Introduction to SHRIMAD BHAGWAT GEETA .
Background
Although the Bhagavad Gita has been widely published and read, it is basically Received as a legend from the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata. In the Mahabharata, the details of the events up to the present Kali Yuga have been found.At the beginning of this era, about 5000 years ago, Lord Krishna preached the Bhagavad Gita to his friend and devotee Arjuna.
His talk, which is one of the greatest philosophical and religious treatises in human history. Before the start of the great war, which was a deadly conflict between the hundred sons of Dhritarashtra and their cousins the Pandavas or the Pandava sons.
Dhritarashtra and Pandu were brothers who were born in the Kuru dynasty and were the descendants of King Bharata, after whom the Mahabharata was named, as the elder brother Dhritarashtra was blind by birth. Therefore the state Sinha Sant did not meet him but his younger brother Pandu got it.
Pandu died at a young age, so his five sons - Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva were placed in the care of Dhritarashtra, as he was made the king for some time. Thus the sons of Dhritarashtra and Pandu grew up in the same palace. Both were trained in military art by Guru Drona and his mentor was Pujya Bhishma Pitamah.
However, Dhritarashtra's son, especially the eldest son, Duryodhana, hated and was jealous of the Pandavas. Blind and weak hearted Dhritarashtra wanted to make his sons the heirs of the kingdom in place of Panduputras. In this way, with the consent of Dhritarashtra, Duryodhana hatched a conspiracy to kill the young sons of Pandu. The five Pandavas, being under the protection of their uncle Vidura and their cousin, Lord Krishna, were able to preserve their lives even after several fatal attacks.
Lord Krishna is not an ordinary person, but the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who had incarnated in this land and was now playing the role of a contemporary prince. He was the nephew of Pandu's wife Kunti or Pritha, the mother of the Pandavas. Thus, as a relative and being the eternal custodian of dharma, he continued to favor and protect the pious sons of Pandu.
But in the end the clever Duryodhana challenged the Pandavas to a game. In that decisive contest, Duryodhana and his brothers gained control over Draupadi, the sati wife of the Pandavas, and then tried to disrobe her in the midst of a gathering of kings and princes. She was saved by Krishna's divine intervention. In that game - due to the use of deceit - the Pandavas were defeated and they were deprived of their kingdom and had to go to exile for thirteen years.
Returning from exile, the Pandavas asked Duryodhana for their kingdom according to the religious method, but he refused to give it. In order to fulfill the scriptural-approved duty of the Kshatriyas, the five Pandavas did not ask for their entire kingdom in the end and demanded only five villages, but Duryodhana did not agree to give land even at the tip of the needle.
Till now the Pandavas remained tolerant, but now it became necessary for them to fight.
Some of the princes of the world were in favor of the sons of Dhritarashtra, while some were in favor of the Pandavas. At that time, Krishna himself went to the court of Dhritarashtra, taking the message of peace, becoming the messenger of the sons of Pandu. When his plea was rejected, war was certain.
Some of the princes of the world were in favor of the sons of Dhritarashtra, while some were in favor of the Pandavas. At that time, Krishna himself went to the court of Dhritarashtra, taking the message of peace, becoming the messenger of the sons of Pandu. When his plea was rejected, war was certain.
The five very well-characterized Pandavas had recognized Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but the evil sons of Dhritarashtra could not recognize him. Nevertheless, Krishna proposed to join the war according to the wishes of the opponents. As a god, he did not want to fight, but he could do whatever he wanted to use his army. The restriction was that on the one hand Krishna would have the entire army and on the other hand he himself would be present as an advisor and assistant. Duryodhana, skilled in politics, eagerly grabbed Krishna's army, while the Pandavas accepted Krishna equally eagerly.
Thus Krishna became Arjuna's charioteer and he accepted to drive the chariot of that famous archer. Thus we reach the point from where the Bhagavad Gita begins - the armies on both sides are ready for battle and Dhritarashtra is asking his secretary, Sanjaya, what did those armies do? In this way the whole background is ready. It is only necessary to make a brief comment about this translation and commentary.
There is a general tendency among the English translators of the Bhagavad Gita to shun Krishna to give space to their ideology and philosophy. They consider the history of Mahabharata to be an incompatible mythology and make Krishna an instrument to represent the thoughts of some unknown genius in verse form or, in the best of circumstances, Krishna is made a secondary historical figure. But Krishna is both the object and the subject of the Bhagavad-gita, as the Gita itself says about it.
So this translation and the accompanying commentary guide the reader to Krishna, not take him away. From this point of view Bhagavad Gita is as unique as it is. At the same time, its biggest feature is that in this way it becomes completely acceptable and compatible. Since Krishna himself is the speaker of the Gita and at the same time the ultimate goal, this is the only translation which presents this great scripture in its true form.
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