The Bhagavad Gita eluded me for many years. I read teachings from different cultures as part of my personal self-development, and the Gita is an essential text to my own family’s religion, Hinduism. It’s certainly remarkable from a philosophical standpoint. Dating at least 2,000 years old, it’s an epic poem consisting of 700 verses written in ancient Sanskrit that was passed through oral tradition across South Asia, where it still holds great significance as a guide for life, family, and self-actualization. The text has been cited as an inspiration by great leaders and thinkers across history (including Mahatma Gandhi, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and even J. Robert Oppenheimer), and its message has been depicted in art, children’s books, movies, and a popular TV series that I often watched with my family.
Even so, I remained perplexed about its relevance to modern times since the struggles it spoke of and the society it described seemed so far from our world today. In the text, the great warrior Arjun stands on a battlefield at the presence of a grave and deadly war. He is a member of the Pandavas, a powerful clan that was exiled for 13 years in the forest after losing a game against the Kauravas, a rivaling clan of the same lineage (effectively, their own cousins). The Pandavas complied with their exile, and at this point in the story they are returned to claim and rightfully rule their kingdom. However, the Kauravas refuse to return the kingdom or reach any peaceful negotiation. In order to restore righteousness and order across the land, the Pandavas must turn to war.
Lord Krishna preaches to him about dharma, or duty, and the importance of taking right action to bring about a just and harmonious world.
This story is from the January/February 2025 edition of Spirituality & Health.
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This story is from the January/February 2025 edition of Spirituality & Health.
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