The Bhagavad Gita is one of the best known and important texts of Indian literature. The words of the title mean “Song of the Lord”. The teachings of the Gita are presented in the form of a dialogue between Sri Krishna, whom the Hindus regard as the Lord Himself and Arjuna; a warrior, an archer, the leader of the Pandavas who are in a battle against their cousins the Kurus for control of a kingdom. Arjuna is the good guy and the bad guys are the blind King Dhrtarastra and his hundred sons.
“The Gita can be read as history, but it lends itself to being an allegory. In this mode, Arjuna represents the individual soul and Sri Krishna the Supreme Soul that dwells in every heart. Arjuna’s chariot is the body. The blind king Dhrtarastra is the mind under the spell of maya, or ignorance, and his hundred sons are man’s numerous evil tendencies. The battle is an eternal one that is always going on between the powers of good and the powers of evil. The warrior who listens to the advice of the Lord speaking from within will triumph in this battle and attain the Highest Good.” From the foreword of the Bhagavad Gita as translated by Winthrop Sargeant.
The following verses contain one of the main teachings of the Bhagavad Gita: (Stephen Mitchell version)
You have a right to your actions
but never to your actions fruits
Act for the action’s sake
And do not be attached to inaction
Self-possessed, resolute, act
without any thoughts of results
open to success or failure
This equanimity is yoga.
Action is far inferior
to the yoga of insight, Arjuna.
Pitiful are those who, acting,
are attached to their actions fruits.
The wise man lets go of all
results, whether good or bad,
and is focused on the action alone.
Yoga is skill in actions. (B.G. II.47 – 50)
Since Arjuna is an archer, the following lesson from is an appropriate follow up. One of Arjuna’s concerns that we all share is wanting to know the outcome. What if I win? What if I lose? Krrisna’s teaching above is reflected in the wisdom of The Way of Chuang Tzu, as translated by Thomas Merton
The Need to Win
When the archer shoots his arrow for nothing, he has all his skill.
When he shoots for a Blue Ribbon, he is already nervous.
When he shoots for a prize of gold, he goes blind and sees two targets. He is out of his mind; his skill has not changed, but the prize divides him - he cares. He thinks more of winning than of shooting, and the need to win drains him of all his power.