Bhagvad Gita is a simple but a most important part of epic Mahabharata for this country owned by God.
It contains the conversation between God and Man.
Without any doubt God has the final say.
Is He right?
The man is Arjuna the great warrior deprived of his kingdom.
God is none other than Krishna in human form, his charioteer.
Please visit the battlefield:
Two confronting armies.
Whole of the royal kingdoms of the Indian subcontinent and their armies have committed to one side or the other of this epic battle.
Arjuna and his Pandavas on one side; Kauravas , their cousins, who have wrongfully usurped the kingdom are on the other side.
Arjuna foresees what is going to happen. With genuine and sincere feelings at heart he is tormented by those profound doubts about fighting maiming and killing people of his side , other side, his relatives and close friends - all human beings.
The cause , of course , is right. But is that enough?
Will that justify enormity of death and destruction?
Should I take personal responsibility for this mass killing and massive destruction?
What mistake these thousands of people have committed who are going to be killed except being loyal to one group or the other?
Krishna brushes aside all these consequences.
He in fact takes an extreme position by urging Arjuna to obey him and fight the violent war IRRESPECTIVE OF CONSEQUENCES>
Krishna ignores significance of human conscience, and value of human lives.He also disowns a person"s personal responsibilities for the consequences of his action. For Krishna basic human emphathies have no role.
Krishna disowns consequence of action.
Mahabharatha is ultimately a tragedy: We witness weeping, lamentations and cries, grief and destruction accompanying victory and the end establishes that God is wrong and Man is right.
It contains the conversation between God and Man.
Without any doubt God has the final say.
Is He right?
The man is Arjuna the great warrior deprived of his kingdom.
God is none other than Krishna in human form, his charioteer.
Please visit the battlefield:
Two confronting armies.
Whole of the royal kingdoms of the Indian subcontinent and their armies have committed to one side or the other of this epic battle.
Arjuna and his Pandavas on one side; Kauravas , their cousins, who have wrongfully usurped the kingdom are on the other side.
Arjuna foresees what is going to happen. With genuine and sincere feelings at heart he is tormented by those profound doubts about fighting maiming and killing people of his side , other side, his relatives and close friends - all human beings.
The cause , of course , is right. But is that enough?
Will that justify enormity of death and destruction?
Should I take personal responsibility for this mass killing and massive destruction?
What mistake these thousands of people have committed who are going to be killed except being loyal to one group or the other?
Krishna brushes aside all these consequences.
He in fact takes an extreme position by urging Arjuna to obey him and fight the violent war IRRESPECTIVE OF CONSEQUENCES>
Krishna ignores significance of human conscience, and value of human lives.He also disowns a person"s personal responsibilities for the consequences of his action. For Krishna basic human emphathies have no role.
Krishna disowns consequence of action.
Mahabharatha is ultimately a tragedy: We witness weeping, lamentations and cries, grief and destruction accompanying victory and the end establishes that God is wrong and Man is right.
Thank you for that refreshing perspective on the Gita.
ReplyDeleteThe Gita, though being a revered and holy book for ages, has been challenged by Indian philosophers and 'holy men' (whatever that means) of yore. It's only in the last few centuries that it is taken to be the "only reality". The Gita has been catholicised at a time when Catholicism itself is disintegrating.
The Gita is a great work of philosophy/art. And as any great work of philosophy/art, can be interpreted in countless ways. There are, in my opinion, rare gems in the Gita.
I don't think banning a book is the solution. Let there be debate, let there be criticism. Who has the credentials to decide what is good (or bad) for the rest of us?
I agree in totality with your views.
ReplyDeleteIt goes without saying that there is vast majority inthid=s God's own country that Gita is infallible and is to be followed in letter and spirit.
I have seen the consequences in my life. In 1992 one owner of a property which i was guarding with gummen for fear of encroachment by his blood brother told me to shoot down even if it is his own brother if he violates his territory.
The inventer of Atom Bomb (source:Amarya Sen) justified (later he regretted) his invention by quoting Gita !!
There are serious repurcussions in human psyche as a result of this indoctrination!!