Srimad Bhagawad Gita - An Introduction

Gita is believed to be part of the smritis. The poem consists of 18 chapters divided into three sections of six chapters each, and contains about 700 verses. The Gita is variously dated between the third century BC and the fourth century AD. The reason for uncertainty is that the Gita is not always consistent and may be the work of several hands. One strand was probably written by a follower of the philosophy expressed in the Upanishads, in which Brahman is the highest unity underlying reality. Another strand, focussed on a more personal deity, may have been added later by a devotee of the supreme god Vishnu.Its authorship, or its revision, is sometimes ascribed to Shankaracharya. Although now considered part of the Mahabharata, it was composed later, and therefore added to the epic later.

The Gita contains probably the most powerful and thoroughgoing expression of pantheism in world scripture. The one God is the pinnacle of all things - the radiant sun of lights, the thought organ of sense organs, the intellect of beings, the ocean of waters, the Himalayas of mountain ranges, the Ganges of rivers. He is also the inherent essence of everything - including evil. He is the gambling of rogues, the courage of the courageous, the rod of disciplinarians, the statecraft of politicians, the Knowledge of the knowing.

The first section deals with Karma Yoga or the philosophy of action. Nishkama karma, or an action performed without thought for any compensation and without fear of the consequences, is the central teaching of this section. It explains that one must perform one's karma which is decided at birth depending on which caste (see Varna ) one is born into. A Brahmin's duty is upholding righteousness, a Kshatriya's is protection, a Vaishya's , agriculture and trade, and a Shudra's , service.

The second section considers Gyana Yoga or the philosophy of knowledge. It teaches that although good work is important, most of one's time should be devoted to attaining knowledge of the Supreme. It says that knowledge dispels delusion, destroys sin, and purifies the one who attains it.

The third section, Bhakti Yoga, explains the philosophy of devotion. This portion of the Gita teaches that every form of worship, even if apparently crude, is a stepping stone towards a higher form and therefore should be respected. Different forms of worship are compared to different roads that lead

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