PDF Summary:The Bhagavad Gita, by Eknath Easwaran

The Bhagavad Gita is a conversation between Prince Arjuna and Krishna, a mortal incarnation of the god Vishnu. Arjuna is worried about an upcoming battle for succession, since he will be fighting against his kinsmen. In explaining why Arjuna should fight, Krishna goes over a wide variety of spiritual and religious topics relating to dharma, karma, spirituality, and the cycle of reincarnation.

The Gita is one of the most famous pieces of Hindu literature, and the lessons it teaches are central to that faith. As a cultural touchstone and a spiritual guide, it’s one of the most important ancient texts in the world. The translation and commentary by Eknath Easwaran help even those who aren’t learned in Hindu mythology to understand its teachings.

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Bear this in mind as you read the following subsections. The gunas are intrinsically involved in everything you do and think, but it’s possible not to be controlled by them. By rising above your personal interests, renouncing the desire to feel sattva or to avoid tamas, it’s possible to experience the gunas without being truly affected by them.

Knowledge in Terms of the Gunas

Aside from action, one can also describe knowledge according to the three gunas.

Sattvic knowledge is the understanding that there’s a single, divine entity living in all things, and therefore all things are connected and unified. Sattvic understanding knows right from wrong, what will bring security and peace, and what will ultimately lead to freedom and union with God.

Rajasic knowledge is selfish; it doesn’t see the unity in everything, but it considers different things and creatures as separate entities. Because it lacks this crucial understanding, rajasic intellect can’t tell right from wrong. It pursues wealth, pleasure, and good reputation, often at the expense of others.

Tamasic knowledge is deluded—like a child, it sees one small part of the world and thinks that’s all there is, with no concept that there could be something beyond its own experiences. It’s even more confused than rajasic knowledge, and it mixes up right and wrong at every turn. It leads to fear, grief, sadness, and a refusal to learn from mistakes.

Happiness in Terms of the Gunas

The gunas can even be used to describe different types of happiness. Happiness that comes from selfless, sattvic knowledge and action is the hardest to achieve; it will feel bitter at first to work without any thought of personal gain. However, this is the only path to permanent—and therefore real—happiness.

Happiness that comes from rajas is immediate and pleasurable, but temporary. It’s the joy of getting something you’ve always wanted, or the thrill of eating a piece of spicy food. It fades quickly and reveals itself to be an illusion—remember, only that which is permanent and unchanging is real.

Tamasic happiness is a lie from beginning to end. It comes from idleness, sleep, and intoxication. This false happiness is to be avoided.

Many Paths to God

One important point Krishna makes is that there are many different ways to escape karma and be united with God in his home. Some people make material offerings, while others offer their selfless actions, as Krishna instructs Arjuna to do. Some seek God through meditation, restraining their senses and gaining mastery over their physical bodies through asceticism (self-deprivation), or offering up their bodies and experiences to the gods. All of these various practices are called yoga, which means “union”—specifically, union with God.

In vowing not to fight, Arjuna was—likely unintentionally—practicing one means of getting closer to the divine, called sannyasa, or renunciation of action. Those who practice sannyasa, typically ascetic monks, avoid taking any actions at all in order to minimize how much karma they accrue.

However, in shirking his duty to fight, Arjuna wasn’t practicing sannyasa correctly. Krishna explains that, for a warrior prince like Arjuna, sannyasa isn’t an appropriate path; it would be impossible for Arjuna to renounce all action, since his dharma drives him to fight and lead. Instead, Krishna again urges him to practice tyaga, dedicating his actions to God and renouncing the outcomes of those actions.

Selfless action is only one step on the spiritual path. Beyond selfless action is wisdom and knowledge. Studying the scriptures, knowing the difference between one’s physical form and one’s true self, and recognizing the spirit of Vishnu in everything that exists are all key to breaking free of samsara, escaping the cycle of rebirth, and being reunited with God.

There Is No Failure in Spirituality

Throughout the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna asks several questions about what happens if you worship other gods, or worship in different ways than are laid out in the sacred texts. Krishna answers that he’ll reward true faith of any kind. People who pray to other gods will be with them in the afterlife (until they’re reborn), while those who worship Vishnu but don’t follow the proper rituals will be reborn into an educated family to learn the correct forms and continue their spiritual journey.

Most importantly, Krishna says that there is no such thing as failure when pursuing spiritual work. Arjuna worries that if he begins to practice yoga but isn’t able to complete his spiritual journey in a single lifetime, that he’ll be stuck between the physical world and the spiritual one, truly belonging to neither.

However, Krishna reassures him that that’s impossible. If he seeks Vishnu in life but becomes distracted by physical attachments or turns away from his spiritual pursuits, he’ll enjoy his rewards in the afterlife until he’s born again to continue the work.

Krishna’s Nature

As a sacred text, much of the Bhagavad Gita is devoted to Krishna explaining his true nature. One of the most difficult, yet most important things to understand is all of the various forms that Krishna takes.

He says that his truest, highest self is Brahman, the ultimate truth and power in the universe. However, Brahman isn’t usually thought of as an entity. Rather, he’s thought of more like an abstract force that pervades the universe and guides everything in it.

Vishnu, who is one of many aspects of Brahman, is the supreme deity in the universe. Though commonly depicted as a blue-skinned, four-armed being, he is in everything that exists, and everything that exists is part of him.

Finally, Krishna is an avatar, or incarnation of Vishnu. Like Arjuna, Vishnu has been born into many different bodies throughout history; however, unlike Arjuna, Vishnu controls his own reincarnations and remembers his past lives. So Krishna, Vishnu, and Brahman are all separate entities, and yet all the same divine being.

The True Form of Brahman

After explaining his nature, Krishna—at Arjuna’s request—goes one step further and reveals his true self. This isn’t the form of Vishnu that usually appears in art and literature, but the absolute truth that is Brahman. However, Arjuna can’t see Brahman with his eyes—Krishna has to grant him spiritual sight so that he can receive the vision.

Arjuna then sees a being who shines like a thousand suns all rising together. Krishna’s true self has an infinite number of faces overseeing the entire universe. He carries countless weapons in countless hands as symbols of his limitless power. Within Krishna’s body, Arjuna sees the form of every object that has ever existed merged into one.

Arjuna sees the creator god Brahma sitting on a lotus flower; he sees all of the ancient sages, alongside mythical monsters. The entire universe makes up God’s body, which has infinite mouths, stomachs, arms, and eyes. The being wears a crown and gleams with heavenly jewels. The light that radiates from its body warms everything that exists.

Arjuna sees that the true form of Krishna is the ultimate mystery of the universe; the only truth he needs to know in order to break free of karma. Vishnu is the eternal guardian of dharma, or fate, who is reborn again and again to keep the world on its ordained path.

Arjuna sees all other gods, demigods, and demons, and the universe itself shaking in fear before God’s true self. Arjuna himself is terrified by one part of the vision: All of the warriors who have gathered at the field of Kurukshetra for the upcoming battle, the kings they fight for, the entire world, and countless other worlds are all streaming into Vishnu’s countless burning mouths to be destroyed and swallowed. God says that, among all his other forms and roles in the universe, he is the ultimate destroyer: time.

Arjuna is completely overwhelmed and falls to his knees. He shakes in terror and begs Vishnu to take on his more familiar, four-armed form. After a short while, Vishnu does so and soothes Arjuna’s fears.

Once Arjuna has gathered his thoughts again, Krishna—who has by this point resumed his human form—reiterates that Arjuna should take up his weapons and fight the Kauravas. Given what Arjuna just saw, Brahman as the ultimate destroyer, he should now understand that it will be God himself who kills Arjuna’s kin; Arjuna is simply one of the countless weapons in God’scountless hands. He also promises that, should Arjuna do his duty and fight the battle, that he is certain to win.

The Final Lesson

As their conversation comes to a close, Krishna tells Arjuna two last, crucial things. The first is that he should work selflessly to fulfill his destiny; this is something Krishna’s told him repeatedly throughout the Gita, but this time he adds that it’s better to follow one’s own dharma, or duty—even imperfectly—than to try to pursue someone else’s. Arjuna’s dharma is to lead and to fight, not to retreat and meditate; if he tries to follow those more priestly pursuits, he’ll be doing the world and his own spiritual health a great disservice.

Finally, Krishna tells Arjuna to share what he’s learned, but only with those who are ready to receive the lessons. Anyone who’s lacking in devotion, discipline, or the desire to learn isn’t worthy of learning what Krishna has taught Arjuna throughout the Bhagavad Gita. However, teaching the divine mysteries to those who are ready to receive them is the greatest act of love and devotion that one can perform.

Krishna signals that their conversation is coming to an end. He asks whether Arjuna has been listening and whether his teachings have dispelled Arjuna’s doubts.

Arjuna replies that he’s freed from his uncertainties and misunderstandings. He vows to carry out Krishna’s will.