Bhagavad-Gita Introduction

Bhagavad-Gita (Song of God) has been described by some as a conversation between

two intimate friends: His Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Shri Krishna and Arjuna, the
greatest warrior that history has ever known. 

Bhagavad-Gita is also known as Gitopnishad. It is the essence of Vedic knowledge and
one of the most important Vedic literatures. Bhagavad-Gita is the eternal message of spiritual
wisdom from ancient India. The original Sanskrit text of Bhagavad-Gita has been translated into
over one-hundred languages. There are so many different commentaries available in English
alone, but none of them is as original and accurate as " Bhagavad-Gita: AS IT IS" written by His
Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. In almost all of the other commentaries,
the writers have expressed their own opinions, thus effectively distorting the real spirit of
Bhagavad-Gitaas spoken by Lord Shri Krishna, whereas Srila Prabhupada has not.

Bhagavad-Gita is broken down into eighteen chapters and consists of seven-hundred
verses spoken by Lord Shri Krishna on the battlefield of Kuruksetra during the Mahabharata war,
the greatest civil war in the history of mankind. 

To fully understand the spirit of Bhagavad-Gita, we must first understand the purpose
behind His Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Shri Krishna's personal appearance in this
material world and the reason why He spoke Bhagavad-Gita in such an intense atmosphere with
the great Mahabharata war about to begin. 

We can try to understand this from Bhagavad-Gita chapter 4 texts 7 & 8:

BG text 4:7 "Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendent of
Bharta, and a predominant rise of irreligion-at that time I descend Myself."

BG text 4:8 "To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the
principles of religion, I Myself appear millennium after millennium."

His Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Shri Krishna chose to broadcast this message
containing the eternal principals of religion to all mankind through the medium of Arjuna; a
Kshatriya (warrior), a family man and an intimate friend.

In fact, Bhagavad-Gita is a manual on human life. If fully understood and practiced, the
knowledge and principles given in Bhagavad-Gita can awaken the Divine consciousness in
human beings and make their lives very happy, peaceful and prosperous.

On the subject of Bhagavad-Gita, Mahatma Gandhi once said, "When doubts haunt me,
when disappointments stare me in the face, and I see not one ray of hope in the horizon, I turn to
Bhagavad-Gita and find a verse to comfort me: and I immediately begin to smile in the midst of
overwhelming sorrow. Those who meditate on the Gita will derive fresh joy and new meanings
from it every day."

 As the subject matter in Bhagavad-Gita is transcendental, dealing with God and His
activities, some degree of faith is essential to fully capture the truths revealed in this vast treasure
of knowledge. The promise however, is that the faith shall be confirmed at the end. The Gita
begins by establishing the fact that we are the "soul" and not just the body. The connection
between matter (body), the soul, spirit (consciousness) and God has been examined at length.
The nature and characteristics of the soul have been very clearly revealed in the second chapter
texts 2:20 through 2:25. The most common mode of life followed by the majority of people, the
karma kanda working for fruitive results, material gains and its shortcomings is described in
texts 2:39 though 2:53. Then the concept of intelligence with devotion is introduced and working
with knowledge (jnana) combined with detachment from the fruits of work (karma yoga) is
stressed in chapter 3 texts 3:3 through 3:9.

Chapter four explains transcendental knowledge about Lord Krishna and how the work
performed with this knowledge destroys all sinful reactions to work. In chapter nine the
knowledge described as the king of knowledge and most confidential and its benefits to the
faithful are described. This chapter includes some of the most direct instructions from Lord Shri
Krishna.

One example of what Lord Krishna does for people with devotion to Him is given in text
9:22. "But those who always worship Me with exclusive devotion, meditating on My
transcendental form; to them I carry what they lack and preserve what they have."

It also provides glimpses into the creation and working of various universes and planetary
systems.

In chapter fourteen, three modes of material nature; goodness, passion and ignorance are
discussed and it is explained how the living beings become conditioned by these modes. The
process of freeing oneself from the controlling effect of these modes is also explained.

So far Krishna has explained various kinds of knowledge and processes of religion,
knowledge of different types of order and statuses of social life, knowledge of the renounced
order of life, knowledge of non-attachment, sense and mind control or meditation etc.

In summarizing Bhagavad-Gita Lord Shri Krishna gives His final instruction to Arjuna,
and ultimately to all of us. The Lord says that Arjuna should give up all the processes that have
been explained to him; he should simply surrender to Krishna. That surrender shall save him
from all kinds of sinful reactions, for the Lord personally promises to protect him. One may be
perplexed as to how one can give up all kinds of religious forms and simply surrender unto
Krishna, but such worry is useless. By now we must have developed absolute faith in Krishna;
that if He says that He shall protect us.

"Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all
sinful reactions. Do not fear."