Is it possible to live without war? We can’t really live without fighting. What do you do when you eat? Are you not at war with your food? You chew everything and then when it goes down in your digestive system and gets churned up and digested there is another kind of...
The ancient Indian scriptures are known collectively as the Vedas. The Bhagavad Gita comes from the Vedas. But what are the Vedas? The root vid means knowledge. According to the Hindus, the Vedas are holy scriptures. Any scripture that talks about the truth is a Veda....
In this article, Sri Swami Satchidananda gives us an overview of the "backstory" that sets the stage for one of Yoga's great, foundational texts—the Bhagavad Gita. My Master, Sri Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj, said this about the greatness of the Gita: "The Gita expounds...
Dr. Edwin Bryant offers us a tour of the historical and religious landscape of the Bhagavad Gita in this interview, including a view of its influence on Thoreau, Emerson, Mahatma Gandhi and its relevance for Yoga students and teachers. Integral Yoga Magazine: Can you...
The Bhagavad-gita is not just another religious text; nor is it merely a Hindu scripture. Rather, it provides “applied spiritual technologies,” or systematic procedures by which anyone, of any religious faith, can advance toward the ultimate goal of life. In other...
Dr. Schweig’s brand new book, Bhagavad Gita: The Beloved Lord’s Secret Love Song is described by Huston Smith (the internationally recognized authority on world religion) as a “beautiful and accessible translation of the Gita.” In this interview, Dr. Schweig explains...
Dr. David Frawley is regarded as one of the world’s foremost experts on Ayurveda, Yoga and Vedic Studies. In this article, he offers an overview of the relationship between the teachings of Yoga and the Bhagavad Gita. He also discusses the Gita’s teaching of Yoga as...
There is a great joy in giving—in sharing and caring—and not expecting anything in return. That’s what we learn from the Bhagavad Gita. You are born to serve, but not to look for the fruits of that service. Offer the fruit to everybody. That is what is meant by the...
Sri Swami Satchidananda recommended that his students memorize these twenty slokas in Chapter 12 of the Bhagavad Gita. These slokas explain the essence of Bhakti Yoga, one of the main branches of Integral Yoga. He said, “This twelfth chapter is really important. It...
In this article, you can read the first chapter (The Despondency of Arjuna) of the Bhagavad Gita from Sri Swami Satchidananda's book, The Living Gita. Sri Swamiji makes the entire Bhagavad Gita so accessible to the modern reader. The Despondency of Arjuna The first...
Sri Swami Satchidananda often quoted from Chapter Two of the Bhagavad Gita in his talks around the globe. He emphasized the importance of the slokas (verses) 54-72 because he said that if we are on a spiritual path, we should have some sense of where we are headed. He...