The Bhagavad Gita and Me

I was raised a Christian, and raised to believe that the Bible contained sacrid scriptures and it was the inspired enarrant word of God, but I knew, very young in my life, that there were other religions on the earth, and those other religions worshopped a different God, at least a god with a different name, and these "other religious people" had writings they honored as their sacrid scriptures. I really didn't give it much thought for years. After all, America was the riches most powerful nation on earth and that was clearly because God had blessed us for choosing the RIGHT Bible and worshiping the Right God.

I got interested in Mahatma Ghandi a little bit during the Civil Rights movement, and more so, after watching the movie about his life staring Ben Kingsley. I discovered that Ghandi read many of the world's sacrid texts, but the one he read most was the Bhagavad Gita. I was intreged enough to buy a copy of the Bhagavad Gita.

You might also remember that when the first atomic bomb exploded it's maker, Robert Oppenheimer, quoted the Bhagavad Gita:

I am become Death,The shatterer of Worlds.

The Bhagavad Gita is actually a part of the a larger text called the Mahabharata, and that work is comprised of some 700 verses. The teacher in the Bhagavad Gita is someone called Sri Krishna, and this guy is regarded by the Hindus as the supreme manifestation of the Lord Himself. To my ears saying someone is the manifaestation of God is similar to saying someone is the incarnation of God. Within the Bhagavad Gita Sir Krishna is referred to most often as "the divine one."

The book is actually a poetic account of a conversation betten Sri Krishna and Arjuna whose name means 'bright', 'shining', 'white' or 'silver' (cf. Latin argentum). The character Arjuna was suppose to be the best archer ever, and Arjuna is often referred to as Jishnu, which means the undefeatable.

This conversation between Krishna and Arjuna takes place just before a battle that starts the Kurukshetra War. As is true for most of us, about to begin a battle, we start to focus in on what is really important. People who face death, also consider all those things that give their life meaning, and place their own value on living. So the conversation between Krishna and Arjuna cover a lot of topics, and explore the confusion and moral dilemma common not just with Sri Krishna but with all human beings. Some scholars who have studied the text have said the Bhagavad Gita have described The Gita as "a lighthouse of eternal wisdom" and others have stated that The Gita has the ability to inspire any human being to reach their highest levels of accomplishment and enlightenment.

Quotes from the Bhagavad Gita

The power of God is with you at all times; through the activities of mind, senses, breathing, and emotions; and is constantly doing all the work using you as a mere instrument.

The wise sees knowledge and action as one; they see truly.

The mind acts like an enemy for those who do not control it.

Sever the ignorant doubt in your heart with the sword of self-knowledge. Observe your discipline. Arise.

Man is made by his belief. As he believes, so he is.

Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, offer service to Me, bow down to Me, and you shall certainly reach Me. I promise you because you are very dear to Me.

Creation is only the projection into form of that which already exists.

The soul who meditates on the Self is content to serve the Self and rests satisfied within the Self, there remains nothing more for him to accomplish.

No one attains perfection by merely giving up work.

He who hates no single being, is friendly and compassionate, free from self-regard and vanity, the same in good and evil, patient; Contented, ever devout, subdued in soul, firm in purpose, fixed on Me in heart and mind, and who worships Me, is dear to Me.

A man's own self is his friend. A man's own self is his foe.

As person abandons worn-out clothes and acquires new ones, so when the body is worn out a new one is acquired by the Self, who lives within.

Fear not what is not real, never was and never will be. What is real, always was and cannot be destroyed.

If you want to see the brave, look at those who can forgive.

Out of compassion I destroy the darkness of their ignorance. From within them I light the lamp of wisdom and dispel all darkness from their lives.

There has never been a time when you and I have not existed, nor will there be a time when we will cease to exist. As the same person inhabits the body through childhood, youth, and old age, so too at the time of death he attains another body. The wise are not deluded by these changes.

To the illumined man or woman, a clod of dirt, a stone, and gold are the same.