Bhagavad Gita

How Gita Transforms Your Mind?
How Gita Transforms Your Mind?
43 min
The entire Bhagavad Gita is devoted to Freedom from the conditioning of the body and the conditioning of the mind. Gita is about letting Arjuna know who he is. In a very liberal way, Shri Krishna says, "If you realize who you are, then you will know what to do. I do not need to instruct you. So Arjuna is not even being motivated, let alone being instructed. He's being illuminated." And that illumination enables him to do what he must.
श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता दूसरा अध्याय २, श्लोक 15-24
श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता दूसरा अध्याय २, श्लोक 15-24
45 min
मनुष्य की देह होने भर से आपको कोई विशेषाधिकार नहीं मिल जाता, यहाँ तक कि आपको जीवित कहलाने का अधिकार भी नहीं मिल जाता। सम्मान इत्यादि का अधिकार तो बहुत दूर की बात है, ये अधिकार भी नहीं मिलेगा कि कहा जाए कि ज़िन्दा हो।
Is Pop Religion Compatible With the Gita?
Is Pop Religion Compatible With the Gita?
38 min
The center of the Gita is 'Nishkamta'—desireless action stemming from self-knowledge. Whereas popular religion is all about the fulfillment of desire. We go to a supernatural power and beg him to grant our desires. That is popular religion. You can either have the Gita or the entirety of religion as practiced in common culture. They are totally incompatible.
भगवद गीता – अध्याय 2 (सांख्य योग), श्लोक 5-11
भगवद गीता – अध्याय 2 (सांख्य योग), श्लोक 5-11
22 min

गुरूनहत्वा हि महानुभावान् श्रेयो भोक्तुं भैक्ष्यमपीह लोके। हत्वार्थकामांस्तु गुरूनिहैव भुञ्जीय भोगान्तधिरप्रदिग्धान् ।।५।।

“मैं तो महानुभाव गुरुओं को न मारकर, इस लोक में भिक्षान्न भोजन करना कल्याणकर मानता हूँ, क्योंकि गुरुओं का वध करके मैं रक्त से सने हुए अर्थ और काम रूपी भोगों को ही तो भोगूँगा।“

~ श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, श्लोक

भगवद गीता - अर्जुन विषाद योग: अध्याय 1, श्लोक 39-47
भगवद गीता - अर्जुन विषाद योग: अध्याय 1, श्लोक 39-47
53 min

आचार्य प्रशांत: हम देखेंगे कि श्रीकृष्ण अर्जुन के सब भावुक, मार्मिक वक्तव्यों को किस प्रकाश में देख रहे हैं। तो अपनी ही मोहजनित पीड़ा को आगे अभिव्यक्त करते हुए कहते हैं अर्जुन कि

यद्यप्येते न पश्यन्ति लोभोपहतचेतस:। कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं मित्रद्रोहे च पातकम्।।

कथं न ज्ञेयम स्माभि: पापादस्माननिवर्तितुम। कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं प्रपश्यदिर्जनार्दन।।

भगवद गीता - अर्जुन विषाद योग: अध्याय 1, श्लोक 20-39
भगवद गीता - अर्जुन विषाद योग: अध्याय 1, श्लोक 20-39
54 min

आचार्य प्रशांत: तो शंखनाद होता है दोनों सेनाओं की ओर से। और संजय बताते हैं कि शंखनाद ने विशेषतया धृतराष्ट्र के पुत्रों के, कौरवों के हृदय में हलचल कर दी। मन उनके कम्पित हो गये, हृदय विदीर्ण हो गया। ये सुनने के बाद अब आते हैं दूसरे पक्ष पर। अर्जुन

(Gita-8) The Self and the Joy of Immortality
(Gita-8) The Self and the Joy of Immortality
37 min
If all that the Ego wants is liberation from itself, which means coming to see its own non-existence, then the only way to see its non-existence is by paying attention to itself. The more the Ego pays attention to itself, it sees that it does not exist. The more the Ego remains attached to this and that, all the sensory inputs, the Ego feels that is real and this is real.
How Did Bhagavad Gita Help Subhash Chandra Bose?
How Did Bhagavad Gita Help Subhash Chandra Bose?
10 min
There is no revolution possible without wisdom literature. The quest for independence of freedom fighters was actually a manifestation of their inner quest for liberation. What kind of revolution can one do if it's the body that's always at the top of your mind? You require a Gita to tell you that this body is perishable and would anyway go. Gita only teaches you, "Endure and fight."
(Gita-6) The Mind's Battle: Arjuna's Search for Liberation
(Gita-6) The Mind's Battle: Arjuna's Search for Liberation
27 min
The word for a Guru does not really exist in the English language. So, they have borrowed Guru itself, Guru. But they have borrowed the word Guru and rather misunderstood it and misapplied it. So, anybody who seems to be an expert at anything, can be justifiably called a Guru in the English language. Now that's not the proper usage in spirituality or in Sanskrit.
निष्कामता ही श्रेष्ठ जीवन है  || आचार्य प्रशांत, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता पर (2022)
निष्कामता ही श्रेष्ठ जीवन है || आचार्य प्रशांत, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता पर (2022)
31 min

नैव तस्य कृतेनार्थो नाकृतेनेह कश्चन। न चास्य सर्वभूतेषु कश्चिदर्थव्यपाश्रयः ।।१८।।

इस संसार के कर्मों के अनुष्ठान से निष्कामी मनुष्य को कोई प्रयोजन नहीं रहता फिर, और ऐसे मनुष्य को कर्मत्याग की कोई आवश्यकता नहीं रहती। ऐसे मनुष्य के लिए संसार में किसी प्रयोजन की सिद्धि हेतु आश्रय करने योग्य भी

Why Do We Insult Our Scriptures?
Why Do We Insult Our Scriptures?
27 min
In modern times, reading and respecting the Shastras is often seen in a derogatory light. An Asura disregards the scriptures, saying, “What I know is right. My own experience determines the Truth,” rejecting them because they will not allow him to do what he wants. We have come to a point where we are not merely ignoring but actually insulting the scriptures. If you're sincere about knowing life, why avoid a document with deep insights into it?
जब श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता ही पूर्ण है तो उत्तर गीता की ज़रूरत क्यों पड़ी? || श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता पर (2020)
जब श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता ही पूर्ण है तो उत्तर गीता की ज़रूरत क्यों पड़ी? || श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता पर (2020)
12 min

प्रश्नकर्ता: आचार्य जी, प्रणाम। कई बार ऐसा होता है कि विरोधी पक्ष के लोग विनीत भाव से मदद वग़ैरह माँगने आ जाते हैं, जैसे दुर्योधन ने शल्य का सहयोग माँगा, दुर्योधन ने बलराम से गदा सीखने का निवेदन किया और दुर्योधन ने श्रीकृष्ण से उनकी नारायणी सेना माँगी। ऐसी स्थितियों

What Is the Main Message of Bhagavad Gita?
What Is the Main Message of Bhagavad Gita?
14 min
You have to fight. The world is the battlefield. To be born is to be born as a warrior, to be born is to be born with weapons and armour. That is the message: you cannot run away. Shunning action is not possible.
Gita Is Not This
Gita Is Not This
7 min
To qualify an entrance exam, and work towards it, without thinking of the results, that’s not what Karma Yoga is. Karma Yoga is not about setting tangible worldly targets and going after them. It’s a moment-to-moment thing in which you are very conscious whether the objective of your action is personal ingratiation or larger welfare. You are acting all the time, you are not acting merely when you act towards a distant and a larger cause.
Why Isn't the Gita for Everyone?
Why Isn't the Gita for Everyone?
8 min
It depends on the pain you are willing to take. Sometimes Duryodhanas have to be turned into Arjunas. It’s just that, it’s relatively easier with an Arjuna. But what to do when even Arjunas are not present to receive the Gita? As long as somebody has anything, anything that resembles consciousness, as long as somebody has even the faintest remnant of consciousness left, Gita can be brought to that person but it will be tough, difficult.
What is Yagya?
What is Yagya?
11 min
In the name of yagya, if you continue to burn wood, you are doing no good to anybody. Yagya must be understood in its true spirit. Shri Krishna says, “Do not act for yourself or for your personal gain. Act for a higher cause; higher than yourself, beyond yourself. Do that action that takes you to your Niyati, which is your end. Yagya is that which dissolves you; that which reduces you.”
Where Is the Kurukshetra of Your Life?
Where Is the Kurukshetra of Your Life?
5 min
Arjuna’s hell was in his daily tasks, and so is yours. Arjuna could sense the evil in what appeared normal to others; you must also be able to sense that there is something extremely fishy in what seems normal to others. Your house, your workplace, your society—these are your Kurukshetra. That’s where you have to fight your Mahabharata. That’s where you need Shri Krishna and the Gita.
Yoga - The Biggest 'Spiritual' Myth Today
Yoga - The Biggest 'Spiritual' Myth Today
17 min
You have ample gurus who come over and say, “You know, you do this and then you can do whatever you want to do.” Now the moment you hear this kind of philosophy that Yoga will help you do better whatever you want to do, I suppose one must run away. Because that’s exactly antithetical to Yoga. Yoga is not about doing whatever you want to do; it’s the ego that says that, not the dedicated, devoted, wise mind. That does not come from there.
Why Does One Desire Liberation while the Other does not?
Why Does One Desire Liberation while the Other does not?
5 min

Questioner: Why is there a difference of intensity and love for mukti (liberation) between different human beings?

Acharya Prashant: The differences that you are talking of all relate to time; therefore, they all will be resolved in due course of time. Time gave rise to all those differences, and those

How to Act Without Caring About the Result?
How to Act Without Caring About the Result?
7 min
The Gita does not say that you must do whatever you do without caring for the result; it is also impossible to execute. That’s also the way so many popular gurus have sold the Gita. It’s very harmful. With false action, you will always have one eye on the result. The first thing is the right action; only right action can give you detachment from the result.
Are You in a Right Relationship?
Are You in a Right Relationship?
12 min
There are only two kinds of relationships that are right in this world. If you connect with someone at a higher level of consciousness, hold their hand so they can uplift you. If you connect with someone at a lower level of consciousness, hold their hand to uplift them. Any other kind of relationship is junk.
What does “Yada Yada Hi Dharmasya...” mean?
What does “Yada Yada Hi Dharmasya...” mean?
24 min
We love saying, 'Yada-yada hi dharmasya – whenever there is evil, then Krishna comes.' The Lord does not physically drop from the heavens. The metaphor must be understood. It simply means that whenever the ego inflates, it results in suffering, and suffering itself calls for its cessation. This call for cessation of suffering itself is the coming of the Lord.
हमारा एकमात्र कर्तव्य || आचार्य प्रशांत, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता पर (2022)
हमारा एकमात्र कर्तव्य || आचार्य प्रशांत, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता पर (2022)
21 min

यस्वतंरतिरेव स्यादात्मतृप्तश्च मानव:। आत्मन्येव च सन्तुष्टस्तस्य कार्यं न विद्यते ।।१७।।

किन्तु जो लोग सत्य में ही अनुरक्त, तृप्त और संतुष्ट हैं उनके लिए तो कर्तव्य कर्म नहीं बचते।

~ श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, तीसरा अध्याय, कर्मयोग, श्लोक १७

आचार्य प्रशांत: सुंदर बात कही है! पिछला श्लोक समाप्त हुआ था ये कहने पर कि

महाभारत सदा स्वयं से ही लड़ी जाती है
महाभारत सदा स्वयं से ही लड़ी जाती है
19 min

तस्मादसक्त: सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर ।। असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुष: ।।३.१९।।

इसलिए अनासक्त भाव से सदा शुभ कार्य या कर्तव्य कर्म उत्तम रूप से करते रहो, क्योंकि मनुष्य निष्काम रहकर कर्म का अनुष्ठान करते हुए श्रेष्ठ पद मोक्ष प्राप्त करता है।

~ श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, अध्याय ३, श्लोक १९

आचार्य प्रशांत: हमने

What Is Yoga According to the Bhagavad Gita?
What Is Yoga According to the Bhagavad Gita?
28 min
Shri Krishna is saying, “As long as you are the actor, please forget Yoga. Yoga is not for you.” Yoga is freedom from the false actor. The Yogi is the one who has realized that Yoga cannot be attained through any method. A yogi is healthy and alright with himself.
'गीता सबके लिए नहीं है', ऐसा क्यों कहते हैं कृष्ण?
'गीता सबके लिए नहीं है', ऐसा क्यों कहते हैं कृष्ण?
12 min

आचार्य प्रशांत : केतन हैं, गीता के पाँचवे अध्याय से अट्ठारवाँ श्लोक उद्दृत किया है। श्लोक कहता है-

विद्याविनयसम्पन्ने ब्राह्मणे गवि हस्तिनी | शुनि चैव श्वपाके च पण्डिताः समदर्शिन: ||

“वे ज्ञानीजन विद्या और विनययुक्त ब्राह्मण में तथा गौ, हाथी, कुत्ते और चाण्डाल में भी समदर्शी ही होते हैं।”

भगवद्गीता,अध्याय

परमात्मा, दृश्य, और दृष्टा - यही हैं संसार के सम्पूर्ण खेल
परमात्मा, दृश्य, और दृष्टा - यही हैं संसार के सम्पूर्ण खेल
5 min
जो कुछ भी दिखाई दे रहा है, वो दृश्य, जो उसको देखने वाला है, वो दृष्टा। तो देवता, मनुष्य, ऋषि आदि दिखाई दे रहे हैं अर्जुन को, तो ये सब क्या हो गए? दृश्य। और इनको देखने वाला कौन है? दृष्टा, अर्जुन स्वयं। और दृश्य और दृष्टा के आधार में कौन बैठा है? परमात्मा। दृश्य और दृष्टा, दोनों किससे आए हैं और किसमें लीन हो जाने हैं? ये इन तीनों का किस्सा है।
What Are the Four Ways to Krishna Darshan?
What Are the Four Ways to Krishna Darshan?
13 min
The first way, the topmost one, is the Sahaja way (natural way). Krishna prescribes no method there. He says, “Arjuna, just come to Me and be seated in Me, be affirmed in Me, pretty steadfastly. Just do it. Simply, obviously, instantly.” That is the Sahaja way. “Do it directly, Arjuna. If you really are sincere, and if you really have love for Me, then do it right now, right here, right away. What are you waiting for? What do you require a method for? Nothing is needed. You have the intention, you really want it, you aren’t fooling yourself. I am here, come and be settled in Me and that’s it.”
कृष्ण और गीता मज़ाक हैं इनके लिए
कृष्ण और गीता मज़ाक हैं इनके लिए
16 min
आपके पास अपने पूर्वाग्रह होते हैं। आपके पास अपना विचार होता है। फिर गीता आपके हाथ में आती है और आपको पता है कि गीता को सब लोग सम्मान देते हैं। परम्परागत सम्मान मिलता है भई गीता को। तो आप क्या करते हो? आप अपने ही जो पुराने पूर्वाग्रह हैं, उनको सही साबित करने के लिए गीता के श्लोकों का वो अर्थ कर देते हो जो आपके पूर्वाग्रहों से मेल खाता हो।
जन्माष्टमी विशेष: कमज़ोरों के लिए नहीं हैं कृष्ण || आचार्य प्रशांत के नीम लड्डू
जन्माष्टमी विशेष: कमज़ोरों के लिए नहीं हैं कृष्ण || आचार्य प्रशांत के नीम लड्डू
6 min

आचार्य प्रशांत: कृष्ण वो, जिसे आगे-पीछे से कोई लेना-देना नहीं। जो न पीछे का कायल है, न आगे से आक्रान्त। आ रही है बात समझ में? इसीलिए उनके जीवन में आपको विरोधाभास-ही-विरोधाभास दिखाई देंगे। और इसीलिए बहुत सारे लोगों को कृष्ण सुहाते भी नहीं। उनको दूसरे लोग चलते हैं मर्यादित

You May Be Wrong About Death: Bhagavad Gita’s Answer
You May Be Wrong About Death: Bhagavad Gita’s Answer
17 min
We have to investigate the meaning of the word ‘death’. When Shri Krishna says ‘death’, what does he mean? Is Shri Krishna looking at himself as a body? No. There is no way the author of these lines takes himself as a corporal being. Is Shri Krishna referring to himself as merely the Ātmān here? Well, yes and no. He does refer to himself as the Ātmān here, but the role that he is playing is not of Ātmān but of Avatar. Had he been merely the non-doer, Supreme Truth, then he would not have been found mortally present on the battlefield instructing Arjuna. So, discount these two and see what you are left with.
मृत्यु के समय शरीर से क्या निकलता है?
मृत्यु के समय शरीर से क्या निकलता है?
13 min

प्रश्नकर्ता: आचार्य जी, मुझे एक चीज़ पूछनी थी कि जैसे आपकी चेतना है या ओशो रजनीश की चेतना, हम ये मान के चल रहे हैं कि आप लोगों की चेतना एक आम चेतना से बहुत ऊपर है। तो क्या हम ये मान के चलें जब ऐसे धर्मगुरु शरीर छोड़ते हैं

Does Maya Really Exist?
Does Maya Really Exist?
25 min

Questioner: Acharya Ji, a good discussion happened yesterday in which many seekers participated and shared their understanding of Prakṛiti , Puruṣha and other things.

During the discussion, it was put that Prakṛiti , Puruṣha , Māyā , are mere concepts and that one is pure Ātman , never threatened and

Bhagavad Gita Quotes, Chapter 1, The Grief of Arjun
Bhagavad Gita Quotes, Chapter 1, The Grief of Arjun
16 min

Kauravas are scattered on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, not unified. Bheeshm is there because of promise. Dronocharya is there because of loyalty to the state. Karna is there to replay an old debt. Pandavas, on the other hand are unified by Dharma.

~ Acharya Prashant, commentary on Bhagavad Gita, Chapter

Career Anxiety: Follow Your Heart or the Market?
Career Anxiety: Follow Your Heart or the Market?
7 min
Work. Where is the time to devote to anxiety? Where is the space to be anxious? If you are anxious about something, that thing is obviously important to you. Else you wouldn’t be anxious and if that thing is important, work. Work for that thing. The thing is not only important but also stands incomplete. That’s the reason you are anxious. Correct? If it stands incomplete, work, bring it to completion. Somebody said action is the antidote to despair. Action. Don’t just sit and brood, work. And life will become intolerable if you are not a worker.
Choose the Right Career Using Bhagavad Gita's Teachings on Work
Choose the Right Career Using Bhagavad Gita's Teachings on Work
14 min
There can be two sets of actions to choose from. One action could be the one that will load one with more bondages. Action that will lead to a thickening or deepening of your bondages. Another is kartavya i.e. action that leads to Freedom from your bondages. You can see the chains, so your action is for the sake of your Freedom, Liberation.
Mark of False Dharma According to Bhagavad Gita
Mark of False Dharma According to Bhagavad Gita
11 min
There is only one Dharma. And that is to attain liberation or peace, to gain freedom from your bondages, to gain freedom from your inner chaos and noise, to gain freedom from your inner falseness. Gaining freedom from inner falseness is more commonly known as Truth realization. It is a euphemism—a very decorated euphemism. It’s not really Truth that is really realized; it is falseness that is dropped.
India Lost Gita, West Got Gita
India Lost Gita, West Got Gita
10 min

Questioner: So thank you for organising this session. So, talking about Bhagavad Gita is important so I was just reading about one American naturalist named, Henry Thoreau.He says that every morning I bet my intellect in the stupendous philosophy of Bhagavad Gita in comparison with our modern world and

Arjuna Gets Krishna, Duryodhana Finds Shakuni
Arjuna Gets Krishna, Duryodhana Finds Shakuni
10 min
If you want the Truth, you will certainly get Krishna. Krishna says very clearly, “I come to you in the form that you value and respect.” So if you respect pompousness, if you respect power and pelf, then you will get a grand guru who shines upon a podium just the way Duryodhana gets a guru like Shakuni because his central urge is not Krishna but throne.
How to Know Shri Krishna?
How to Know Shri Krishna?
9 min
It is not as if someone spoke or you read the Gita, and you got to know Krishna’s essence. To know that Krishna is birthless and deathless, you need your whole life. In your life, everything begins and ends, while Truth doesn’t. Realizing this takes tremendous sacrifice, not just in words, but in actions.
Duryodhana's Mental State in the Mahabharat Battlefield
Duryodhana's Mental State in the Mahabharat Battlefield
63 min
Time is already short, and you cannot waste something you already are short on. And Duryodhana lost out on it. And it's the most regrettable thing when you observe a life gone waste, that too a life like Duryodhana's. Duryodhana is a very dark example of that wasted opportunity, and he realizes that. He was not ‘Duryodhana’ from the beginning, he was named as Suyodhana- someone who would be glorious in war-someone who could win the internal war.
Quotes on Destiny - Bhagavad Gita
Quotes on Destiny - Bhagavad Gita
12 min

Overview

We want to reach the end of wanting. We want completion, fulfillment in such a final way that we are left with nothing to want anymore. That’s the destination. Born a human being, you will have to act. Act rightly. Act for the right purpose. Live for the right

Let the Words Take You to Silence – Baba Bulle Shah
Let the Words Take You to Silence – Baba Bulle Shah
23 min
There is such great fun in leaving yourself behind and turning a servant to the Truth. It’s almost like Krishna advising Arjuna, “Talk in everlasting words and dedicate them all to Me—*mām ekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja, sarva-dharmān parityajya*.” And at numerous places in the *Bhagavad Gita*, he says, “Arjuna, you are not fighting for yourself, you are fighting for Me. As long as you fight for yourself, if you win, you suffer, and if you lose, you suffer. And when you fight for Me, then you are a victor even before the fight begins.”
What Is My Destiny? How Do I Achieve It?
What Is My Destiny? How Do I Achieve It?
6 min
Destiny is the inviolable thing. You cannot get rid of it. You have to reach there. So, better choose in favour of your destiny. Now, destiny is something that can, at most, keep waiting till eternity. But you can never dismiss it. So, make a choice in the favour of destiny. Bow down to your destiny, surrender to your destiny. If it has to happen, why keep postponing it? Because that postponement is just suffering. Destiny is love. Destiny is what each of us craves, is crazy for.
What Is the Main Concept of Bhagavad Gita?
What Is the Main Concept of Bhagavad Gita?
26 min
So, when you have to decide what to do, when you are in a mess like Arjun, respond to the call of love, respond to the call of freedom. Go in that direction where truth lies even if it costs you a lot, even if it seems unreasonable, even if it scares and terrifies you, even if you cannot explain to others or even yourself, “Why are you moving in such a way or in such a direction? Still move in that way. Read more....
When Friends Prefer Nonsense
When Friends Prefer Nonsense
6 min
People come, take the Upanishads from here and then feel depressed, their parents or spouses are not heeding to the Upanishads. So, I ask them, “Why must your spouse or your parents be the first ones to gain this knowledge from you?” If they’re not listening to you, go and teach this to your neighbour, or to some random person on the street, no? There are so many eligible and willing people, they’ll be very happy to receive this knowledge from you. Read more...
The Most Famous Verses of the Bhagavad Gita
The Most Famous Verses of the Bhagavad Gita
16 min
Yada yada hi dharmasya glanirbhavati bharata abhyuttanam adharmasya tadaatmanaam srujamyaham
Sir, Are You Successful?
Sir, Are You Successful?
6 min

Questioner: Good afternoon and Jai Hind sir. My question to you is that people define success by different terms like influence, happiness, fame, name, etc. So, sir when did you start considering yourself success?

Acharya Prashant: First of all, thanks for inviting me here. I don't consider myself a success

How about Reading the Gita? || AP Neem Candies
How about Reading the Gita? || AP Neem Candies
20 min

Acharya Prashant: How can I identify a master with my limited knowledge? How can I judge his words to be true or false? If I go by faith or seeing their simplicity or innocence, I’m labeled as a blind believer. What should I do?

What is all spirituality about? If

Can Vedanta Address the Problem of Economic Recession?
Can Vedanta Address the Problem of Economic Recession?
10 min

Questioner: Good evening, sir. I'm Gauri. Sir, I would like to ask a question regarding the global recession. Sir, as we know the global recession has risen from 4.7% in 2021 to 8.8% in 2022. Because of this, we are facing a cost-of-living crisis in many countries. Thus, as a