The Bhagavad Gita
The Bhagavad Gita is one of the most well known pieces of text in the Hindu religion (Brodd, 95). It is a detailed poem about how a person can fulfill his or her religious duties otherwise known as completing one’s dharma. From reading this text, we are taught about the very basic ideals of the Hindu religion such as Brahman, Yoga, and Karma (cite). A passage on pages 185-187 of the Bhagavad Gita eloquently explains the concept of the atman and continuation of the atman in the cycle of death and re-birth called samsara. Through repetition and a series of detailed metaphors, the text reiterates to the reader that the body is only temporary; the soul is eternal. The Bhagavad Gita is a discussion between the god Krishna, or ‘The Blessed One’ as he is referred to in the text, and Arjuna the warrior (Doniger, 176). At the beginning of the text, Arjuna explains to Krishna how morally distraught he is about going into …show more content…
If we put this passage in context with the rest of the Bhagavad Gita, it becomes clear that Krishna is doing much more than explaining the characteristics of the atman; he is revealing some significant aspects of the Hindu religion such as ethical practices and some emotional aspects. This text begins with Arjuna contemplating the morality of the life of a warrior. Krishna then shows the reader how fulfilling one’s dharma is in fact a very moral way of living one’s life. The god also reassures the reader that there is no moral injustice harming others in battle by enforcing the idea that the body is merely a portal for the soul. Doing one’s religious duty is always the ethical thing to do even if it emotionally it is difficult to complete. In this way, this text is vital to the Hindu religion because it teaches the reader that sometimes fulfilling one’s dharma is not always easy or
The Grace In Dying Book Summary
612 Words | 3 Pages“The Grace In Dying” by Kathleen Dowling Singh is a novel that combines the views of transpersonal psychology, personal experiences, alongside her Buddhist practices and believes on death, that so many people choose to ignore due to its overpowering fear. With these she is able to produce a novel where she differentiates and explains the faint stages of transformation in the transpersonal, spiritual, psychological, philosophical, energetic and physiological experiences of a person going through a near death experience. The book offers a very orthodox Buddhist image to advocate the experience of death as if it were like, “an empty vase in which the space inside is exactly the same as the space outside. Only the fragile walls of the vase separate
Siddhartha Quotes
745 Words | 3 PagesEveryone has experienced that feeling of something reoccurring or something happening again that has already happened in the past. This feeling of life running in cycles is extremely common in Siddhartha. A theme in Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse is life runs in cycles because of the reoccurrence of Kamala in Siddhartha’s life, Siddhartha experiencing the same feeling of nothingness that he felt when he was a child and now as an old man, and Siddhartha realizing that he is enduring the same sadness as his father once experienced. The reoccurrence of Kamala in Siddhartha’s life and Siddhartha meeting her again shows a cycle.
Lucidity's Folly By Krishnan Analysis
871 Words | 4 PagesLucidity’s Folly In the fourteenth teaching, Krishna goes on to explain to Arjuna about “a knowledge” that, “knowing it, all the sages have reached perfection.” This is the knowledge of the three qualities of nature- lucidity, passion, and dark inertia- which inherently form when the world is created by Krishna. These three qualities bind the self to the mortal body; the ultimate goal of man is to understand and ascend above them in order to share in the infinite spirit. While lucidity may seem like a positive quality to achieve, a close reading reveals that Krishna warns Arjuna of the danger in falling to lucidity.
Arrow Of The Blue Skinned God Analysis
718 Words | 3 PagesIn the novel, Arrow of the Blue Skinned God, Jonah Blank tells the Hindu epic, the Ramayana, as he travels across India in the footsteps of the protagonist, Rama, comparing and contrasting the modern Indian values with those found in the text. In doing so, Blank questions the duality of good and evil, as do most Indians who read the epic, coming to the conclusion that good and evil are one in the same. This view, in turn, is compatible with the Hindu views of dharma. All things are a part of the cosmic order that is dharma, and if one follows one’s dharma, he is virtuous, with moralistic ideas like good and evil just being different perversions of virtue. Rama is a man that is bound by his dharma more than any other in this epic.
Comparing OMG And Loving Krishna
590 Words | 3 PagesHe realizes that men are limited in their understanding through their focus on the outer world of idols and rituals. Once he looks inside himself, he sees the connections among the religions and that Krishna is within all and that true religion is found within himself. The message of OMG was saying not to worship deities as images but just to have love and devotion for
The Arjuna's Duty According To The Vedic Idea
959 Words | 4 PagesThe Bhagavad Gita Yaser Alwaznah University of Miami In refusing to fight, what is Arjuna calling into question? Arjuna’s fate is surrounded by a number of shocks because he is disturbed by certain facets of his primary mission of waging the war. The first incident is correlated with the killing of his kith and kin of which he had much hope in them to taken on another step.
Quetzalcoatl Analysis
673 Words | 3 PagesThe Circle Life implies death, or shall I say death implies life. This cycle of life and death as a continuum, having complementary opposites within the whole sequence, is known as the Law of Duality. In other words, although life and death appear as opposites, they are in fact two extremes of the same thing; this becomes apparent in the creations stories told to us by our maestros’ through the act of regeneration. Maestro Andres Segura Granados uses duality to support his creation story of Quetzalcoatl. Segura, in his video recorded lecture, argues that if there is no positive and negative there is no creation; that in order for life to continue being “[life] has to use death, life is based on death [and] death is life” (“The Path of Quetzalcoatl”).
Essay On Symbolism In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
553 Words | 3 PagesThe poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight focuses on Sir Gawain’s attempt to survive a game brought on by the green knight during Christmas time. This game has Sir Gawain take an axe to the green knight’s head and in return the green knight will come back in a year and return the blow. As time passes by, Sir Gawain realizes he is reaching death because he knows he will not survive the axe as the green knight did; therefore, he decides to find the green knight before the green knight finds him. The author provides the audience with symbolism to show how although Sir Gawain has knightly virtues, he is human and capable of error. The green girdle symbolizes moral truth, which is demonstrated by how the character passes every test except one.
Rig Veda Beliefs
1561 Words | 7 PagesSimilarly, in the Vedas, the soul and body must traverse obstacles such as the flesh-eating ghouls, who either consume their corpse or act as a form of guidance to reach heaven (Doniger, pg.45). These trails show that in the afterlife, the right to enter heaven isn’t wholly inclusive, as in the case of failure, the chance of an afterlife is denied to those who are eaten in the Vedas, and in the case of
Action And Orientance In Lord Krishna's The Bhagavad Gita
1165 Words | 5 PagesAn example of this occurs within the selected passage. While the contradiction posed within the passage could cause confusion for a reader, a close reading of the passage demonstrates how Krishna uses the contradiction to link the concepts of discipline in action and discipline in understanding and how it is necessary for an individual to possess discipline in understanding in order to possess discipline in action and truly fulfill their duty. Within verses forty-seven and forty-eight Krishna demonstrates the importance of action, and how it is essential for one to carry out their duty. To begin, in the second teaching Krishna states “Be intent on action,” (2.47)
Bhagavad Gita And The Mahabharata
889 Words | 4 PagesI believe the religious of Bhagavad-Gita is built around the portraying of the core beliefs and practices of Hinduism. Hinduism believes in one should do the right thing regardless, of what one believes is the right thing, because doing the right action shows that one belongs to a certain group. The Gita theme in the Mahabharata—Dharma believers who and what we are determined how we should act. The Gita is concerned with the principles of right or wrong and the good and bad, but not knowing what to do in difficult situations. The story is about Arjuna, one of five sons (Pandavas)
Analysis Of Khushwant Singh's Train To Pakistan
1035 Words | 5 PagesWhen dealing with experiences of conflict, some people face moral dilemma but can do nothing for a change. Iqbal Singh is a well-educated Sikh recently
Genesis Vs Bhagavad Gita
793 Words | 4 PagesBhagavad Gita vs. Book of Genesis Being born in a traditional Indian family I was taught about hinduism and its religious text, The Bhagavad Gita. It is said that Gita holds answers to all of life’s questions and by reading it one can attain the eternal peace and freedom from stressors. This was very interesting to me as a kid growing up in America, which is the center of diverse religions and cultures. I was introduced to not only Hinduism but to several others, like christianity, islam and judaism to name a few. Comparing and contrasting two sacred scriptures, The Bhagavad Gita and The Book of Genesis, reveals that even though these scriptures belong to different religions the theme that God created the earth and universe are the same.
Similarities Between Bhagavad Gita And The Mahabharata
1096 Words | 5 PagesTo everyone’s surprise it was Arjuna. Arjuna looked at both the armies and broke down. He said ‘killing brothers, uncles and nephews over a piece of land cannot be dharma’ and lowered his bow. At this Krishna said to Arjuna ‘it is your duty as a Kshatriya, don’t be a weakling’, Arjuna moaned ‘I cannot’. Krishna tried to reason with him ‘they abused your wife, took away your kingdom, and humiliated your family, fight for justice!’.
Lucidity's Folly Research Paper
881 Words | 4 PagesLucidity’s Folly In the fourteenth teaching, Krishna goes on to explain to Arjuna about “a knowledge” that, “knowing it, all the sages have reached perfection.” This is the knowledge of the three qualities of nature- lucidity, passion, and dark inertia- which inherently form when the world is created by Krishna. These three qualities bind the self to the mortal body; the ultimate goal of man is to understand and ascend above them in order to share in the infinite spirit. While lucidity may seem like a positive quality to achieve, a close reading reveals that Krishna warns Arjuna of the danger in falling to lucidity.
More about The Bhagavad Gita
The Grace In Dying Book Summary
612 Words | 3 PagesSiddhartha Quotes
745 Words | 3 PagesLucidity's Folly By Krishnan Analysis
871 Words | 4 PagesArrow Of The Blue Skinned God Analysis
718 Words | 3 PagesComparing OMG And Loving Krishna
590 Words | 3 PagesThe Arjuna's Duty According To The Vedic Idea
959 Words | 4 PagesQuetzalcoatl Analysis
673 Words | 3 PagesEssay On Symbolism In Sir Gawain And The Green Knight
553 Words | 3 PagesRig Veda Beliefs
1561 Words | 7 PagesAction And Orientance In Lord Krishna's The Bhagavad Gita
1165 Words | 5 PagesBhagavad Gita And The Mahabharata
889 Words | 4 PagesAnalysis Of Khushwant Singh's Train To Pakistan
1035 Words | 5 PagesGenesis Vs Bhagavad Gita
793 Words | 4 PagesSimilarities Between Bhagavad Gita And The Mahabharata
1096 Words | 5 PagesLucidity's Folly Research Paper
881 Words | 4 Pages