Summary of Bhagwat Gita:

Based on the recent Indian TV serial Mahabharat, here is a short summary which I
think is worth sharing:

Occasion: The scene is set for the Great War between the cousins (i.e. 100
Kauravas and 5 Pandavas). Both armies are in front of each other and just before
the conch gets blown by both the sides which is an indication of the war to begin,
Arjuna (third amongst the pandavas) asks his charioteer Krishna that irrespective
of the result of the war, he can clearly see it will only bring destruction to the
country. And those he intends to kill are his grandfather, his great teacher and his
cousins on the other side. He should give up on this war then continue to fight it
because even if he wins, it will be an empty victory. He tells Krishna that he is not
having conviction to fight the war and requests Krishna to show him the right
path. Krishna responds by showing him the points of view for both the sides
reflecting their reasons for fighting the war. Following is the conversation which
happens between Arjuna and Krishna at this point:

Arjuna: After your explanation, I can see dharma (virtue) and adharma (vice) on
both the sides, O Krishna!
Krishna: This implies neither have you understood the reason for war nor have
you understood the implication of dharma (virtue), O Arjuna!
Arjuna: I have lost my reason, O Krishna! My whole body is shivering, my hands
are powerless, my bow is sliding out from my hand and all I can see is only
destruction. Why should I wage this war Pain of insult, thought of injustice and
even the thirst of revenge falls short of the kind of destruction that lies ahead. I
have no reason to accept this colossal disaster
Krishna: Why are you afraid of disaster Every disaster becomes the basis of new
creation. Every autumn brings forth the spring. This kind of cowardliness is not
expected of you Arjuna. Take the weapon in your hand and do your incumbent
duty.
Arjuna (after relooking at both the sides with tears in his eyes): How do I take
weapon in my hand, O Krishna! Waging war implies killing my Guru who made me
what I am today, my grandfather who raised me as a child and protected me and
my cousins with whom I stayed in one house. After winning the war even if I am
given the kingdom of heaven, it will be worthless for me. O Krishna, each person
lives only by looking forward in his life. When all the people in this war will die
there wont be enough elders in the society to remind people of rituals and
culture in times of dispute, there will not be enough gurus to pass on the age old
wisdom, all the soldiers will die, women will be widowed, children will be
orphaned and society at large will be destroyed. I cannot even see a greater good
coming out of this war, O Krishna! Why do I fight?
Krishna: Your reasons sound intelligent but in fact it is a foolish talk, O Arjuna!
What will be destroyed If the leaves of the tree are shed or when the new
leaves are born, are they taken to be reasons for sorrow or happiness? The
reason for birth of leaves and the meaning of their life is to keep the tree alive.
Similarly, the reason for the birth of human beings and meaning of their life lies in
the sustenance of a content society, similarly society is meant for the world,
world for the universe and the universe for the consciousness/God itself. The man
who realizes this truth can undoubtedly see the path of dharma (virtue). O
Arjuna! This war will definitely lead to social destruction but it is also true that this
war will lead to the birth of new culture. The old culture has become as poison,
thousands of years ago those rituals which were established by the scriptures
have only become a lip-services in existing society. The cast system which was
based on intelligence is now based on birth and a means for exploitation. Old
norms will be destroyed and new norms will be born. Old dharma will be reborn
in a new shape. Just like before rain, the cloudy sky as well as the rugged earth
looks dirty but after the rain both the sky and the earth becomes rejuvenated.
Similarly, after this war the society and the world will be rejuvenated. Therefore,
think about this change, give up your attachments and pick up weapon and fight
O Arjuna!
Arjuna: I can hear your words Krishna but they are not being able to reach my
heart. My mind is full of love for my near and dear ones. How do I think about my
dharma and how do I think about the society and the world. O Krishna! You
promised me to take my chariot in the right direction then I beg of you, please be
the charioteer of my soul and take my life to the right direction. Only by knowing
the truth will I be able to give up my weakness. Kindly help me, O Krishna! (bows
down)
Krishna: Get up O Arjuna, Know the secret of life and understand the reality
behind the universe. If one puts his hand in the flowing Ganges and clinches his
fist then one will get nothing but if he folds his hands for an offering and pulls it
out then he can get the water to his mouth. So O Arjuna, think whether you have
positioned yourself with egoist fist or compliant offering. Your attitude will
determine whether you will grasp the truth or not.

----End of episode---

Krishna (Goes on talking): O Arjuna, what is this world? How does it work? What
are these humans, animals, birds, forests, mountains? How are they born? How
do they survive and what happens to them upon death? Think about these things
Arjuna: Bodies are composed of five elements water, fire, earth, wind and space
Krishna: Therefore your grandfather, teacher, your cousins all are composed of
five elements. A virtuous man as well as a vicious person is made of these same
five elements. If so then what are you sorry about? Is it about the loss of these
elements?
Arjuna: But O Krishna, isnt it true that our identity is through our bodies? All
relationship and cognition is through this body?
Krishna: No Arjuna, if this was true then why do we destroy the body after death?
Actually, neither our identity is through our body nor our relationships through
this body. Mans identity is his nature, his behavior and his deeds. So it is
important to understand how we acquire these. Even though each human is
made of the same 20 visible and invisible elements but still each has its own
unique nature. This is because of 3 gunas (qualities) Tamas, Rajas and Sattva.
Arjuna: What are these 3 qualities Krishna?
Krishna: Tamas implies darkness (of ignorance) when one lives without
differentiating between good and bad only for once survival then this is known as
Tamsic behavior. For ex, all animals & birds live only for fulfilling their physical
needs. Sattva implies light (of knowledge) when one lives by carefully weighing
truth, virtue and culture then it is known as Sattvic behavior. Between these 2
extremes is someone who has knowledge but is also tied to his wants, desires and
fears. Such a person lives in Rajas or an ego driven mindset. It is this varying
proportion of Tamas, Rajas and Sattva which leads to mans unique nature. Look
in front of you and tell me which qualities to you see in these people?
Arjuna (after having a look around): Prince Duryodhan (eldest of Kauravas) He
knows Dharma (path of virtue) but does not practice it. He is ego driven which
implies he has little Tamas, more rajas and no Sattva. While his younger brother
Dusshasana blindly follows his elder brother without differentiating between
good and bad hence he is driven completely by Tamas.
Krishna: Look at Bishma (aka Maha Mahim) as well Mix of Sattva and Tamas. He
has no ego but a blind follower of tradition and rituals which enslaves him. He
cannot break his vows when it is required. Look at Guru Drona (Arjunas teacher)
He has both the wisdom as well as ego. Wisdom leads to freedom but his ego
(of being scholarly) impedes his liberation.
Arjuna: O Krishna, if mans nature is a combination of 3 gunas then it is
predetermined. A deer will be afraid of a lion and a lion will eat the deer by their
very nature. If that is so then why do we appreciate virtue and condemn vice?
Where is the credit to be given? Its just the chemistry of gunas and nothing else!
Krishna: Its a good question Arjuna. But to answer this you must know what is a
human being - He is not just a combination of 5 elements, 5 compounds, 5 senses,
5 sense-organs and 3 gunas or 23 such substances. Man needs to move and
perform tasks and this is not possible without perception.
Arjuna: So is man his perception?
Krishna: No Arjuna. When perception is combined with 23 substances then this
combination is called Prakriti (Perceptive body). In this man named machine
made of these 24 parts resides Purush or Aatma (soul) which is a small part of
entire consciousness (God or Self). When this small part of entire consciousness
called Aatma combines with the body then a human being springs to life
Arjuna: What is Aatma?
Krishna: Aatma uses the body just like a man uses his chariot. Body is the medium
through which Aatma experiences happiness or sadness. But Aatma is not the
body. Body can be destroyed but Aatma cannot be destroyed. Aatma is invincible
by weapons, cant be burnt by fire, cant be weekend by water and cant be dried
by air. While staying in a mortal body it remains immortal. You can kill a body but
cannot kill the Aatma. Aatma is ubiquitous, immovable, stable and eternal. Aatma
changes bodies just like a man changes his old clothes.
Arjuna: But Krishna I experience everything as this body the how do I know myself
as the Aatma?
Krishna: To know yourself as Aatma is also not impossible, Arjuna. Blind lives, deaf
lives, people who are handicap also live so it is clear that man is not his body. The
man who loses perception (when he becomes unconscious or in deep sleep) also
lives so even perception is not you. If a man does intense introspection and finds
out that he is separate from his senses or body or emotions or thoughts or even
his knowledge, like this if he keeps on rejecting what he is not then eventually he
is bound to know himself as the Aatma.
Arjuna: What is the purpose of this Aatma, O Krishna?
Krishna: When the pure consciousness (parabrahman) got split it created prakriti
(matter) and purush (or Aatma) which was small parts of that consciousness
resided in prakriti. This combination led to Aatmas attachment and ignorance. To
wake up from that sleep of attachment and know oneself as the part of total
consciousness is the sole purpose of Aatma, its incumbent duty and lifes goal.
Arjuna: If each Aatma is a part of the consciousness then it implies that all
evolution and devolution is done by consciousness itself!
Krishna: Just like a jewel in a mud cannot shine similarly Aatma rapped in parkriti
loses its realization that it is a part of the total consciousness. Most Aatma think
that they are the body. They are not able to experience their separate entity from
the body. They misunderstand the experiences of the body like smell, taste,
pleasure pain etc. as their own experience and do not differentiate. That Aatma
which does not differentiate strays from the path of virtue and fall into a vicious
trap. Dismay and disappointment are a source of their awakening from their
illusion. O Arjuna, you should also know yourself as an Aatma not as a body. None
of the warrior in this war is what you think of them. They are all Aatma. Their
bodies will die but they are immortal. They will take another body until they will
know themselves as Aatma. This is first chapter of Braham Vidya (supreme
knowledge) The one who is born will die and the one who dies will be reborn.
This principle is also known as Sankhya Yoga.
Arjuna: What is Dharma and Adharma?
Krishna: Dharma is the path by which the Aatma realizes itself as the total
consciousness and the path which takes it astray from this realization is called
Adharma. When a human being experiences itself as a part of total consciousness
then he knows that only consciousness is universe and the universe is
consciousness. There is no difference between the two of them. The one who
knows this truth finds it impossible to be apathetic and harsh to other beings. He
knows that even if only tongue is hurt the entire body experiences its pain
similarly if any being experiences suffering then the entire universe experiences
that pain. Therefore until even a single being is suffering no one in the universe
can experience absolute bliss. When someone experiences this ultimate truth
then his heart gets filled with compassion. This is known as Dharma. A man filled
with tamas becomes harsh, apathetic and selfish. He makes others suffer for what
he assumes to be his happiness. He is unable to advance towards total
consciousness. In other words he is on the path to Adharma.
Arjun: Hence ignorance of ones own true identity is Adharma then the ignorant
should be treated with compassion. Why is he subject to punishment?
Krishna: When an ignorant person is not willing to even listen to the truth then
punishing him is a compassionate action. Constant progress towards
consciousness is necessary. When ignorance and attachment increases it leads to
extinction of truth and compassion at that time it becomes necessary to re-
establish Dharma for future generations and todays situation is the same.
Therefore, stop being week and do your incumbent duty.
Arjuna: But I will be murdering people and if I kill people then how will I retain by
own compassion? And if the basis of Dharma is compassion then wont I be on the
path to Adharma?
Krishna: O Arjuna, karma has its conditioning on ones mind but it is not necessary
that all work will lead to conditioning. It is important for you to know the
difference between karma and work. All karma is work but all work is not karma.
Karma is that work which is done with an expectation (of a result). When a man
works with an expectation of happiness, reward or fame then he becomes
attached to the result of that work. This attachment becomes the conditioning of
that Aatma and keeps it in the continuous loop of birth and death. Therefore
actually work is not responsible for conditioning but the expectation of the result
from that work is responsible for conditioning.

----End of episode---

Arjuna: Please explain more Krishna as to how one can work without being
conditioned?
Krishna: For example, if while fighting this war neither are you bent on being the
winner nor are you afraid of being the loser then at the end will you be happy or
sad?
Arjuna: Neither happy nor sad
Krishna: This means your happiness or sadness, disappointment or hopelessness,
all of that is not because of the war but because of your expectation from the
war. Isnt that true Arjuna?
Arjuna: True
Krishna (recites in Sanskrit) : This means that if you will fight without thinking
about happiness, sadness, profit, loss, victory or defeat then and only then will
you escape without sin (i.e. without conditioning). This law is called Karma Yoga
So the one who understand Sankhya Yoga known that he is not a body but a soul
(part of total consciousness). He knows that all the bodily experience are only till
death so they are not real but only an illusion (Maya). The one who knows this
can easily try to become a Karma Yogi.
Arjuna: But Krishna if the objective is to escape conditioning then why not just
give up all work and accept renunciation?
Krishna: This is the very reason for this war Arjuna. When people filled with
Sattvic qualities who have inherent tendency to act in accordance with dharma
renounce the world then the world is run by people who are inherently more
prone to selfish acts (or are adharmi by nature). If Bhishma (aka Maha Mahim)
would not have taken to celibacy and renounced the throne then today
corruption (adharma) would not have been pervasive in this society. If your father
(More righteous of the 2 brothers) would not have taken ascetism then today
your eldest brother would have been the king and there would be justice and
virtue in this society. The irony is that only people with Sattva Gun (virtuous
qualities) think of renunciation and asceticism. They are like clean water in this
pond like world which evaporate when they become ascetic and the mud remains
which make the pond marshy and fills it with vice and corruption (paap &
adharma). But Karma Yoga can save this deterioration. Karma yogi will renounce
the fruit/expectation of his work but does not renounce work. He lives in the
society like an ascetic. He does the work but remains unattached / unconditioned
(by its fruits). Karm Yogi does not expect anything from his children, loved ones or
the people he rules. In this way he enjoys the fruits of asceticism but the society
benefits tremendously from his existence.
Arjuna: Hey Krishna, man works hard for happiness of his children then why
would he not expect them to be happy?
Krishna: What man does for his children, is it business or love?
Arjuna: Of course love
Krishna: Then why does he have to expect the fruits of his labour for his children?
Future benefit is seen in business not in love. The person who gives his children
virtues of love and compassion will always get love and security in return.
Childrens deeds and loved ones behavior are their own Karma, one doesnt have
any right on them. In this case all expectations from others are useless. If you
think deeply then you will realize there is no work in this world with which you
need to attach your expectations. If the whole universe is made of consciousness
and all beings are a part of this total consciousness then everything is done as per
the total consciousness (or God) and human being does not do anything on his
own but deeds are done through him being a part of a larger network (of
consciousness). This is the philosophy of Karma Yoga. It is necessary that you fight
like Karma Yogi. By giving us the 3 qualities (Sattva, Rajas & Tamas) become
Nirgun (Quality-free or pure consciousness/aatma/soul). Free yourself of
dualities/dilemmas. Be rooted in your consciousness and perform your incumbent
duties/tasks. Give up your thoughts to gain something or to protect something
that you have gained in the past and free your soul. Remember your right is only
to do and God will decide the fruit of your action. Therefore neither should you
give up on your work nor should you expect anything out of it.
Arjuna: O Krishna, how can I recognize a Karma Yogi one who give up the fruit of
his work but keeps on doing the work?
Krishna: O Arjuna, the one who gives up eating in order to overcome his desires of
taste will never be free of it. He is doubly harmed firstly by giving up on food he
loses his vital energy required to work towards experiencing the ultimate truth
(total consciousness) and secondly he becomes prey to the greed of taste.
Therefore rather than giving up food, give up the greed of taste. Karma yogi
destroys all the greed of his desire. He does everything which is incumbent but
does not get attached to the outcome of his deeds (positive or negative). And the
one who doesnt attach desires and expectation from his work will be able to
complete his work. The one who is neither disappointed by failure nor overjoyed
by success is established in Karma Yoga. And such a person will be repeatedly
successful in life. Focus on the fruit of ones action leads to expectation,
expectation leads to dissatisfaction, dissatisfactions leads to anger and anger
leads to attachment. An attached person will forget about ethical behavior. This
leads to loss of wisdom and eventually vicious deeds. The whole world seems to
be an enemy which leads to a total self-disaster. For example, Duryodhana (eldest
of Kauravas). His commander-in-chief Bhishma is his own enemy while wishes for
your success. O Arjuna, Karma Yoga is the second chapter of the divine wisdom.
Keep your attention steady in your own consciousness (I AM ness) by which you
will experience yourself as a soul. This will lead to freedom from all false
associations. Give up the expectation of the fruits of your labour and just work.
Arjuna: Hey Krishna, how do I keep my attention steady on my consciousness and
become a Karma Yogi?
Krishna: By practicing Sankhya Yoga a person can constantly keep his attention on
his consciousness. This practice will lead to an attitude of total let go or devotion
(towards the supreme). This devotional attitude (of let go)is called Bhakti. With
Bhakti a man knows how to differentiate between truth and falsity. This leads to
recognition of consciousness. The one who recognizes himself as part of
consciousness will become Karma Yogi and neutralize all his conditionings and
gets liberated from the continuous cycle of birth and death. All souls have this
same objective of merging into total consciousness. This also is the last chapter of
Dharma.
Arjuna: But how can I have an attitude of total devotion without experiencing
myself as a part of total consciousness?
Krishna: All you have to do is to remove the blinders of greed, pride, anger and
conditionings. If a person sitting in a dark room requests you to show him the sun
then all you will him is to come out of the dark room and stand below the sky. Sun
is always shining outside so as soon as he walks out of his darkness he will see the
sun. Similarly, this whole universe is nothing but consciousness. And there exists
nothing apart from consciousness. The one who experiences himself as a part of
this consciousness, he is also able to experience the total consciousness in its
entire glory. Just like a grain have salt has the same taste as the ocean, similarly
your own experience as a soul is like experiencing the entire consciousness.
Arjuna: O Krishna, this implies that you are akin to the entire consciousness?
Krishna: Yes Arjuna, I am the consciousness just the way you are also the same
consciousness. Just that you are still unconscious (of your true identity) while I
have realized/experienced it for myself.
Arjuna: This implies devotion to you is equivalent to devotion to the entire
consciousness.
Krishna: Yes Arjuna, I am the consciousness. I am the universe and tiniest bits of
it. I am Sun, moon, stars and planets. I am older than the Sun and newer than a
new born bud. I am all of humanity. I am the power which makes you experience
hell or heaven. I am Duryodhana and Arjuna as well.
Arjuna: How is that possible? Many have seen your birth. Your mother is still alive
who gave you the birth. How can you be oldest and eternal?
Krishna: You are talking with respect to the body while I am talking with respect
to the Aatma (Soul). I have taken innumerous reincarnations and this will
continue to happen To protect virtue, to destroy evil and to re-establish Dharma
I will manifest myself in every Yug (Era). I am the eternal consciousness. I am not
anything tangible but only intangible. I am everything yet I am nothing.