Edwin Arnold

The Bhagavad Gita Edwin Arnold

The Bhagavad Gita is truly a Holy Scripture. Its sweet melody connects seekers of various temperaments with the Divine. The teachings covered here bring those people to union with God who enjoy contemplation and meditation through Jnana Yoga; those who have deep love and devotion through Bhakti Yoga; and those who enjoy actions through Karma Yoga. The Gita is also a searing fire that burns away all misconceptions and reveals he divine truth about this existence: underneath all appearances rests Brahman in Its complete and utter purity in eternal freedom. Vedavyasa, the author of the Bhagavad Gita uses the vehicle of a dialog between Krishna, the enlightened manifestation of pure Being, and Arjuna, the confused seeker who is looking for clarifications about his duty at the beginning of a war. Krishna, Arjuna's uncle, makes it abundantly clear in this conversation that justice must be upheld, even if it came with a terrible price in human lives. Krishna explains that the soul of a person is immortal and cannot be touched by weapons. Therefore, it is beyond slaying and beyond being slayed. Arjuna must not make the mistake of seeing events from a human perspective. He needs to see things from a cosmic point of view, where nothing is ever gained and nothing is ever lost, and the establishment of higher principles is the only driving force in existence.