Quotes by Bhagavad Gita
Welcome to our collection of quotes by Bhagavad Gita. We hope you enjoy pondering them and please share widely.
Wikipedia Summary for Bhagavad Gita
The Shrimad Bhagavad Gita (Sanskrit: श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, romanized: śrīmadbhagavadgītā, lit. 'The Song by God';), often referred to as the Gita (IAST: gītā), is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic Mahabharata (chapters 23–40 of Bhishma Parva), dated to the second half of the first millennium BCE and is typical of the Hindu synthesis. It is considered to be one of the holy scriptures for Hinduism.
The Gita is set in a narrative framework of a dialogue between Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide and charioteer Krishna, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. At the start of the Dharma Yuddha (righteous war) between Pandavas and Kauravas, Arjuna is filled with moral dilemma and despair about the violence and death the war will cause in the battle against his own kind. He wonders if he should renounce and seeks Krishna's counsel, whose answers and discourse constitute the Bhagavad Gita. Krishna counsels Arjuna to "fulfill his Kshatriya (warrior) duty to uphold the Dharma" through "selfless action". The Krishna–Arjuna dialogues cover a broad range of spiritual topics, touching upon ethical dilemmas and philosophical issues that go far beyond the war Arjuna faces.
Numerous commentaries have been written on the Bhagavad Gita with widely differing views on the essentials. According to some, Bhagavad Gita is written by the god Ganesha which was told to him by Vyasa. Vedanta commentators read varying relations between Self and Brahman in the text: Advaita Vedanta sees the non-dualism of Atman (Self) and Brahman (universal Self) as its essence, whereas Bhedabheda and Vishishtadvaita see Atman and Brahman as both different and non-different, while Dvaita Vedanta sees dualism of Atman (Self) and Brahman as its essence. The setting of the Gita in a battlefield has been interpreted as an allegory for the ethical and moral struggles of human life.
The Bhagavad Gita presents a synthesis of Hindu ideas about dharma, theistic bhakti, and the yogic ideals of moksha. The text covers jñāna, bhakti, karma, and rāj yogas (spoken of in the 6th chapter) incorporating ideas from the Samkhya-Yoga philosophy.
The Bhagavad Gita is the best known and most famous of Hindu texts, with a unique pan-Hindu influence. The Gita's call for selfless action inspired many leaders of the Indian independence movement including Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Mahatma Gandhi; the latter referred to it as his "spiritual dictionary".
Out of compassion I destroy the darkness of their ignorance. From within them I light the lamp of wisdom and dispel all darkness from their lives.
As person abandons worn-out clothes and acquires new ones, so when the body is worn out a new one is acquired by the Self, who lives within.
The peace of God is with them whose mind and soul are in harmony, who are free from desire and wrath, who know their own soul.
This yoga should be practiced with firm determination and perseverance, without any mental reservation or doubts.
Better indeed is knowledge than mechanical practice. Better than knowledge is meditation. But better still is surrender of attachment to results, because there follows immediate peace.
Whatever I am offered in devotion with a pure heart -- a leaf, a flower, fruit, or water -- I accept with joy.
Delusion arises from anger. The mind is bewildered by delusion. Reasoning is destroyed when the mind is bewildered. One falls down when reasoning is destroyed.
It is better to live your own destiny imperfectly than to live an imitation of someone elses life with perfection.
For certain is death for the born, And certain is birth for the dead; Therefore over the inevitable, Thou shouldst not grieve.
You have a right to perform your prescribed duties, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions.
An intelligent person does not take part in the sources of misery which are due to contact with the material senses. O son of Kunti, such pleasures have a beginning and an end, and so the wise man does not delight in them.
Faithful, intent, his senses subdued, he gains knowledge; gaining knowledge, he soon finds perfect peace.
When a person is devoted to something with complete faith, I unify his faith in that. Then, when his faith his completely unified, he gains the object of his devotion.
The senses have been conditioned by attraction to the pleasant and aversion to the unpleasant. Do not be ruled by them.
Sever the ignorant doubt in your heart with the sword of self-knowledge. Observe your discipline, arise.
Those who realize the self are always satisfied. Having found the source of joy and fulfillment, they no longer seek happiness from the external world. Happiness can only be found within the self.
The happiness which comes from long practice, which leads to the end of suffering, which at first is like poison, but at last like nectar -- this kind of happiness arises from the serenity of one's own mind.
The serenity of mind, gentleness, silence, self-restraint, and the purity of mind are called the austerity of thought.
One who has control over the mind is tranquil in heat and cold, in pleasure and pain, and in honor and dishonor; and is ever steadfast with the Supreme Self.
Elevate yourself through the power of your mind, and not degrade yourself, for the mind can be the friend and also the enemy of the self.
If you want to see the brave, look to those who can return love for hatred. If you want to see the heroic, look to those who can forgive.
Just as a fire is covered by smoke and a mirror is obscured by dust, just as the embryo rests deep within the womb, wisdom is hidden by selfish desire.
It is better to do your own duty badly, than to perfectly do another's; you are safe from harm when you do what you should be doing.
For one who has conquered his mind, a mind is best of friends, but for one who has failed to do so, a mind is the greatest enemy.
The ignorant work for their own profit; the wise work for the welfare of the world, without thought for themselves.
If you perform the sacrifice of doing your duty, you do not have to do anything else. Devoted to duty, man attains perfection.
