Gita Acharan

K rishna tells Arjuna to relinquish all actions unto Him; to be devoid of egotism ( nir-mama ) and desires ( nir-aasha ); and to fight without fever ( jvar ) (3.30). This verse is a summary of the Gita, and it answers several of our doubts in daily life. Our first doubt is ‘What to do’, which arises because we are not happy with what we are doing as we feel that happiness is elsewhere in another action. But this verse advises us to ‘do the job in hand’, which may have been chosen by us or thrust upon us, to the best of our abilities. It could be as cruel and complex as the Kurukshetra war, where one would kill or be killed. Scientifically, our complex human body is the evolution from a single cell where each action (division) is linked to the previous one. So, any action on hand is always a result of a series of past actions and there is no stand-alone action. The next question is, ‘How to do it’. The verse advises us to act by dropping ahankaar , desires and fever aris...

K rishna says that one attains peace when one remains unmoved by desires, like an ocean that is unmoved by the waters entering it (2.70). He further says that nir-mama (sans -I) and nir-ahankaar (sans -I am doer) are the paths for peace (2.71) to reach the eternal state. None are deluded after attaining it (2.72).   Krishna gives the example of the ocean and rivers - the ocean being the eternal state ( moksha - ultimate freedom, joy and compassion) and rivers being the stimuli constantly received by the senses. Like an ocean, one remains stable and steady after attaining the eternal state, even when temptations and desires keep entering them. Secondly, when rivers meet the ocean, they lose their existence. Similarly, when desires enter a person in the eternal state, they lose their existence. Thirdly, if one thing that makes us miserable, it’s the reaction ( akarma ) generated in us by the stimulations of the external world and our inability to control it. Hence...

  T he B hagavad Gita was born on the battlefield. Similarly, the challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic were no less intense than a battlefield in themselves.   One phrase in the Gita, nimitta-maatra (just being an instrument in the hands of the Almighty) sums up our role in such situations.   Arjuna wanted to see the reality of Krishna as it is ( yathaarth ) and needed an extra sense to grasp the same, much like a blind man would need eyesight to see the elephant. The Lord granted him this divine vision to behold the Vishwaroop (cosmic form). Apart from showing reality in space, Krishna gives him access to the future where Arjuna sees that many warriors are entering the mouth of death. The Lord confirms that these warriors would die soon and Arjuna is just an instrument in that process. Krishna clarifies that Arjuna is not the Karta (doer) but a nimitta-maatra. He further ensures that Arjuna would be free of ahankaar when he comes out as the victor,...