Bhagavad Gita is a very well known Hindu epic which narrates the dialogues between Lord Krishna (Avatar of Lord Vishnu – the Hindu God known as “preserver or sustainer” of world) and the warrior prince Arjun (one of the brothers of Pandava) in a battle named Kurukshetra(battle is between Kauravas and Pandavas both being cousins of each other) in the Epic Mahabharata, which is written by Lord Ganesha which, in-turn was told to him by Sage Vyas in form of 18 Chapters in Bhagavad Gita. Here Krishna, is the charioteer of Arjuna, who teaches Arjuna about Dharma Yuddha (Righteous war) and the duties of a human being. The Gita is a lot more descriptive and deeper, but I have simplified it for better understanding, in my own words.
The summary of what I understood from the Gita is given below:
Be strong and follow your dharma(duty).
Spirit is eternal so it does not follow a cycle of life and death. One achieves self-actualization through performing his duties (dharma) and Karma (action to attain moksha (liberation)
Always try to do your best and don’t think about the results. Karma(action) is nothing but our duty to finish the job that we have been allotted to do, and sent for on this earth.
Do what is good for the mankind as a whole, don’t be selfish and perform your karma and dharma religiously. Whatever is good for the mankind/ society is going to be good for you too.
Karma Yogi is the one who performs his or her own duty without worrying or fearing about the results. He or she is the only one to get moksha (liberation from the cycle of life and death)He does bhakti (devotion) of God and leaves behind all the materialistic things.
Knowledge is light. Without knowledge the life of a person is full of confusion which results into stress and tension.
Always have in mind that God is there to give us moral support and strength. Remembering him and doing good things is going to take us towards finding him. Devotion of God is the way to Shanti (Peace).
Doubts, Jealously and ambitions should be kept out of our mind so that we do our karma and that is the correct way to live life and be a karma yogi.
It should be our responsibility to keep ego, mind and senses under control sl that we become our own friend in life. Befriending our mind will empower us or the mind becomes our own enemy and leads to downfall.
The five elements (Earth, Fire, Wind, Sky and earth) are a power created by God and God himself is within each and every element present. God is not born and so can never die, hence submit yourself to God and get moksha. Remember God in our good and bad times both, show gratitude for what he has given you.
Our body is a small Brahamand (Universe) made of these five elements. The body gets its power from the spirit/soul and God gives this power to the soul. The creator himself becomes the creation and shows his presence in each and every thing on this earth.
God is present everywhere, in living as well as nonliving things. God can be reached upon only by doing selfless service and performing your duties with good karma.
We are not the doers, we are responsible for our action. The destiny is written by God, but it is our karma which decides and takes us to our destiny.
Detaching yourself from materialistic life/things makes you an intelligent being. This brings you closer to God. Always form good habits and discard all
your bad habits.
There are three main gunas (which can be translated as "quality, peculiarity, attribute, property – as stated in Wikipedia)
o Satvik – wisdom, goodness, enlightenment (good for all as promotes harmony and balance)
o Rajas – passion, activity and aggression (can be good or bad)
oTamas – darkness, confusion, helplessness (creates imbalance)
Every individual has these gunas in lesser or more degrees. That decides the nature of the person.
To attain God, involve yourself in God and be his devotee. Offer everything and yourself to God. Choose the path of selfless devotion which will take you to self actualization and recognition of truth of existence.
Stay away from Distractions and follow your duties. Train your mind by proper way or process like meditation or reading books to stay focused in your path to do good karma and follow dharma.
Conclusion: There is presence of divinity in every aspect of life. We should start looking for divinity in people, places and things and be kind, selfless towards each other. Follow the path of dharma and be responsible for your own karma. Be generous, sacrificing, compassionate and don’t think about the results.