The Gita is useful because its setting is extremely relatable. Just like us, Arjuna does not know himself—he's a victim of multiple identities and all kinds of conditioning. Therefore, the Gita is about letting Arjuna know who he is, and this illumination enables him to do what he must. So, first of all, see that you are Arjuna. Then, step by step, verse by verse, there will be some resolution.
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Questioner: Bhagavad Gita has been very close to me. So when I was a child, my grandmom, she actually knew Sanskrit and she used to take Gita classes in our native place in Kerala. So I used to attend Gita classes with her when I was 8-9 and after I finished my MBBS, I decided that I have one year to study for my entrance exam and I took up reading Bhagavad Gita every Sunday, almost as you know, ‘Mai ye karunga Bhagvaan, help me study better’ and my grandmom only took me through that again.
So that was the second time I read it. And during the pandemic, I read it a third time. What was very interesting was that every time I read the Bhagavad Gita, I would understand it very differently. It almost felt like it was a completely new book which makes me wonder that the last time I read it, I was 33. I'm now 36. I wonder if every five years I read it for the rest of my life, will it always be a different book?
Acharya Prashant: It will be. And the more it changes and the more speedily it changes, the better. Because you see, it's a very special book where the words have been addressed to the ego with a view to convince itself of its non-existence. Which means that the very purpose of the book is to change the reader.
