Four meanings of karma (Gita concepts series: Karma 1)
Karma is among several Sanskrit words that have entered into mainstream English vocabulary. It is used widely to convey some sense of causality: some kind [...]
Gita Chapter 5 summary – part 1
Confused by Krishna’s emphasis on knowledge in the fourth chapter (04.34-42) and especially by his concluding call to fight with the metaphorical sword of knowledge [...]
Gita 12.18-19 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Bg 12.18-19 samaḥ śatrau ca [...]
Gita Chapter 4 summary – part 4
Specifying a critical element in the acquisition of wisdom, Krishna highlights the importance of learning from the wise. Arjuna should reverentially approach seers who have [...]
Gita chapter 4 summary – part 3
Continuing his description of how the wise act without being bound, Krishna states that they give up worldly desires, discipline their mind, step away from [...]
Gita chapter 4 summary – part 2
Explaining why everyone doesn’t know him and attain him, Krishna points to his reciprocal nature. He rewards people in proportion to their surrender — and [...]
Gita chapter 4 summary – part 1
Krishna begins the fourth chapter by describing the history of the knowledge he is sharing with Arjuna. At the dawn of creation, Krishna gave this [...]
Gita chapter 3 summary – part 3
All living beings, even those with knowledge, have to act according to their nature; what can anyone gain by repressing their nature? (03.33) That repression [...]
Gita chapter 3 summary – part 2
Sensing that Arjuna is thinking about exalted renunciates who have given up all actions and all sacrifices, Krishna discusses such people, highlighting their special characteristics: [...]
Gita Chapter 3 summary – part 1
Arjuna is confused by two of Krishna’s statements from the previous chapter: first, use intelligence rather than just act; and second, fight, which seems to [...]
Gita chapter 2 summary – part 2
Raising Arjuna’s vision above material profit-loss considerations (02.38), Krishna explains that spiritual knowledge needs to be translated into a state of spiritual connectedness (02.39). The [...]
Gita chapter 1 summary
The Bhagavad-gita’s first chapter usually has two titles: observing the armies or Arjuna’s lamentation. These titles broadly indicate the two main sections of the chapter. [...]
Gita 15.10 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Bg 15.10 utkrāmantaṁ sthitaṁ vāpi [...]
Why does Krishna analyze yajna dana and tapa in the three modes?
When analyzing faith in the three modes in the Bhagavad-gita’s seventeenth chapter, Krishna focuses on three particular activities: yajna (sacrifice), dana (charity) and tapa [...]
How does knowing Krishna enable Arjuna to know everything
In the Bhagavad-gita’s fifteenth chapter, Krishna declares (15.19) that those who know him truly know everything. What does this statement mean for Arjuna? First, to [...]
How Krishna helps Arjuna make philosophical sense of his inner conflict
Krishna demonstrates how to make philosophy relevant when presenting the concept of the modes in the Bhagavad-gita’s fourteenth chapter. Krishna first outlines the main characteristics [...]
Why does Krishna take sides when he is equal to everyone?
Krishna states in the Bhagavad-gita’s ninth chapter he is equal to everyone (09.29). Then why is he taking one side on the Kurukshetra battlefield: Arjuna’s, [...]
If everything happens by Krishna’s will was Duryodhana too doing Krishna’s will?
In the Bhagavad-gita’s tenth chapter, Krishna declares that material nature works under his supervision (09.10). Some may find this declaration similar to a common saying, [...]
How Arjuna understands what Krishna means when using the word ‘yoga’
Words are often multivalent — they have many meanings, sometimes widely differing meanings. When confronted with such multivalent words during a conversation, how do we [...]
How Krishna helps Arjuna arrive at a desired conclusion
Krishna’s purpose in speaking the Bhagavad-gita is, at one level, to ensure that Arjuna plays his part in the divine mission to establish dharma in [...]
How could Arjuna speak when he couldn’t even hold his bow?
In the Bhagavad-gita’s first chapter, when Arjuna saw his relatives in the opposite army, he was so emotionally overwhelmed that his bow started slipping out [...]