BHAGAVAD GITA

GENERAL

• Written 300 - 400 BCE
• 6th book Mahabaratar
• Conversation between Vishnu and Arjuna
• Covers:
• Selfless, duty, devotion & meditation

MAJOR THEMES

• Yoga vs Renunciation
• Saatva vs Rajas
• Karma vs Dharma
• Proof vs Faith
• Theory vs Action

Untitled Slide

• Seen vs Unseen
• Jinana vs Vijanana

YOGA VS RENUNCIATION

• Process of casting off worldly possessions
• Going on the quest for nirvana
• Is too go on a quest to unite with the divine
• We must learn to act not in accordance with our ego
• Our ego is a destructive illusion

SAATVA VS RAJAS

• There are 3 gunas that offer 3 different qualities
• Saatva supports harmony, purity & balance
• Rajas born of passion & primary driver of ego
• Tamas supports ignorance and darkness
• To enable true yoga we must act against these

KARMA VS DHARMA

• Karma is your debt of bad actions
• To end the samsaric cycle this must be worked off
• Actions in accordance with the divine removes your debt
• Dharma is the path you must follow to do this
• It isn't what you are born into but how you use your life

PROOF VS FAITH

• We must believe what we see
• We must spend our life trying to see clearly
• Arjuna asks Krishna for evidence of how to achieve yoga
• Krishna finally shows him his most powerful form

THEORY VS ACTION

• Krishna gives Arjuna clear steps to the path of yoga
• Mediation is the most important element
• Next is selfless service
• Last, one can turn to blind renunciation
• Enlightenment is a process of self-discipline and self-control

SEEN VS UNSEEN

• Krishna makes a distinction between the seen and unseen
• The unseen world is the purusha of which all things are born
• It is the spiritual unseen realm
• Krishna wants Arjuna to have faith in the unseen world
• And use it to guide all of his actions

JINANA VS VIJANANA

• Jinana is knowledge which is the first step to nirvana
• The self awareness on the road to yoga
• Krishna emphasises the use of Jinana to find spiritual peace
• Vijanana is the constant use of Jinana in every aspect of life
• It allows spiritual awareness at every moment in life even death