Thread by @VandanaJayrajan

#LordKrishna
#BhagavadGita
#TheChariot
Lord Krishna is the 8th Avatar of Lord Vishnu. He is a true spiritual guru that this universe has ever seen. He had a profound effect on the Mahabharata war and its consequences. During the war, he donned the role of charioteer.

Lord Krishna was the embodiment of simplicity and his role as a charioteer is a testament of that.

Bhagavad Gita, which is the conversation between Krishna and Arjuna before the great Battle of Kurukshetra is a sacred and philosophical text of all times.

It is the eternal message of spiritual wisdom from ancient India and is one of the central teachings of Sanatan Dharma. The word Gita means song. Bhagavad Gita means the Lord’s song. There's a part in the middle of this text consisting of 18 brief chapters and about 700 verses.

This section is known as Bhagavad Gita. Reciting it is not enough unless we understand the inner meaning. Gita teaches us in a simple way by the picture of the Chariot. If we understand the picture, we can understand the significance of everything that's contained in life.

Just look at the Gita Upadesh picture.
There is a chariot in the battle field of Kurukshetra.
Arjuna is seated at the back.
The chariot is driven by Lord Krishna.
There are horses leading the chariot and he's holding the reins, controlling the horses.

Collectively, this composes one full picture of the chariot.
But where was this chariot taken?
If Arjuna was going to war, why was Krishna holding the reins?
What does this signify?

The chariot is the Sharira (body).
The passenger Arjuna is the Jeev (individual soul).
The charioteer Krishna is the Atma (Self) leading the chariot into the middle of two armies of Kauravas (Demonic nature) and Pandavas (Divine nature) in the battlefield of Kurukshetra.

The reins are the operations of the Manas (Mind).
The horses are the Indriyas (senses such as, eyes, ears, nose, tongue, etc).
The roads along which this chariot is driven are objects of the senses. All this is made possible by a joint activity of the Atma, Senses and the Mind.

The picture is symbolic of our inner instruments to train the mind and senses. This is a very concise and beautiful description, symbolic and full of meaning and profundity.

There's a message in the battle of Kurukshetra and it should never be forgotten.

In fact, the battle is still going on every day within us; the fight between our demonic and divine qualities. In this conflict between opposing forces, Krishna is ever on the side of Dharma (Righteousness) - the reality which sustains, not the delusion which undermines.

The Bhagavad Gita is the story of invoking and trusting Divine Guidance in order to gain Peace and Enlightenment.
And although we must fight this battle alone, we are not truly alone. We have Divine Guidance, our personal Charioteer, our Krishna.

And our Atma assisting us throughout every battle we must fight with each of our inner Demons.

If you seek to have the Lord on your side as your guide, equip yourself with the divine nature, the qualities of Dharma. For the Lord is where Dharma is.

This chariot is to be driven right to the destination which is self realization. The entire purpose of the chariot, horses, reins, and charioteer, are to serve as instruments for the passenger, the true Self.

The Bhagavad Gita shows the path to the lost, provides clarity to the confused and wisdom to all. It teaches us how to focus on the present and not on future or the past.

Understanding the ageless guiding principles of Bhagavad Gita can help us gain a deep insight into our life.

And, assimilating the teachings of the Gita into our lives will encourage the habit of self enquiry.

Lord Krishna is always there for us. Mere acceptance of this sublime truth can transform the life of a person and he will never be troubled by sadness or grief.