In countering the all-paths-same-goal claim that is attributed to the Bhagavad-gita (04.11), Srila Prabhupada gives an example: Consider a railway station with many trains headed [...]
Ahimsa, frequently translated as nonviolence, is a concept drawn from the Indian tradition that has gained widespread resonance in today’s world. The Bhagavad-gita, India’s foremost [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna offers what might be best described as user-friendly spirituality. This is seen in his declaration that all people are on his [...]
Through the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna reveals how his teachings are utterly different from exclusivism. Here are four ways to understand his astonishing inclusivity: Acknowledges multiple paths [...]
How Krishna catches our attention: While watching an action movie, our attention is often caught by the hero’s spectacular action sequences. When Krishna descends to [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna’s driving question is about dharma, the right thing to do. Yet Krishna’s response contains far more references to yoga than to [...]
Not at all. What makes a path exclusivist is its claim that it alone has exclusive rights to God. What makes an exclusivist path bad [...]
Some people say, “The Gita teaches that because the soul is eternal and the body is perishable, there’s nothing wrong for Arjuna to kill in [...]
When we read in the Bhagavad-gita’s first chapter how Arjuna experienced an emotional breakdown, we may wonder: why was he so overwhelmed? To understand, we [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita (11.33), Krishna essentially assures Arjuna that he will be empowered by divine arrangement. To understand the dynamics of such divine empowerment, let’s [...]
Some people ask, “What was everyone else in the two armies doing all that time when Krishna-Arjuna were deep in discussion?” They were waiting for [...]
Given that Krishna speaks the Gita on a battlefield, we would expect it to discuss quite a bit about the two binaries: war or peace. [...]
When Krishna rebukes Arjuna for giving in to weakness (02.02-03), Arjuna’s response is not at all weak. He lets it be known that he is [...]
In Krishna’s last instructive words in the Gita, he assures Arjuna protection from all ‘papa,’ which is usually translated as sinful reactions. Additionally, another standard [...]
As discussed in the first part of this series, the idea that all paths lead to the same goal doesn’t hold true for Arjuna’s different [...]
When Arjuna puts aside his bow (01.46) at the start of the Kurukshetra war, one way that Krishna urges Arjuna to pick up his bow [...]
Some people allege that Arjuna was a pacifist who was incited to fight by Krishna through the Gita’s message. Was Arjuna a pacifist? Yes, in [...]
Some people allege that Krishna was a warmonger who goaded Arjuna into fighting. If Krishna had been a warmonger, why would he have personally gone [...]
[This is now the first part of what was previously written as a single article. On the request of readers for greater elaboration of the [...]
One of the Bhagavad-gita’s most intriguing teachings centers on the modes of material nature (gunas). The modes are threefold: sattva (goodness), rajas (passion) and tamas [...]
Oneness is a common theme associated with spirituality. Let’s consider two ways the Gita approaches oneness: As a spiritual foundation (09.15): The Gita lists oneness [...]
