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How the library is organised
  • Path A guided route through several topics, in order.
  • Hub One topic, read at three depths, plus a quick summary.
  • Article A single piece to read, at one depth.
  • Quick summary Short on time. The whole topic in a few minutes.
  • New to this topic. Plain words, one idea at a time.
  • Know the basics. Verse by verse, with reasons.
  • Want the text itself: Sanskrit terms, commentary, close reading.

Learning paths

Start here (3)

Path Begin the Gita Orient a first-time reader: what the Gita is, why Arjuna breaks down, and the main ideas the rest of the book builds on. 8 steps 8 of 8 steps ready Path The Gita in 7 Days One core idea per day for readers who want the whole picture quickly. Mostly reuses hubs from other paths. 7 steps 6 of 7 steps ready Path Arjuna's Journey The psychological arc across the book, from despondency to clarity and action. 8 steps 8 of 8 steps ready

The four paths (2)

Path The Path of Karma Yoga Action without bondage: duty, results, doership, offering, equanimity. 14 steps 14 of 14 steps ready Path The Path of Devotion What the Gita means by devotion, the devotee's qualities, and the practice of surrender. 13 steps 13 of 13 steps ready

Core themes (1)

Path The Self and the Body The imperishable self, the changing body, and what that means for living. 7 steps 1 of 7 steps ready

For life situations (2)

Path Anger and Desire How craving turns into anger and delusion, and what the Gita offers to break the chain. 6 steps 2 of 6 steps ready Path Work and Career Doing work well without being owned by results, ambition, or recognition. 9 steps 3 of 9 steps ready

Chapter by chapter (6)

Path Chapter 1: The Yoga of Arjuna's Despair Chapter 1: The Yoga of Arjuna's Despair 6 steps 2 of 6 steps ready Path Chapter 2: The Yoga of Knowledge Chapter 2: The Yoga of Knowledge 12 steps 7 of 12 steps ready Path Chapter 3: The Yoga of Selfless Action Chapter 3: The Yoga of Selfless Action 8 steps 8 of 8 steps ready Path Chapter 4: The Yoga of Knowledge and Renunciation of Action Chapter 4: The Yoga of Knowledge and Renunciation of Action 10 steps 1 of 10 steps ready Path Chapter 12: The Yoga of Devotion Chapter 12: The Yoga of Devotion 4 steps 4 of 4 steps ready Path Chapter 18: The Yoga of Liberation through Renunciation Chapter 18: The Yoga of Liberation through Renunciation 11 steps 6 of 11 steps ready

Topic hubs

Begin here: the Gita and its setting (7)

Hub What Is the Gita? What the Bhagavad Gita is, who speaks to whom, why it is set on a battlefield and what it asks of the listener. Start here before reading any chapter. Hub How to Read the Gita How to begin the Gita and keep reading it: the order, a plain translation, a commentary and a question of your own, in a simple, a detailed and a deeper reading. Hub The Eighteen Chapters at a Glance A map of the Bhagavad Gita's eighteen chapters, with the name, size and job of each, and how Arjuna's questions carry the book from despair to decision. Hub Arjuna on the Field Arjuna raises his bow, asks Lord Krishna to station the chariot between the armies, and sees elders, teachers and kin on both sides. The scene where the Gita begins. Hub Arjuna's Questions What does Arjuna ask in the Gita, when and why? Fourteen main questions in the order of the book: what each shows about his state of mind, and where to read the reply. Hub Arjuna's Despondency Arjuna's body gives way, his reasons pull both ways, and he throws down his bow. Then he says he does not know, and asks Lord Krishna to teach him. The turn that begins the Gita. Hub Duty, Honour and Fear After the teaching of the imperishable self, the Lord speaks to Arjuna in the language of duty, reputation and fear of disgrace. Gita 2.31-37: seven verses, how far the appeal goes, and the turn to an even mind in the next verse.

The Self and steady wisdom (3)

Hub The Imperishable Self What the Lord first teaches Arjuna in his grief: who lives in the body, what can and cannot be lost, why grief assumes too much, and the second answer for the one who cannot accept the first. Hub Buddhi Yoga: The Resolute Intellect How the Gita turns the knowledge of the self into a steady, resolute intellect: one aim in place of many branching thoughts, what scatters the mind, and the rest in the Self where yoga begins. Hub Equanimity Keeping the mind level when pleasure and pain, gain and loss, praise and blame come and go: the Gita's teaching of evenness on three fronts, and what it is not.

Action: karma yoga (10)

Hub Chapter 3: The Yoga of Selfless Action, an Overview Gita chapter 3 in a glance: Arjuna asks why act if knowledge is higher, and the Lord answers in seven steps, from work as giving to the enemy called desire. A guide to the chapter's pages. Hub Karma and Akarma: Acting Without Being Bound What is action, what is wrong action and what is inaction, and how can a person act all day and not be bound? Gita 4.16 to 4.24: five marks of the free actor and the act seen as an offering. Hub Can We Simply Stop Acting? Arjuna asks why he must act if knowledge is higher. The Lord's answer in Gita 3.1 to 3.8: stopping does not free anyone, no one can stop, and the better way is a ruling mind with unclinging work. Hub Action Without Claiming the Fruit Can we work hard and still not be eaten up by the result? Gita 2.47 to 2.51: the work is ours, the result is not, and work done this way is better work. Hub Karma Yoga in Practice How does working without clinging to the fruit become part of an ordinary day? Four moments for every task: intention before, full attention during, handing over after, and an evening review, drawn from Gita 2.47-51, 3.30 and 4.19-23. Hub Work as Sacrifice Why does work feel like a load, and what does the Gita mean by work as sacrifice? Start here: work done as an offering frees, and life runs on giving and receiving. Hub Acting for the World If someone is content within and needs nothing, why would that person still work? The Gita says: for the good of the world, free of clinging, and as an example that others follow. Hub Who Is the Doer? The Gita says nature's modes perform all action and the self is a non-doer, yet it counts the doer among five causes. Gita 3.27-29, 5.8-14 and 18.13-17 on the mistake of 'I do it all' and how it is mended. Hub Working Under Pressure A heavy week at work feels like one lump of dread. The Gita pulls it into three parts, the work, the fear and the panic, and gives a handle for each. Start here for readings at three depths. Hub One's Own Duty Why do we tire ourselves wearing someone else's way? The Gita says one's own duty, done imperfectly, is better than another's done well. Start here for readings at three depths.

Renunciation and freedom (3)

Hub Renunciation or Karma Yoga? Must you give up everything for peace, or can you keep working and still be free? Start here: the Gita's answer is that real renunciation is inside, and both paths reach one goal. Hub Relinquishment and Renunciation of Action What exactly does the Gita ask us to give up, and what must we keep? Start here: renunciation drops desire-driven acts, relinquishment drops the claim on the fruit, and duty stays. Hub Freedom Through Action How action stops binding, what the mind must gather and give up, and how serenity ripens into devotion: the subject of Gita 18.49 to 18.56.

The mind, desire and faith (3)

Hub From Thought to Ruin How a quiet thought grows into attachment, desire, anger, delusion and ruin, in seven steps (Gita 2.62–63), and why the early steps are the easy place to stop. Hub The Enemy Called Desire Why do we do what we do not want to do? Arjuna's question and the Lord's answer in Gita 3.36–43: desire and anger as the enemy that covers knowledge, and the order in which it is met. Hub What We Worship, We Become In Gita 7.20-23 and 9.20-25 the Lord says he steadies the faith of those who worship other deities and arranges what they receive, but that the result is perishable. You reach what you worship.

Devotion: bhakti yoga (13)

Hub Chapter 12: The Yoga of Devotion, an Overview A map of the twenty verses of Gita chapter 12: which way is best, four steps for a mind that will not stay, and the devotee the Lord holds dear, with a guide to the reading for each part. Hub Devotion or the Unmanifest Whether you worship the Lord in a form or the unmanifest Reality, which is better? Gita 12.1-5 holds Arjuna's question and the Lord's answer: the goal is one, but the roads differ in how hard they are. Hub By Devotion Alone Four closing words of the Lord after the universal form: this sight is rare even for the gods, no Veda, austerity, charity or sacrifice wins it, undivided devotion does, and the devotee has five marks. Three readings. Hub A Leaf, a Flower, a Fruit, Water In Gita 9.26-29 the Lord accepts a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water offered with devotion, asks that every act be made an offering, promises freedom from the bonds of results, and is equal to all yet near to the devotee. Hub Offering All Actions Lord Krishna asks that all actions be offered to Him with the mind steady, without expectation, possessiveness or fever. Gita 3.30-32 and 5.10-12 show how such work leaves no stain and brings lasting peace. Hub Devotion in Practice A short daily routine for devotion: a morning offering, one act for the Lord, a pause in a hard meeting and a review at night, with questions taken from the verses. Two readings. Hub The Ladder of Devotion What if your mind will not stay on God? In Gita 12.6-12 the Lord gives four steps, each for the person who cannot take the one above, and ends with peace that follows at once on giving up the fruit of action. The verses and three readings. Hub The Devotee Dear to the Lord At the end of chapter 12 the Lord draws the person who is dear to Him: free of hatred, friendly and compassionate, level in pain and pleasure, skilful and steady. Three readings of Gita 12.13-20, and what 'dear' means. Hub Four Kinds of Devotees In Gita 7.16-19 the Lord says that four things turn people to Him: distress, a wish to know, a want and wisdom. All four are welcome, and nearest is the one who comes for Him alone. Hub The Steadfast Devotee and Divine Care In Gita 9.13-15 and 9.22 the great souls worship the Lord with an undivided mind, and he carries what they lack and preserves what they have: the care the tradition calls yogakshema. Hub Even the Worst Offender At the end of chapter 9 the Lord says a person of very bad conduct who worships wholly is to be regarded as righteous. Gita 9.30-34: what it means, where it stops, and three readings. Hub Knowing His Glory Leads to Devotion Five verses of chapter 10: whoever knows the Lord's glory in truth is joined to Him by unwavering devotion, devotees find joy in speaking of Him together, and the Lord Himself gives the wisdom and the lamp of knowledge. Three readings. Hub The Illusory Energy and Surrender Why do we repeat what we already know is wrong? In Gita 7.14-15 the Lord says the pull on the mind is his own power, that refuge is the way across, and why some people do not take that way.

Putting it together: the paths and the final counsel (3)

Hub The Paths: Action, Knowledge, Devotion The Gita praises action, knowledge, meditation and devotion. Do they compete, and where should a person begin? They complete each other, and the Lord's steps in 12.8 to 12.12 show how to start. Hub Merely an Instrument In the fear of the universal form Arjuna asks who the fierce figure is. The Lord says 'I am Time' and 'be merely an instrument'. Gita 11.31-35: the verses, their meaning and Arjuna's trembling answer. Hub The Final Counsel: Surrender, Think, Choose How can I put down the feeling that I must handle everything alone without giving up my duties? Gita 18.57 to 18.66: surrender the actions in the mind, take refuge, reflect fully and then choose freely.

More topics (2)

Hub Delusion Gone: I Will Act The Gita's last seven verses: the Lord asks whether the delusion is gone, Arjuna says he will act, and Sanjaya closes with his joy and his verdict. Hub Arjuna, Our Mirror Arjuna's road is ours: shock, freezing, arguing, asking for help, learning, doubting again and acting. The whole journey of the Gita in one view.

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Common misreadings

Article

Does Detachment Mean Not Caring?

Detachment in the Bhagavad Gita does not mean not caring or becoming emotionally indifferent. It is a deeper way of approaching life through Karma Yoga, attachment to results, equanimity, love, and inner freedom.

Level: In Depth English 21 min

From the glossary

Word of the day

अनन्य भक्ति ananya bhakti

Devotion that does not scatter in other directions and turns to the Lord alone; the tradition's name for the idea of Gita 7.17.

Common misreading
A narrow devotion that looks down on others
A better sense
The mind resting on the Lord undivided, with love running both ways.

Key verses: Gita 7.17 Gita 11.54

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Recently Added

Quick summary

Arjuna on the Field: Quick Summary

Arjuna lifts his bow and asks Krishna to drive the chariot between the two armies, and then sees his own people on both sides. A short revision of Gita 1.20-27, the moment from which the need for teaching begins.

English 9 min Arjuna on the Field

Recently Updated

Quick summary

Arjuna on the Field: Quick Summary

Arjuna lifts his bow and asks Krishna to drive the chariot between the two armies, and then sees his own people on both sides. A short revision of Gita 1.20-27, the moment from which the need for teaching begins.

English 9 min Arjuna on the Field

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