiritual practices. This leads to the enhancement of divine qualities and they eventually attain spiritual realization.
- Verse 1: The Blessed Lord said: Fearlessness, purity of heart, steadfastness in knowledge and yoga, almsgiving, control of the senses, sacrifice, study of scriptures, austerity, and straightforwardness.
- Verse 2: Harmlessness, truth, absence of anger, renunciation, peacefulness, absence of crookedness, compassion for beings, non-covetousness, gentleness, modesty, and absence of fickleness.
- Verse 3: Vigor, forgiveness, fortitude, purity, absence of hatred, absence of pride—these belong to one born for a divine state, O Arjuna.
- Verse 4: Hypocrisy, arrogance, and self-conceit, anger, harshness, and ignorance—these belong to one who is born for a demoniacal state, O Partha.
- Verse 5: The divine nature is deemed conducive to liberation, and the demonic to bondage. Grieve not, O Arjuna, for you are born with divine endowments.
- Verse 6: There are two types of beings in this world: the divine and the demoniacal. The divine has been described at length; hear from Me, O Arjuna, about the demoniacal.
- Verse 7: The demoniacal do not know what to do and what to refrain from; they have neither purity, nor right conduct, nor truth.
- Verse 8: They say, "This universe is without truth, without a moral basis, without a God, brought about by mutual union, with lust as its cause; what else?"
- Verse 9: Holding this view, these ruined souls of small intellect and fierce deeds come forth as enemies of the world, intent on its destruction.
- Verse 10: Filled with insatiable desires, full of hypocrisy, pride, and arrogance, holding evil ideas due to delusion, they work with impure intentions.
- Verse 11: Giving themselves over to immeasurable cares that end only with death, regarding the gratification of lust as their highest aim, and feeling sure that that is all.
- Verse 12: Bound by a hundred ties of hope, given over to lust and anger, they strive to obtain hoards of wealth by unlawful means for sensual enjoyment.
- Verse 13: "I have gained this today; I will fulfill this desire of mine; this is mine, and this wealth will be mine in the future."
- Verse 14: "I have slain that enemy, and I shall slay others too. I am the Lord; I enjoy, I am perfect, powerful, and happy."
- Verse 15: "I am wealthy and born into a noble family. Who is my equal? I shall perform sacrifices, give charity, and rejoice," thus deluded by ignorance.
- Verse 16: Bewildered by many fancies, entangled in the snare of delusion, addicted to the gratification of lust, they fall into a foul hell.
- Verse 17: Self-conceited, stubborn, filled with pride and intoxication of wealth, they perform sacrifices in name only for ostentation, contrary to scriptural ordinances.
- Verse 18: Given over to egoism, power, haughtiness, lust, and anger, these malicious people hate Me in their own bodies and in the bodies of others.
- Verse 19: Those cruel haters, the worst among men in the world, I hurl those evil-doers into the wombs of demons only.
- Verse 20: Entering into demoniacal wombs and deluded, birth after birth, they do not attain Me, thus falling, O Arjuna, into a condition still lower than that.
- Verse 21: There are three gates to this hell, destructive of the self: lust, anger, and greed; therefore, one should abandon these three.
- Verse 22: A person who is liberated from these three gates of darkness, O Arjuna, practices what is beneficial for them and thus goes to the Supreme Goal.
- Verse 23: He who, having cast aside the ordinances of the scriptures, acts under the impulse of desire, does not attain perfection, nor happiness, nor the Supreme Goal.
- Verse 24: Therefore, let the scripture be thy authority in determining what ought to be done and what ought not to be done. Having known what is said in the ordinance of the scriptures, thou shouldst act in this world.
17. Sraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga (Yoga through Discerning the Three Divisions of Faith)
The seventeenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Sraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga". In this chapter, Krishna describes the three types of faith corresponding to the three modes of the material nature. Lord Krishna further reveals that it is the nature of faith that determines the quality of life and the character of living entities. Those who have faith in passion and ignorance perform actions that yield temporary, material results while those who have faith in goodness perform actions in accordance with scriptural instructions and hence their hearts get further purified.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said, "What is the condition of those who, disregarding the injunctions of the scriptures, perform sacrifice with faith—is it Sattva, Rajas, or Tamas, O Krishna?"
- Verse 2: The Blessed Lord said, "There are threefold faiths inherent in the nature of the embodied: the sattvic (pure), the rajasic (passionate), and the tamasic (dark). Hear of them."
- Verse 3: The faith of each is in accordance with their nature, O Arjuna. People consist of their faith; as a person's faith is, so are they.
- Verse 4: The sattvic, or pure, men worship the gods; the rajasic, or passionate, worship the yakshas and rakshasas; the others, the tamasic or deluded people, worship ghosts and hosts of nature-spirits.
- Verse 5: Those men who practice terrific austerities not prescribed by the scriptures, given to hypocrisy and egoism, driven by the force of lust and attachment.
- Verse 6: Know thou these to be of demonical resolves, senselessly torturing all the elements in the body and Me who dwell in the body.
- Verse 7: The food that is dear to each is threefold, as well as sacrifice, austerity, and almsgiving. Hear the distinction of these.
- Verse 8: The foods that increase life, purity, strength, health, joy, and cheerfulness (good appetite), which are savory, oily, substantial, and agreeable, are dear to the Sattvic (pure) people.
- Verse 9: The foods that are bitter, sour, salty, overly hot, pungent, dry, and burning are liked by the Rajasic and are productive of pain, grief, and disease.
- Verse 10: That which is stale, tasteless, putrid, rotten, rejected, and impure is the food liked by the Tamasic.
- Verse 11: That sacrifice which is offered by men without desire for reward, as enjoined by the ordinance (scripture), with a firm faith that doing so is their duty, is Sattvic or pure.
- Verse 12: The sacrifice that is offered, O Arjuna, seeking a reward and for show, know that to be a Rajasic Yajna.
- Verse 13: They declare that sacrifice to be Tamasic which is contrary to the ordinances of the scriptures, in which no food is distributed, and which is devoid of mantras, gifts, and faith.
- Verse 14: Worship of the gods, the twice-born, the teachers, and the wise; purity, straightforwardness, celibacy, and non-injury are all called the austerities of the body.
- Verse 15: Speech that causes no excitement, is truthful, pleasant, and beneficial; the practice of studying the Vedas is called austerity of speech.
- Verse 16: Serenity of mind, good-heartedness, self-control, and purity of nature—this is called mental austerity.
- Verse 17: This threefold austerity, practiced by steadfast men, with the utmost faith, desiring no reward, is called Sattvic.
- Verse 18: The austerity that is practiced with the aim of gaining good reception, honor, and worship, and with hypocrisy, is said to be Rajasic, unstable, and transient.
- Verse 19: That austerity which is practised out of a foolish notion, with self-torture, or for the purpose of destroying another, is declared to be of the Tamasic nature.
- Verse 20: That gift which is given to one who does nothing in return, knowing it to be a duty to give in a suitable place and time to a worthy person, is held to be Sattvic.
- Verse 21: And, that gift which is given with the intention of receiving something in return, or expecting a reward, or begrudgingly, is considered to be Rajasic.
- Verse 22: The gift that is given in the wrong place and at the wrong time, to unworthy persons, without respect or with insult, is declared to be of a Tamasic nature.
- Verse 23: "Om Tat Sat": This has been declared to be the triple designation of Brahman. By that, the Brahmanas, the Vedas, and the sacrifices were created formerly.
- Verse 24: Therefore, with the utterance of "Om," the acts of sacrifice, gift, and austerity, as enjoined in the scriptures, are always begun by the students of Brahman.
- Verse 25: Uttering "Tat," without aiming for the fruits, are the acts of sacrifice, austerity, and the various acts of gifts performed by those seeking liberation.
- Verse 26: The word "Sat" is used to refer to reality and goodness; likewise, O Arjuna, the word "Sat" is used to refer to an auspicious act.
- Verse 27: Steadfastness in sacrifice, austerity, and gift is also called 'Sat', and action in connection with these, or for the sake of the Supreme, is also called 'Sat'.
- Verse 28: Whatever is sacrificed, given, or performed, and whatever austerity is practiced without faith, it is called 'Asat', O Arjuna; it is of no value here or hereafter (after death).
18. Moksha Sanyaas Yoga (Yoga through the Perfection of Renunciation and Surrender)
The eighteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is "Moksha Sanyas Yoga". Arjuna requests the Lord to explain the difference between the two types of renunciations - sanyaas(renunciation of actions) and tyaag(renunciation of desires). Krishna explains that a sanyaasi is one who abandons family and society in order to practise spiritual discipline whereas a tyaagi is one who performs their duties without attachment to the rewards of their actions and dedicating them to the God. Krishna recommends the second kind of renunciation - tyaag. Krishna then gives a detailed analysis of the effects of the three modes of material nature. He declares that the highest path of spirituality is pure, unconditional loving service unto the Supreme Divine Personality, Krishna. If we always remember Him, keep chanting His name and dedicate all our actions unto Him, take refuge in Him and make Him our Supreme goal, then by His grace, we will surely overcome all obstacles and difficulties and be freed from this cycle of birth and death.
- Verse 1: Arjuna said, "O mighty-armed Hrishikesa, I desire to know the essence or truth of renunciation and abandonment severally, O slayer of Kesi."
- Verse 2: The Blessed Lord said, "The sages understand sannyasa to be the renunciation of action with desire; the wise declare the abandonment of the fruits of all actions to be tyaga."
- Verse 3: Some philosophers declare that actions should be abandoned as evil; while others declare that acts of sacrifice, gift, and austerity should not be relinquished.
- Verse 4: Hear from Me the conclusion or the final truth about this abandonment, O best of the Bharatas; abandonment, indeed, O best of men, has been declared to be of three kinds.
- Verse 5: Acts of sacrifice, gift, and austerity should not be abandoned, but should be performed; for sacrifice, gift, and austerity are the purifiers of the wise.
- Verse 6: But even these actions should be performed, leaving aside attachment and the desire for rewards, O Arjuna; this is my certain and most assured conviction.
- Verse 7: Verily, the renunciation of obligatory action is not proper; the abandonment of the same out of delusion is declared to be Tamasic.
- Verse 8: He who abandons action out of fear of bodily trouble (because it is painful), does not obtain the merit of renunciation by performing such Rajasic renunciation.
- Verse 9: Whatever obligatory action is done, O Arjuna, merely because it ought to be done, abandoning attachment and also the desire for reward, that renunciation is regarded as sattvic (pure).
- Verse 10: The man of renunciation, pervaded by purity, intelligent, and with his doubts cut asunder, does not hate an unpleasant task nor is he attached to a pleasant one.
- Verse 11: Indeed, it is not possible for an embodied being to completely abandon actions; however, he who relinquishes the rewards of actions is truly called a man of renunciation.
- Verse 12: The threefold fruit of action (evil, good, and mixed) accrues after death to those who do not abandon it, but never to those who do.
- Verse 13: Learn from Me, O mighty-armed Arjuna, these five causes, as declared in the Sankhya system, for the accomplishment of all actions.
- Verse 14: The body, the doer, the various senses, the different functions of various kinds, and the presiding deity—the fifth.
- Verse 15: Whatever action a person performs with their body, speech, and mind, whether right or wrong, these five are its causes.
- Verse 16: Now, such being the case, verily he who, owing to an untrained understanding, looks upon his Self, which is isolated, as the agent, he of perverted intelligence does not see.
- Verse 17: He who is free from the egoistic notion, whose intelligence is not tainted by good or evil, though he slays these people, he does not slay, nor is he bound by the action.
- Verse 18: Knowledge, the knowable, and the knower form the threefold impulse for action; the organ, the action, and the agent form the threefold basis of action.
- Verse 19: Knowledge, action, and actor are declared in the science of the Gunas (Sankhya philosophy) to be of three kinds only, according to the distinction of the Gunas. Of these, hear duly.
- Verse 20: That by which one sees the indestructible Reality in all beings, not separate in any of them—know that knowledge to be Sattvic.
- Verse 21: But that knowledge which sees in all beings various entities of distinct kinds as being distinct from one another, know thou that knowledge to be Rajasic.
- Verse 22: But that which clings to one single effect as if it were the whole, without reason, without any foundation in Truth, and is trivial—that is declared to be Tamasic.
- Verse 23: An action that is ordained, free from attachment, done without love or hatred, and without desire for reward is declared to be Sattvic.
- Verse 24: But that action which is done by one longing for the fulfillment of desires or gain with egotism or with much effort is declared to be Rajasic (passionate).
- Verse 25: That action which is undertaken from delusion, without regard for the consequences, loss, injury, and one's own ability, is declared to be Tamasic (dark).
- Verse 26: An agent who is free from attachment, non-egoistic, endowed with firmness and enthusiasm, and unaffected by success or failure, is considered to be of a Sattvic (pure) nature.
- Verse 27: Passionate, desiring to obtain the reward of their actions, greedy, cruel, impure, moved by joy and sorrow, such an agent is said to be Rajasic.
- Verse 28: Unsteady, vulgar, inflexible, deceitful, malicious, lazy, despondent, and procrastinating—such an agent is called Tamasic.
- Verse 29: Hear thou the threefold division of intellect and firmness, according to the Gunas, as I declare them fully and distinctly, O Arjuna.
- Verse 30: The intellect which knows the path of work and renunciation, what should be done and what should not be done, fear and fearlessness, bondage and liberation—that intellect is Sattvic (pure), O Arjuna.
- Verse 31: That by which one wrongly understands dharma and adharma, and also what ought to be done and what ought not to be done—that intellect, O Arjuna, is rajasic (passionate).
- Verse 32: That intellect, O Arjuna, which is enveloped in darkness and sees Adharma as Dharma and all things perverted, is Tamasic (dark).
- Verse 33: The unwavering firmness, through which Yoga restrains the functions of the mind, life-force, and senses—that firmness, O Arjuna, is Sattvic (pure).
- Verse 34: But that, O Arjuna, by which one holds fast to Dharma (duty), enjoyment of pleasures, and earning of wealth, on account of attachment and desire for reward—that firmness, O Arjuna, is Rajasic (passionate).
- Verse 35: That firmness, O Arjuna, by which a stupid man does not abandon sleep, fear, grief, despair, and conceit, is Tamasic.
- Verse 36: And now, O Arjuna, hear from Me of the threefold pleasure, in which one rejoices through practice and surely comes to the end of pain.
- Verse 37: That which is like poison at first but in the end like nectar—that happiness is declared to be sattvic, born of the purity of one's own mind due to self-realization.
- Verse 38: That happiness which arises from the contact of the senses with the objects, which is initially like nectar but eventually like poison, is said to be Rajasic.
- Verse 39: That happiness which at first, as well as in the end, deludes the self, and which arises from sleep, indolence, and heedlessness—that is declared to be Tamasic.
- Verse 40: There is no being on earth or in heaven among the gods that is liberated from the three qualities born of Nature.
- Verse 41: Of Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, and Sudras, O Arjuna, the duties are distributed according to the qualities born of their own nature.
- Verse 42: Serenity, self-restraint, austerity, purity, forgiveness, and uprightness, as well as knowledge, realization, and belief in God, are the duties of Brahmanas, born of their own nature.
- Verse 43: Prowess, splendor, firmness, dexterity, and not fleeing from battle, generosity, and lordliness are the duties of the Kshatriyas, born of their own nature.
- Verse 44: Agriculture, cattle-rearing, and trade are the duties of the Vaisya (merchant), born of their own nature; and service is the duty of the Sudra (servant-class), born of their own nature.
- Verse 45: Each person devoted to their own duty attains perfection. How they attain perfection while being engaged in their own duty, hear now.
- Verse 46: He from whom all the beings have evolved and by whom all this is pervaded, worshipping Him with his own duty, one attains perfection.
- Verse 47: Better is one's own duty, even if it is destitute of merits, than the duty of another well performed. He who does the duty ordained by his own nature incurs no sin.
- Verse 48: One should not, O Arjuna, abandon the duty to which one is born, though it may be faulty; for, all undertakings are enveloped by evil, just as fire is by smoke.
- Verse 49: He whose intellect is unattached everywhere, who has subdued his self, from whom desire has fled, he attains the supreme state of freedom from action through renunciation.
- Verse 50: Learn from Me, O Arjuna, in brief how one who has attained perfection reaches Brahman—the Eternal, that supreme state of knowledge.
- Verse 51: Endowed with a pure intellect, controlling the self through firmness, relinquishing sound and other objects and abandoning attraction and hatred.
- Verse 52: Dwelling in solitude, eating sparingly, with speech, body, and mind subdued, always engaged in meditation and concentration, and resorting to dispassion.
- Verse 53: Having abandoned egoism, strength, arrogance, desire, anger, and covetousness, and being free from the notion of 'mine' and peaceful, he is fit for becoming Brahman.
- Verse 54: Becoming Brahman, serene in the Self, he neither grieves nor desires; he is the same to all beings, and obtains supreme devotion to Me.
- Verse 55: By devotion, he knows Me in truth, who and what I am; then, having known Me in truth, he immediately enters into the Supreme.
- Verse 56: Having taken refuge in Me and doing all actions, by My grace he obtains the eternal, indestructible state of being.
- Verse 57: Mentally renouncing all actions in Me, having Me as the highest goal, and resorting to the yoga of discrimination, do thou ever fix thy mind on Me.
- Verse 58: Fixing your mind on Me, you shall, by My grace, overcome all obstacles; but if you will not hear Me due to egoism, you shall perish.
- Verse 59: If, filled with egoism, thou thinkest, "I will not fight," then thy resolve is vain; nature will compel thee.
- Verse 60: O Arjuna, bound by your own Karma (action) born of your own nature, that which from delusion you wish not to do, even that you shall do helplessly.
- Verse 61: The Lord dwells in the hearts of all beings, O Arjuna, causing all beings, by His illusory power, to revolve as if mounted on a machine.
- Verse 62: Fly to Him for refuge with all your being, O Arjuna; by His grace you will obtain supreme peace and the eternal abode.
- Verse 63: Thus, wisdom more secret than secrecy itself has been declared to you by me. Reflect on it fully, then act as you wish.
- Verse 64: Hear again My supreme word, most secret of all; for you are dearly beloved of Me, I will tell you what is good.
- Verse 65: Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, sacrifice to Me, bow down to Me. You will come to Me; I truly promise you this, for you are dear to Me.
- Verse 66: Abandon all duties and take refuge in Me alone; I will liberate you from all sins; do not grieve.
- Verse 67: Never speak this to one who is devoid of austerities or devotion, who does not render service, who does not desire to listen, or who cavils at Me.
- Verse 68: He who, with supreme devotion to Me, teaches this supreme secret to My devotees, shall undoubtedly come to Me.
- Verse 69: There is no one among men who does service dearer to Me, nor shall there be anyone on earth dearer to Me than him.
- Verse 70: And he who studies this sacred dialogue of ours, by him I shall have been worshipped through the sacrifice of wisdom; such is my conviction.
- Verse 71: Also, the man who hears this, full of faith and free from malice, shall attain to the happy worlds of those of righteous deeds, and be liberated.
- Verse 72: Has this been heard, O Arjuna, with one-pointed focus? Has the delusion of your ignorance been destroyed, O Dhananjaya?
- Verse 73: Arjuna said, "My delusion has been destroyed, for I have gained my knowledge (memory) through Your grace, O Krishna. I am now free from doubts. I will act according to Your word."
- Verse 74: Sanjaya said, Thus, I have heard this wonderful dialogue between Krishna and the high-souled Arjuna, which causes one's hair to stand on end.
- Verse 75: Through the grace of Vyasa, I have heard this supreme and most secret Yoga, directly from Krishna, the Lord of Yoga, Himself declaring it.
- Verse 76: O King, remembering this wonderful and holy dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna, I continually rejoice.
- Verse 77: And, remembering again and again that most wonderful form of Hari, I am filled with great wonder, O King; and I rejoice again and again.
- Verse 78: Wherever Krishna, the Lord of Yoga, is; and wherever Arjuna, the wielder of the bow, is; there is prosperity, victory, happiness, and a firm policy; this is my conviction.