Bhagavad Gita ( The Lords Song )
If a thousand suns were to raise in the heavens at the same time, the blaze of their light would resemble the splendor of that supreme spirit. (Bhagavad Gita 11:12)
The Bhagavad Gita was written between 400 BCE and 200 CE. The authorship of the Bhagavad Gita is unclear. The credit for this text is traditionally given to the sage Vyasa, who is more of a legend than an actual historical figure.
In the Bhagavad Gita Krishna explains several ways of selfrealisation : The yogic paths of devotional service (bhakti), action (karma) , meditation (dhyana), and knowledge (jnana).
The text of the Gita is written in the form of a conversation between Krishna and Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra just before the start of the Kurukshetra war.
As answer to Arjuna's confusion and moral dilemma Krishna explains to him his duties of a warrior and prince, and he elaborates on a number of different Yogic and Vedantic philosophies, with examples and analogies.
Krishna reveals his identity as the Supreme Being Himself (Bhagavan), blessing Arjuna with an awe-inspiring glimpse of His divine absolute form.
In many ways seemingly a heterogeneous text, the Gita reconciles many facets and schools of Hindu philosophy, including those of Brahmanical (orthodox Vedic) origin and the parallel ascetic and Yogic traditions.
It comprises primarily vedic (as in the four Vedas), as opposed to the Upanishads and Vedanta, upanishadic, Sankhya and Yogic philosophies.
* The gita teaches the old samkha-philosophy and therefore not the whole truth : 20. Know thou, that Purusha (the Soul) and Prakriti (Nature) are both without origin and eternal; but the modes of Nature and the lower forms she assumes to our conscious experience have an origin in Prakriti (in the transactions of these two entities).
Chapter 16 culminates in ' Hypocrisy and pride and arrogance, a harsh nature, anger, ignorance also with the one who was born to demon lot. Lot of gods leads to redemption, lot of demons to bondage! Do not mourn, for you were born to the gods lot, Pându son! , So it is the lot of gods that leads to redemption and thus determination ....
Also the Padma-Purana speaks of Krishna as Parameshvara. But : Only the Ishvara and Sadashiva above him are immortal ! Krishna as (unclear) inkarnation of Vishnu is surely not the highest lord. This is pure Vishnuism, in which Shiva is put down.
The Gita has therefore been criticised in the Bhagavata-Purana and also by Sri Aurobindo und M. Brück.
Chapter 1-6: KARMA YOGA, THE YOGA OF PERFECT ACTION: The individual soul realizes itself the Original Soul through action.
Chapter 7 - 12: BHAKTI YOGA, THE YOGA OF DEVOTION: The individual soul realizes itself the Original Soul through devotion.
Chapter 1: The Yoga of Dejection
On the confrontation with the necessity to fight.
Chapter 2a (2.1-2.38): The Yoga of Analytic Knowledge
On the knowledge of the soul.
Chapter 2b (2.39-2.72): The Yoga of Analytic Knowledge
On the results of labor.
Chapter 3: The Yoga of Action
On mastering the intelligence.
Chapter 4: The Yoga of Knowledge
On sacrificing.
Chapter 5: The Yoga of Work in Detachment
About the reality of detachment.
Chapter 6: The Yoga of Meditation
About the nature of yoga and reïncarnation
Chapter 13 - 18: JÑÂNA YOGA, DE YOGA OF SPIRITUAL KNOWLEDGE: The individual soul realizes itself the Original Soul through knowledge.
Chapter 7: The Yoga of Wisdom
About knowing and realizing oneself
Chapter 8: The Yoga of the Imperishable Spirit
About salvation
Chapter 9: The Yoga of Confidentiality
On the confidential of knowledge
Chapter 10: The Yoga of His Opulence
On His Identity
Chapter 11: The Yoga of the Universal Form
On the confrontation with the complete of His reality
Chapter 12: The Yoga of Devotion
On fixing oneself on the ultimate of perfection
Chapter 13: The Yoga of Discrimination
On the difference between the knower and the known
Chapter 14: The Yoga of the Three Modes of nature
On the inherent qualities of material nature
Chapter 15: The Yoga of the Supreme Person
About the realization of the characteristics, virtue and glory of God
Chapter 16: The Yoga of discriminating the qualities of the enlightened and the unenlightened
About the qualities of the divine and the godless
Chapter 17: De Yoga of the Threefold Division of Faith
About the nature of each type of food intake, austerity and sacrifice.
Chapter 18a: The Yoga of liberation through Renunciation
About renunciation and its threefold nature.
Chapter 18b: The Yoga of liberation through Renunciation
About renunciation (its threefold nature) and its service with the divisions of society as the ultimate of liberation.
Literature - Links
- Bhagavadgita Translations
- Bhagavad gita - with a commentary of shankaracharya
- Gita - dictionary
- Archive : Bhagavad-Gita-Suchliste
- Sri Ramana Maharshi : Essence of the Bhagavad Gita
- M. Brück : Bhagavad Gita (german) - with foreword.
== Weblinks ==
- Sri Aurobindo : Essays on the Gita
- The Bhagavad Gita of order
- Sacred texts : Srimad Bhagavad Gita - Swami Swarupananda, 1909 - online
of Spirituality
universal-path.org