Test Your Knowledge of the Bhagavad Gita

The Bhagavad Gita is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic Mahabharata, dated to the second half of the first millennium BCE and is considered to be one of the holy scriptures of Hinduism. It is set in a narrative framework of dialogue between Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide and charioteer Krishna. The Gita presents a synthesis of Hindu ideas about dharma, theistic bhakti, and the yogic ideals of moksha. It covers Jñāna, Bhakti, Karma, and Rāja yogas, incorporating ideas from the Samkhya-Yoga philosophy. The Bhagavad Gita is one of the most revered Hindu texts and has a unique pan-Hindu influence. The work is also known as the Iswara Gita, the Ananta Gita, the Hari Gita, the Vyasa Gita, or the Gita. The authorship of the Bhagavad Gita is attributed to the sage Vyasa, whose full name was Krishna Dvaipayana, also called Veda-Vyasa. Scholars consider Vyasa to be a mythical or symbolic author, in part because Vyasa is also the traditional compiler of the Vedas and the Puranas, texts dated to be from different millennia. Theories on the date of the composition of the Gita vary considerably. Some scholars accept dates from the 5th century BCE to the 2nd century BCE as the probable range. The Bhagavad Gita is the best known, and most influential of Hindu scriptures. It is part of the Prasthanatrayi, which also includes the Upanishads and Brahma sutras. The Bhagavad Gita is a "summation of the Vedanta". The Gita refrains from insisting on one right marga (path) to spirituality. It openly synthesizes and inclusively accepts multiple ways of life, harmonizing spiritual pursuits through action (karma), knowledge (gyaana), and devotion (bhakti).Summary Title: The Bhagavad Gita - A Synthesis of Paths to Spiritual Realization

• The Bhagavad Gita attempts to forge a harmony between three paths to spiritual realization - knowledge-based monism, action-based life, and devotion-based theism.

• The Gita recommends a "both-and" view, urging people to resist the "either-or" view and strive for inner renunciation or motiveless action.

• The Gita synthesizes several paths to spiritual realization based on the premise that people are born with different temperaments and tendencies.

• The guna premise is a synthesis of the ideas from the Samkhya school of Hinduism.

• Bhakti forms an essential ingredient of this synthesis, and the text incorporates Bhakti into Vedanta.

• The Gita rejects the Shramanic path of non-action, emphasizing instead "the renunciation of the fruits of action".

• The Bhagavad Gita is a poem written in the Sanskrit language with 700 verses structured into several ancient Indian poetic meters.

• The Gita is a dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna right before the start of the climactic Kurukshetra War in the Hindu epic Mahabharata.

• The Bhagavad Gita comprises 18 chapters in the Bhishma Parva of the epic Mahabharata.

• The first chapter sets the stage for the Kurukshetra battlefield and Arjuna's moral dilemma about the morality of war.

• Chapter 2 begins the philosophical discussions and teachings found in the Gita and summarizes the Hindu idea of rebirth, samsara, eternal Self in each person (Self), universal Self present in everyone, various types of yoga, divinity within, the nature of knowledge of the Self and other concepts.

• Chapter 3 emphasizes the obligation to understand and perform one's duty (dharma) and the need to perform action without craving for its fruits.

• Chapter 4 reveals Krishna's divine nature and teaches about the inner Self in all beings. It emphasizes the simultaneous outer action with inner renunciation.

• Chapter 5 presents the tension in the Indian tradition between the life of sannyasa and the life of grihastha, and Krishna answers that both are paths to spiritual realization.Summary Title: Overview of Chapters and Themes in the Bhagavad Gita

• The Bhagavad Gita is a sacred Hindu text consisting of 18 chapters and 700 verses.

• The Gita emphasizes the importance of selfless action and service as a path to Self-knowledge and union with the divine essence in all beings.

• Chapter 5 shows signs of interpolations and internal contradictions, while Chapter 6 summarizes the principles of Yoga and meditation.

• Chapter 7 discusses knowledge and realization, stating that Self-knowledge and union with Purusha (Krishna) are the highest goal of any spiritual pursuit.

• Chapter 8 discusses the imperishable Brahman and the nature of death and rebirth, while Chapter 9 recommends devotional worship of Krishna.

• Chapter 10 describes Krishna's opulences and his divine being, while Chapter 11 displays Krishna's universal form (Viśvarūpa).

• Chapter 12 glorifies the path of love and devotion to God, while Chapter 13 describes the difference between the transient perishable physical body and the eternal Self.

• Chapter 14 explains the difference between purusha and prakriti by mapping human experiences to three Guṇas.

• Chapter 15 expounds on Krishna's theology, in the Vaishnava Bhakti tradition of Hinduism, while Chapter 16 discusses the divine and demonic nature of human beings.

• Chapter 17 qualifies the three divisions of faith, thoughts, deeds, and even eating habits corresponding to the three modes (gunas).

• Chapter 18 offers a final summary of its teachings in the previous chapters, emphasizing the karma-phala-tyaga teaching ("act while renouncing the fruits of your action").

• The Gita adopts the Upanishadic concept of Absolute Reality (Brahman) and emphasizes the importance of both the abstract and personalized Brahman (God), amalgamating the two and using the concepts interchangeably in later chapters.Summary Title: The Bhagavad Gita: Key Themes and Teachings

• The Bhagavad Gita is a foundational Hindu text that is considered panentheistic, theistic, and monistic.

• The Gita accepts the concept of atman (Self) as a pure, unchanging, ultimate real essence.

• The Gita considers the world to be transient, and everything that constitutes prakriti (nature, matter) as impermanent. It relies on the theories found in the Samkhya and Vedanta schools of Hinduism.

• The equation "Atman = Brahman" is central to the Gita, and it supports spiritual monism as a form of synthesis with a personal God.

• The Gita teaches several spiritual paths – jnana, bhakti, and karma – to the divine. The theme that unites these paths in the Gita is "inner renunciation".

• The Gita teaches the path of Karma yoga, which upholds the necessity of action without any attachment to personal rewards.

• The Gita characterizes bhakti as the "loving devotion, a longing, surrender, trust, and adoration" of the divine Krishna.

• Jnana yoga is the path of knowledge, wisdom, and direct realization of the Brahman. The Gita praises the path but adds that it is steep and difficult.

• The Gita's eighteen chapters have a progressive order, where Krishna leads "Arjuna up the ladder of Yoga from one rung to another."

• The Gita rejects ascetic life, renunciation, and Brahminical Vedic ritualism. Instead, it recommends the pursuit of an active life where the individual adopts "inner renunciation".

• Dharma is a prominent paradigm of the Mahabharata, and it is referenced in the Gita as well. It refers to that which is right or just.

• The battlefield setting in the Gita is interpreted as an allegory for "the war within". The Gita promotes the warrior class' (Kshatriya Varna) duty to wage war with courage as a defense of just war.