The quintessence of all the four Vedas and the Upanishads is presented to us through the rarest of the rare dialogue between Lord Krishna and Arjuna the paramatma and the jivatma! Like the battle on Kurukshetra, there is a battle going on in the life of every one between Good and Evil! The symbolism of the Gita is beautifully explained in the dhyana slokas preceding the text. All the Upanishads are the Cow. Lord Krishna is the milkman. Arjuna is the calf. The wise and the good are the enjoyers of the milk and the milk is the delectable nectar of the Bhagavadgita! "Sarvopanishado gavo dogdha gopala nandanaha partho vatsa sudhir bhoktha dugdham gitamrutam mahat."
The Gita secures its added significance as the Lord himself addresses Arjuna! It is chronicled by the great sage Vyasa and forms a very important part of the Mahabharatha, called as the panchamaveda. Why should Arjuna alone be selected for Gitopadesa? Generally the first milk from the cow should be tasted by the calf and then only it should be distributed to others. Arjuna and Lord krishna represent the Individual and Supreme Souls respectively. There was and is never a time when these two were nonexistent. The relationship between Arjuna and Krishna is that of friendship-- sakhya bhava. Many a time, Krishna had come to the rescue of Arjuna during critical situations Arjuna loved krishna intimately and had implicit faith in him and depended on his advice in times of need.
The very first look at the armies of Kauravas, Bhishma, and his teachers Drona and krupa fills him with pity, compassion, and guilt. He does not want to kill them and eat the bloody meal He is prepared to beg rather than do this annihilation. He shudders at that thought and his Gandiva slides from his great shoulders. He sweats profusely, his tongue is parched and he is in a trauma! "seedanti mama gathrani mukhancha parisushyati vepathascha sareeram me romaharshascha jayathe (i-29) "Na kankshe vijayam Krishna na cha rajyam sukhanicha kim no rajyam Govinda kim bhogai jeevitanicha." (i--33)
Doubting the outcome of the great battle Arjuna owns that he is spoiled by "Karpanya dosha" the delusion of mistaking the body for the Soul and hankering after material comforts and pleasures.He is undecided between waging war or begging. He beseeches Krishna's grace & and advice. He requests Krishna to take him as his disciple & clear all his doubts. In short, Arjuna totally surrenders himself to the Lord! "Karpanya doshopahatha swabhavaha prucchami twam dharma sammuda chetaha yacheyasyannischitam bruhi tanme sishyasteham sadhimam twam prapannam."
Arjuna's first defect is his "mamakara"-- attachment to his kith and kin that prevents him from doing his duty. This attachment hangs heavily on all of us and drags us down to the bottom! secondly, forgetting his duty to fight against evil as a kshatriya, he is ready to beg! It is the duty of a Brahmin to beg, not that of a Kshatriya. The third defect is that Arjuna grieves for those who do not deserve sympathy and sorrow. Arjuna, in speech is sensible and appears to be a Jnani. But Krishna lists him among the stupid category!! A Jnani does not feel sorrow either for the dead or for those going to die. For these reasons Krishna has to disabuse the mind of Arjuna by his Gitopadesa! However, Arjuna is credited with pure nature making him eligible for the wisdom imparted in the Gita. The word "Arjuna" means pure, unsullied, and white. Thus his name is quite appropriate and he lives upto the name given to him. The first and foremost quality of Arjuna is his the sense of discrimination between the eternal and transitory things. He is non attached to worldly or heavenly pleasures. He has control over the external sensory organs and the inner mind. He has patience,faith, and contentment or peace of mind. Most importantly, he is a ''mumukshu'" hankering after liberation from material bondage with an urge of a drowning man to come out of water! Lord krishna, being the Jagadguru, and Yogiswara tests Arjuna severely and strictly before he gives him Upadesa! Arjuna, thus fully qualifies himself for the grand Upadesa from the LORD HIMSELF!
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