The Bhagavad Gita is known as the Song Celestial. It is the most important sacred text in the Hindu tradition. The Bhagavad Gita is some 700 verses and is a part of the great epic Mahabharata.
The backdrop to the Bhagavad Gita is the battle of Kurukshetra between the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Arjuna finds himself reluctantly fighting for the Pandavas against his cousins the Kauravas. Before the start of the battle Arjuna is a given a choice between having the help of either his beloved friend Krishna or the entire army of Krishna. Without hesitation Arjuna chose to have Sri Krishna as an adviser, rather than his army. Most of the Bhagavad Gita comprises the discourse that Sri Krishna gave to his disciple Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurushetra. The battle becomes a synopsis for life and provides Sri Krishna the opportunity to explain to Arjuna the philosophy of Yoga and Vedanta, in a practical and meaningful way.
The Gita begins with Sri Krishna explaining the essence of man is not the body but the immortal soul. On the eve of battle Arjuna is filled with deep misgivings; he feels to kill his relatives and friends would be a great sin. But Sri Krishna replies that Arjuna should not seem himself as the doer. It is only God who gives and takes life away. Furthermore the death of the body does not harm the soul. As the immortal quote of the Gita runs.
“The soul migrates from body to body. Weapons cannot cleave it, nor fire consume it, nor water drench it, nor wind dry it. This is the soul and this is what is meant by the existence of the soul.”
Sri Krishna convinces Arjuna to lay aside his personal preferences and to do his divine duty in upholding dharma. This concept of dharma is frequently referred to in the Gita. Dharma means right conduct; to follow the path of dharma is to follow the inner dictates of the Soul and fulfil the will of God. Sri Chinmoy says of Dharma.
“It means the inner code of life; moral, religious and spiritual law; living faith in God’s existence and in one’s own existence; soulful duty, especially enjoined by the scriptures; devoted observances of any caste or sect; willingness to abide by the dictates of one’s soul. “[1]
Sri Krishna explained to Arjuna the different paths of yoga and how a seeker, such as Arjuna, may attain liberation. The main paths of Yoga that Sri Krishna explained were:
Karma yoga: the yoga of action
Bhakti Yoga: the yoga of devotion
Jnana Yoga: the yoga of Self-transcending wisdom
Dhyana Yoga: the yoga of Meditation and pranayama
On the battlefield of Kurukshetra Sri Krishna gave Arjuna the supreme grace of perceiving his divine nature.
“O Arjuna, now behold the entire creation;
Animate, inanimate, and whatever else you like to see;
All at one place in My body.”
Chapter XI verse 7
By revealing his universal form, Arjuna views Sri Krishna as not just a friend, but as an Avatar or incarnation of God. It is quite apt to note the English writer Christopher Isherwood would later comment on the Gita as being “like a university lecture delivered by God.” Their relationship changes from good friends to Master and disciple. It is Sri Krishna’s revelations that give the Gita its Divine power. Sanjaya the scribe of the Gita remembered the words of Sri Krishna and this is why the Gita is usually looked upon as śruti, or revealed knowledge. Even though technically the Gita is Smrti because it was later remembered and written down by Sanjaya
[1] Bhagavad Gita at Sri Chinmoy Library