Lamenting the Consequence of War Chapter 1 Verse 1 Bhagavad Gita

ONE: THE DESPONDENCY OF ARJUNA
The King Dhritarashtra asked: “O Sanjaya! What happened on the sacred battlefield of Kurukshetra, when my people gathered against the Pandavas?”
Sanjaya replied: “The Prince Duryodhana, when he saw the army of the Pandavas paraded, approached his preceptor Guru Drona and spoke as follows:

Revered Father! Behold this mighty host of the Pandavas, paraded by the son of King Drupada, thy wise disciple.
In it are heroes and great bowmen; the equals in battle of Arjuna and Bheema,Yuyudhana, Virata and Drupada, great soldiers all; Dhrishtaketu, Chekitan, the valiant King of Benares, Purujit, Kuntibhoja, Shaibya – a master over many; Yudhamanyu, Uttamouja, Soubhadra and the sons of Droupadi, famous men.

Further, take note of all those captains who have ranged themselves on our side, O best of Spiritual Guides! The leaders of my army. I will name them for you.

You come first; then Bheeshma, Karna, Kripa, great soldiers; Ashwaththama, Vikarna and the son of Somadhatta;And many others, all ready to die for my sake; all armed, all skilled in war.
Yet our army seems the weaker, though commanded by Bheeshma; their army seems the stronger, though commanded by Bheema.
Therefore in the rank and file, let stand firm in their posts, according to battalions; and all you generals about Bheeshma.
Then to enliven his spirits, the brave Grandfather Bheeshma, eldest of the Kuru-clan, blew his conch, till it sounded like a lion’s roar.
And immediately all the conches and drums, the trumpets and horns, blared forth in tumultuous
uproar.
Then seated in their spacious war chariot, yoked with white horses, Lord Shri Krishna and Arjuna sounded their divine shells.
Lord Shri Krishna blew his Panchajanya and Arjuna his Devadatta, brave Bheema his renowned
shell, Poundra.
The King Dharmaraja, the son of Kunti, blew the Anantavijaya, Nakalu and Sahadeo, the Sugosh and Manipushpaka, respectively.

And the Maharaja of Benares, the great archer, Shikhandi, the great soldier, Dhrishtayumna, Virata and Satyaki, the invincible, And O King! Drupada, the sons of Droupadi and Soubhadra, the great soldier, blew their conches.

The tumult rent the hearts of the sons of Dhritarashtra, and violently shook heaven and earth with its echo.
Then beholding the sons of Dhritarashtra, drawn up on the battle- field, ready to fight, Arjuna, whose flag bore the Hanuman, Raising his bow, spoke this to the Lord Shri Krishna: O Infallible! Lord of the earth! Please draw up my chariot betwixt the two armies, So that I may observe those who must fight on my side, those who must fight against me; And gaze over this array of soldiers, eager to please the sinful sons of Dhritarashtra.”

Sanjaya said: “Having listened to the request of Arjuna, Lord Shri Krishna drew up His bright chariot exactly in the midst between the two armies, Whither Bheeshma and Drona had led all the rulers of the earth, and spoke thus: O Arjuna! Behold these members of the family of Kuru assembled.
There Arjuna noticed fathers, grandfathers, uncles, cousins, sons, grandsons, teachers, friends;
Fathers-in-law and benefactors, arrayed on both sides. Arjuna then gazed at all those kinsmen before him.

And his heart melted with pity and sadly he spoke: O my Lord! When I see all these, my own people, thirsting for battle, My limbs fail me and my throat is parched, my body trembles and my hair stands on end.
The bow Gandeeva slips from my hand, and my skin burns. I cannot keep quiet, for my mind is in tumult.

The omens are adverse; what good can come from the slaughter of my people on this battlefield?
Ah my Lord! I crave not for victory, nor for the kingdom, nor for any pleasure. What were a kingdom or happiness or life to me, When those for whose sake I desire these things stand here about to sacrifice their property and their lives:

Teachers, fathers and grandfathers, sons and grandsons, uncles, father-in-law, brothers-inlaw and other relatives.

I would not kill them, even for three worlds; why then for this poor earth? It matters not if I myself am killed. My Lord! What happiness can come from the death of these sons of Dhritarashtra? We shall sin if we kill these desperate men.

We are worthy of a nobler feat than to slaughter our relatives – the sons of Dhritarashtra; for, my Lord, how can we be happy of we kill our kinsmen?

Although these men, blinded by greed, see no guilt in destroying their kin, or fighting against their friends, Should not we, whose eyes are open, who consider it to be wrong to annihilate our house, turn away from so great a crime?

The destruction of our kindred means the destruction of the traditions of our ancient lineage, and when these are lost, irreligion will overrun our homes. When irreligion spreads, the women of the house begin to stray; when they lose their purity, adulteration of the stock follows.
Promiscuity ruins both the family and those who defile it; while the souls of our ancestors droop, through lack of the funeral cakes and ablutions. By the destruction of our lineage and the pollution of blood, ancient class traditions and family purity alike perish.

The wise say, my Lord, that they are forever lost, whose ancient traditions are lost. Alas, it is strange that we should be willing to kill our own countrymen and commit a great sin, in order to enjoy the pleasures of a kingdom.

If, on the contrary, the sons of Dhritarashtra, with weapons in their hand, should slay me, unarmed and unresisting, surely that would be better for my welfare!”

Sanjaya said: “Having spoken thus, in the midst of the armies, Arjuna sank on the seat of the chariot, casting away his bow and arrow; heartbroken with grief.”

Thus, in the Holy Book the Bhagavad Gita, one of the Upanishads, in the Science of the Supreme
Spirit, in the Art of Self-Knowledge, in the colloquy between the Divine Lord Shri Krishna and the Prince Arjuna, stands the first chapter, entitled: The Despondency of Arjuna.

Read Chapter 2

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What Does Gita Teach

"What is the central teaching of the Bhagavad Gita?"

The sage replied, "If you utter the word 'Gita' a few times in rapid succession you begin to say 'taagi, 'taagi' and that is the essence of Gita". 'Taagi' means one who has renounced the world.

Indeed, renunciation is at the core of spiritual life. The literal meaning of renunciation is 'desertion', 'abandonment', 'rejection', and 'denunciation'. However, this is not the sense in which it is used in the Gita. Renunciation, in the Gita, does not mean abandoning the duties of our everyday lived life and becoming a recluse to lead a monastic life. Nor does it mean otherworldliness. It does not even mean indifference (vairagya) to the world and its affairs.

Bal Gangadhar Tilak in his Gitarahasya goes a step further and says that Gita, instead of teaching renunciation of any kind, preaches 'energism' (karma yoga). Law of karma according to him is an energetic principle because "unless some karma or action has been performed it is not possible for the imperceptible to become perceptible or quality less to become qualityful".

He goes on to say, "no man is free from action, and that action should never be given up". Rather one has to be busy performing actions that are aimed at sarvabhutahite ritah – promotion of welfare of all.

Tilak argues: "The Gita was not presented either as a pastime for persons tired out after living a worldly life in pursuit of selfish motives, nor as a preparatory lesson for living such worldly life". Its main purpose is to reveal, "how one should live his worldly life" and to point out our "true duty in worldly life". That is why the Gita discourages monastic, or ascetic life if the spirit of detachment is absent.

Renunciation in the Gita does not refer to renunciation of action but connotes renunciation in action. It means performing one's duties but with a detached mind and without thought of worldly gain -- devoting all action to God only. This dedication is the most important component of renunciation.

Renunciation according to Tilak means "whatever a man does must be taken to have been done by him for the purpose of sacrifice". No action is undertaken for personal gain. It is performed for the collective gain of all.

The true ideal of Gita is not sacrifice for humanity but service to humanity. It is service for its own sake and done not for any personal gains, glory or triumph. One is able to serve humanity if and only if he performs his actions efficiently, skillfully and without concern for the outcome or result.

Action must not be renounced because "numerous difficulties arise in the consideration of what should be done and what should not be done" or because there are problems in executing the action. Once we know what is good for loksamgraha or public welfare, we must, with all sincerity and without concern for success or failure, engage ourselves wholeheartedly with conviction in performing the purported action.

Not being attached to the consequences of an action helps one psychologically to perform it most efficiently and "attain the highest" results (Gita, 3.19). Non-attachment to action is called naishkarmya. It is attained, according to Shamkaracharya, by the knowledge that we are mere agents, for God is the real doer and according to Ramanujacharya, by surrendering all action to God.



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Want To become Lucky In Life here follw these13 ways

Al ways thought other people have all the luck? Well, this is because they understand the difference between luck and planning and know how to place themselves in the path of good fortune. And now, you too can bend the path of luck towards you.


Lucky people arrange their lives in characteristic patterns and tend to position themselves in the path of onrushing luck.

Here are his 13 tips to turn your luck around:

1. Never confuse luck with planning:
When a desired outcome is brought about by luck, you must acknowledge that fact. If you confuse luck with planning, you will all but guarantee that your luck, in the long run, will be bad.

2. Find the fast flow:
Go where events flow fastest, surround yourself with a churning mass of people and things will happen. It doesn''t matter if you are a quiet person; all you need to do is meet a lot of people and let them know who you are. Then they will direct opportunities your way.

3. Take calculated risks:
There are two ways to be an almost sure loser in life. One is to take risks that are out of proportion to the rewards being sought. The other is to take no risks at all. Lucky people, characteristically, avoid both extremes.

4. Know when to cut and run:
Always assume that a run of luck is going to be short, never try to ride a run to its peak. You will virtually always be right as the law of averages is heavily on your side.

5. Know how to select luck:
Is there some likelihood that the problems with your investment - whether it be time, money or love - will go away? Do you have some realistic hope of fixing them? If so, you should stay aboard. If not, you should get out and look for better luck elsewhere.

6 . Take the zig zag path:

Despite what many people think the path to success is rarely a straight line. Lucky men and women, on the whole, are not straight-line strugglers. They not only allow themselves to be distracted, they invite distraction.

A plan should be used as a guide only and if something better comes along the plan should be discarded immediately without regret.

7. Supernatural belief can help:
Not because it makes you more lucky but because it helps you make impossible choices. Sometimes there is no rational choice to make, yet the worst reaction is to do nothing.

A supernatural belief can enable people to get into a potentially winning position simply by helping them make choices.

8. Be a bit pessimistic:
Lucky people, as a breed, tend to be pessimistic. Optimism means expecting the best, but good luck involves knowing how you will handle the worst.

9. Learn to keep your mouth shut:
Talk can tie you up and lock you in positions that seem right today but may be wrong tomorrow. Avoid unnecessary talk about your problems, plans and feelings. When there is no good reason to say something, say nothing.

10. Recognise a non-lesson:
There are experiences in life that seem to be lessons but aren''t. Recognise when something was just bad luck and move on.

11. Accept the universe is unfair:
All of us, the good, the bad and the in-between, are all equally likely to realise our fondest dreams or contract cancer.

12. Be willing to be busy :
The more activities you have going the greater the likelihood that something good will happen.

13. Find a destiny partner:
This is someone who is someone who changes your luck over a long term. This person is not necessarily a romantic partner and is usually just found by blind luck but it can help if you are actively looking.


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How To Be Happy Eat , Pray and Love....

Dump those self-help books, which claim to make you happy-as scientists have now revealed the true secret to happiness.

Scientists have suggested that people who go to church / temple/mosque/Gurdwara, stay thin, avoid worrying about their careers and have emotionally stable partners should be well on their way to achieving the sought-after state of mind.

Researchers of the University of Melbourne have challenged the theory that an individual's long-term happiness depends on their genes.

They have found changes in lifestyle led to significant long-term changes in general satisfaction.

Bruce Headey of the University of Melbourne questioned people in Germany about their jobs, social lives and religious activities during a 25-year period.

Nearly, some 60,000 people responded to their surveys.

The findings showed one of the biggest influences on a person's well-being was their partner's level of neuroticism.

The research found those with partners who scored highly on tests for neuroticism were more likely to be unhappy-something which tended to last as long as the particular relationship.

A long-term increase in general satisfaction was also observed among those who placed significant weight on family values and altruistic behaviour.

Having strong religious views also played an important role.

"People who attend church / temple/mosque/Gurdwara regularly seem to be happier than people who are not religious," the Daily Mail quoted Headey as saying.

However the scientists found those who prioritised their jobs and material success were less content than their peers and experienced a lasting decline in happiness.

Women, who reported being significantly less happy when they were obese.

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Be Kind To Yourself......

Being kind to others and yourself results in a significant physical, mental and emotional health benefits.

Here are some tips to go about pampering yourself and be Kind To Yourself:

• Take good care of your body, it's the only one you will every have. Eat well, exercise regularly, get enough sleep and don't forget to laugh. If you don't know how to take good care of your body, consult your doctor, a nutritionist, a personal trainer or a coach for help. Rule of thumb: when in doubt do what you will still feel good about tomorrow - that means forgo that second helping of ice cream! Good luck!

• Take time to smell the roses. Appreciate the little things in life as well as the big. It may sound cliched, however, being mindful of the small joys of life will elevate your mood, reduce stress and over time, will reorient your whole attitude to a more positive outlook. So, find at least one thing each day to be happy about. As an added bonus, this practice will save you money too!

• Keep telling yourself that you are as important as anyone else is. And, re mind yourself about this until you truly believe it. If you already believe it, still say it!

• Examine your feelings when you feel inferior or inadequate. Everyone has these feelings at one time or the other. Understanding why you feel this way will help you know what changes you need to make in your life and attitude to change these feelings. Being aware of your emotional ups and downs and recognising these are natural and generally transitory feelings, helps you to cut yourself some slack. If these feelings persist, get stronger, or you feel depressed, consult a doctor or therapist.

• Remember, it is perfectly natural not to be perfect at all times. More than that, it is perfectly acceptable not to be perfect all of the time. If you put your best efforts forward, you have not failed.

• Know your limitations and ask for assistance before you become overwhelmed. Strength comes from knowing when you need help and having the courage to ask for it. Surround yourself with a network of people whom you trust to support you and who can count on you in return.

• Give yourself credit for a job well done. Celebrate successes even when they seem small. One hundred little successes are a very big deal.
  




• Don't rush. We live in a busy world and it is easy to get caught up in the busyness around us. Give yourself peace of mind by 'padding' your schedule. Leave yourself more time to complete tasks, arrive at a meeting and prepare for a presentation than you think you will need. Rule of thumb: Decide how much time you will need and double it; triple it if it is something you've never done before or aren't sure of.
  




• Cultivate your sense of humor. It's pretty difficult to feel down while you're laughing.
  
  




• Take time every day to do the things you enjoy. Life is too short to live any other way!
  

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Tips for building self-esteem

Tips for building self-esteem

- Concentrate on positives- on what is good rather than what is bad, on what
one is capable of doing, rather than what one cannot do.

- Avoid people who are constantly negative- who pass snide remarks. They probably have issues of their own.

- Figure out your own strengths and weaknesses. Focus on your strengths and accept that there will be parts of you that you may not like.

- Spend some time everyday on yourself. Do something that makes you feel good, or that reinforces what you can/cannot do. Learn a new skill, hone up your old ones.

-Try to be more positive to others. Being good to others has a tendency for you to also feel good about yourself.

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Letter to Grandfather

Often, during my morning walks in the park, I can see a man in his 80s walking with his grandchild. The sight reminds me of my grandfather, who used to walk me in the same park when I was a child. An ideal grandpa, his presence made my childhood beautiful.

Like any other child, I used to love listening to stories. And my constant refrain was for one 'that never ended'. Finally, one day he told me the story of a bird which picks up a grain of wheat a day from a granary in a village, adding that it would take years for the stock to finish and till then, the story would continue. That was the end of my persistence!

He had kept the child within him alive and every Saturday, when we visited the Hanuman temple, he would cajole me to have a plate at the panipuri stall. If I refused, he would tease me, "Oh, don't behave like an old lady!" At 86, when his health started to fail, I would go alone to the temple and, passing by, could see visions of both of us laughing over plates of panipuri.

He believed in doing his bit towards social work, which invited a fair amount of admiration, as well as criticism. Disturbed at the wagging tongues, I asked him once how he remained calm. He replied, "In every field, there are critics and admirers. But, if you are true to yourself, you needn't bother about these things."

He knew how to deal with children. While he never liked pets in the house, I loved puppies and when I was four years old, brought an abandoned pup back from the basketball ground. The next day, I fed him in our garden and left for school. When I returned, the pup was no longer there. When I asked grandpa, instead of scolding me, he simply answered that, "his father came to take him away".

He was extremely particular about his exercise and daily schedule. He woke up early and went for his walk at 5:30 am, following the same route and returning at exactly the same time everyday. The routine was kept up even in the monsoons, when he took an umbrella along for company. Often, I went along too on these walks, where he kept me involved by quizzing me on spellings, capitals of places, riddles, etc.

Once I reached second standard, I began writing a letter to grandpa every year on his birthday. He would read my letters with a smile. When I was in tenth standard, I gave him a gift, but he said he would prefer to receive a letter like each year. So, I continued. He, however, never commented and I sometimes wondered what he thought of my letter.

He died at the age of 87. When he left us, dad decided to open an old suitcase, which belonged to grandpa and occupied a pride of place on his table. Along with important documents, in the safest pouch, dad found an envelope. He opened it and called me to take a look. When I looked inside, I found all the letters I had ever written to grandpa kept in sequence and well-maintained. There wasn't a single fold on the pages and even the first letter, which was 15 years old, was intact.

Tears welled up in my eyes. For a long time, I was overwhelmed. Thanks, grandpa, for giving me memories I will cherish all my life.


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