In today’s fast-paced, outrageous and ever-evolving era that we’re living in, it’s quite an arduous task to develop a solution-oriented mindset and launch a “counter-offensive” against all the problems that we face! However, we tend to forget that the solutions that we’re seeking are already available to us in many forms and we just tend to overlook them instead of analysing & embracing them.
The Bhagwad Geeta is one such magnificent resource, which can’t only solve these modern-day problems but also helps us to remove that “brain fog” and improve our optimum discernment potential.
The Bhagavad Geeta is a rich and complex text, and there is no one-size-fits-all answer to how to find solutions to different problems. By reading and studying the Bhagavad Geeta, we can gain a lot of valuable insights that can help us to live better lives and face challenges with courage and wisdom. It is a sacred text, not just because it’s a religious text but because of its unique & beautiful ability to develop a life full of sanctity, regardless of what religion you belong to!
This article is a curation of all those shlokas from Bhagavad Geeta for different types of problems we face today. It’s going to borrow some of your valuable time but at the end of it, it’ll be worth it!
DISCLAIMER – I’m neither a spiritual guru nor a philosopher but just as curious as you all are! This is, hence, just a tiny effort to help and improve your precious lives in every way possible (and mine too, because even I’m still learning!).
For Anger Management
दु:खेष्वनुद्विग्नमना: सुखेषु विगतस्पृह: |
वीतरागभयक्रोध: स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते || (Ch 2, 56)
A person is referred to as a sage of steady wisdom if their mind is unaffected by suffering, they don’t want pleasure, and they are free of attachment, fear, and rage. The contemplation of the divine ends and the mind descends from the transcendental level if one allows the mind to dwell on sufferings. The same principles govern how torture is carried out.
The thoughts of past suffering and fears of future anguish torment the mind more than the actual pain that is happening right now. However, the agony shockingly decreases to an acceptable (within the bounds of tolerance) size when the mind abandons these two and is forced to only groan with the present experience.
ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंस: सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते |
सङ्गात्सञ्जायते काम: कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते || (Ch 2, 62)
One grows attached to the items of the senses while thinking about them. Anger develops from desire, which is a result of attachment.
क्रोधाद्भवति सम्मोह: सम्मोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रम: |
स्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति || (Ch 2, 63)
Anger impairs judgement, which causes memory to become confused. Memory confusion leads to intellectual destruction, and intellectual destruction leads to ruin.
कामक्रोधवियुक्तानां यतीनां यतचेतसाम् |
अभितो ब्रह्मनिर्वाणं वर्तते विदितात्मनाम् || (Ch 5, 26)
This shloka of Bhagavad Geeta says that liberation from material existence is possible for “sanyasis” both now and in the afterlife if they have conquered their lust and fury through persistent effort, controlled their minds, and achieved self-realization. We frequently hold the belief that the lack of serenity in our lives is the result of external circumstances, and we look forward to the day when things will change for the better. However, tranquilly is a result of pure senses, minds, and intellect and is not reliant on the environment.
To cope with the loss of a close one (loved one)
देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा |
तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति || (Ch 2, 13)
Similar to how the embodied soul perpetually transitions from childhood to youth to old age, the soul also enters a new body at the moment of death. This does not mislead the wise. The words “the body” and “possessor of the body,” or the soul, are deha and dehi, respectively, in this passage. Arjun is made aware by Shree Krishna that the soul transitions through numerous bodies in a single life since the body is always changing. Similar to this, it enters another body during death.
In reality, what we commonly refer to as “death” is simply the soul getting rid of its old, defective body, and what we typically refer to as “birth” is the soul getting a new body somewhere else. This is the reincarnation theory.
न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचि
नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूय: |
अजो नित्य: शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो
न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे || (Ch 2, 20)
The soul never gives birth, never dies, and never stops being after having done so in the past. The soul has no physical birth and is ageless, eternal, and immortal. When the body is destroyed, it is not also destroyed. This verse establishes the soul’s eternal essence, which is ever-existing and independent of both birth and death.
As a result, it lacks the six different forms of transformations—existence in the womb, birth, growth, reproduction, diminution, and death—described as “asti, jyate, vardhate, vipariamate, apakhyate, and vinahyati.” These changes are happening to the body, not to the ego. Therefore, death is simply the destruction of the body; nonetheless, the immortal self is unaffected by any changes to the body. In the Vedas, this idea has been emphasised numerous times.
वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय
नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि |
तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णा
न्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही || (Ch 2, 22)
At the time of death, the soul puts off its worn-out body and enters a new one, just as a person discards worn-out clothing and dons new ones.
जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च |
तस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि || (Ch 2, 27)
For those who have been born, death is a given, and for those who have passed on, rebirth is unavoidable. As a result, you shouldn’t lament about what will happen.
To battle Depression
क्लैब्यं मा स्म गम: पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते |
क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप || (Ch 2, 03)
“O Parth, it does not befit you to yield to this unmanliness. Give up such petty weakness of heart and arise, O vanquisher of enemies” – Shree Krishna asks Arjun to think of his mother Kunti while addressing him. Arjun was conceived as a result of her worship of Indra, the most powerful celestial deity. He, therefore, possessed incredible strength and bravery, comparable to that of Indra.
Reminding him of this and urging him not to give in to his impotence—which is not commensurate with his great parentage—is Shree Krishna. Once more, He addresses Arjun as Parantapa, or conqueror of adversaries, telling him to defeat the foe that has developed inside of him: the urge to neglect his responsibility as a Kshatriya, or prince of the warrior class.
मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदु: खदा: |
आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत || (Ch 2, 14)
O Kunti’s son! The senses’ encounter with sense objects causes brief emotions of delight and misery. These are transient and change like winter and summer. O Bharat descendant, one must learn to accept them without being upset. Because of this, happiness and pain that we perceive through our senses are both fleeting. If we allow ourselves to be influenced by them, we will lose our stability and swing from side to side like a pendulum!
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन |
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि || (Ch 2, 47)
You have a right to carry out your assigned tasks, but you do not have a right to the rewards of your labour. Never attach oneself to inaction or think that your actions are the source of the outcomes. When the subject of karm yog is brought up, this line from the Bhagavad Gita is frequently used because it provides significant insight into the appropriate spirit of labour.
The verse provides four guidelines for the science of work: 1) Perform your duties without worrying about the outcome. 2) You are not meant to appreciate the results of your activities. 3) Give up a sense of accomplishment even while working. 4) Let go of your attachment to inaction.
To battle Fear
वीतरागभयक्रोधा मन्मया मामुपाश्रिता: |
बहवो ज्ञानतपसा पूता मद्भावमागता: || (Ch 4, 10)
“Many people in the past have experienced My divine love by letting go of attachment, fear, and wrath, becoming completely absorbed in Me, and seeking refuge in Me”. Giving up attachment, fear, and anger while immersing the mind in God is the message that Lord Krishna is trying to express in this verse.
The root of both fear and rage is attachment. Fear results from the worry that the thing we are attached to will be taken from us. And when we encounter a barrier to obtaining the goal of our connection, rage develops. Thus, attachment is the fundamental reason why the mind becomes soiled.
प्रवृत्तिंच निवृत्तिं च कार्याकार्ये भयाभये |
बन्धं मोक्षं च या वेत्तिबुद्धि: सा पार्थ सात्त्विकी || (Ch 18, 30)
When the intellect recognises the difference between appropriate and inappropriate behaviour, duty and non-duty, fear and non-fear, bound and liberating, it is said to have the nature of kindness, O Parth.
To battle Loneliness
यो मां पश्यति सर्वत्र सर्वं च मयि पश्यति |
तस्याहं न प्रणश्यामि स च मे न प्रणश्यति || (Ch 6, 30)
I am never lost, and neither are they ever lost to Me, for those who see Me everywhere and see all things in Me. The mind must be united with God to be with him; to lose God is to allow the mind to wander away from him. Learn to see everything concerning God to unify your mind with his easily. Let’s use the example of someone hurting us. It is in our nature to harbour feelings of wrath, hatred, etc. towards anyone who causes us damage.
But if we let that happen, our mind would drift away from the heavenly sphere and lose its devotional unity with God. Instead, we will think, “God is testing me through this person,” if we see the Supreme Lord enthroned in that individual. He encourages this individual to act negatively towards me because he wants me to cultivate the virtue of tolerance. But I’m not going to let the incident bother me. By adopting this way of thinking, we can guard against the mind falling prey to unfavourable emotions.
समोऽहं सर्वभूतेषु न मे द्वेष्योऽस्ति न प्रिय: |
ये भजन्ति तु मां भक्त्या मयि ते तेषु चाप्यहम् || (Ch 9, 29)
I have a neutral disposition towards all living things; I don’t harbour any animosity or favouritism. However, those who worship Me in love live inside of me, and I live inside of them. This can be better understood with the following example – The earth receives an equal amount of rain. However, a drop that falls on a field of corn will turn into grain, a drop that falls on a bush in the desert will turn into a thorn, a drop that falls in a gutter will turn into muddy water and a drop that falls in an oyster would turn into a pearl.
Rain does not show favouritism because it treats all of the lands equally when dispensing its favour. This variety in outcomes, which is a product of the recipient’s nature, cannot be attributed to the raindrops. In a similar vein, God claims in this passage that He has an equal disposition towards all creatures, hence our perception of this is the only factor that matters.
बहिरन्तश्च भूतानामचरं चरमेव च |
सूक्ष्मत्वात्तदविज्ञेयं दूरस्थं चान्तिके च तत् || (Ch 13, 16)
“He is present both inside and outside of all living things, both those that move and those that do not. He is subtle, making Him difficult to understand. Although He is far away, He is also extremely close”.
To train the “Monkey Mind” and attain peace
उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् |
आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मन: || (Ch 6, 05)
Instead of lowering yourself, elevate yourself by using the power of your mind, as the mind can be both a person’s ally and foe. The fact that our minds are our greatest enemy should also be noted. According to Shree Krishna, the mind can be both our greatest ally and our worst foe, with the former serving as the biggest benefactor of the soul and the latter serving as the largest source of potential harm. A regulated mind can do many good things, yet an unrestrained mind can lower consciousness with the most heinous thoughts.
यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम् |
ततस्ततो नियम्यैतदात्मन्येव वशं नयेत् || (Ch 6, 26)
One should endeavour to refocus the wandering, restless mind on God and the positive divine force constantly in order to restore stability whenever and wherever it may wander.
असंशयं महाबाहो मनो दुर्निग्रहं चलम् |
अभ्यासेन तु कौन्तेय वैराग्येण च गृह्यते || (Ch 6, 35)
O mighty-armed son of Kunti, what you say is true; the mind is in fact extremely difficult to control. But it can be managed with determination and detachment. Consequently, “Vairagya” and “Abhyas” are the two main approaches. The word “vairagya” signifies detachment. We see that the mind tends to gravitate towards its attachments and the direction in which it has previously developed running habits.
The removal of attachment eliminates mind wanderings that are not necessary. “Abhyas” refers to practice, or a determined effort to break an old habit or form a new one. Practice is the key that unlocks the door to mastery and achievement in all spheres of human endeavour. Therefore, vairagya is the act of withdrawing the mind from the world, and abhyas is the act of bringing the mind to rest on God.
नास्ति बुद्धिरयुक्तस्य न चायुक्तस्य भावना |
न चाभावयत: शान्तिरशान्तस्य कुत: सुखम् || (Ch 2, 66)
But an undisciplined person, who has not controlled the mind and senses, can neither have a resolute intellect nor steady contemplation on God. For one who never unites the mind with God there is no peace; and how can one who lacks peace be happy?
विहाय कामान्य: सर्वान्पुमांश्चरति नि:स्पृह: |
निर्ममो निरहङ्कार: स शान्तिमधिगच्छति || (Ch 2, 71)
A person achieves perfect tranquillity when they give up all material (self-centred) desires and live without any sense of greed, propriety, or ego.
श्रद्धावान् लभते ज्ञानं तत्पर: संयतेन्द्रिय: |
ज्ञानं लब्ध्वा परां शान्तिमचिरेणाधिगच्छति || (Ch 4, 39)
Deeply faithful people who have mastered self-control over their thoughts and senses can access divine truth. They swiftly achieve everlasting utmost peace through such transcendental understanding. From the perspective of knowledge, Shree Krishna seeks to explain the idea and justification of faith.
The Bhagavad Geeta, a jewel nestled within the epic Mahabharata, pulsates with significance for Hinduism and far beyond. This Sanskrit scripture, presented as a dialogue between Prince Arjuna and the divine charioteer Krishna, transcends the battlefield setting to illuminate a timeless struggle within us all.
The Bhagavad Geeta’s significance hinges on its multifaceted wisdom. Firstly, it serves as a guide to fulfilling dharma, the concept of righteous duty. Arjuna, facing the prospect of war against his kin, embodies the moral dilemma of upholding dharma even when it demands personal sacrifice. Krishna’s teachings on karma, the law of cause and effect, emphasize performing one’s duty without clinging to the fruits of action. This philosophy encourages selfless action and inner peace amidst life’s complexities.
Secondly, the Bhagavad Geeta offers pathways to spiritual liberation (moksha). It presents three main yogas, or disciplines: karma yoga (path of action), bhakti yoga (path of devotion), and jnana yoga (path of knowledge). These yogas are not mutually exclusive but rather offer different approaches to connect with the divine. The text emphasizes self-knowledge, discernment, and unwavering faith as crucial for attaining liberation from the cycle of rebirth.
Thirdly, the Bhagavad Geeta delves into the nature of reality and the self. Krishna expounds on the concept of Brahman, the ultimate reality, and Atman, the true self within each individual. The text distinguishes between the eternal Atman and the impermanent body, urging us to identify with the former. This knowledge empowers individuals to transcend worldly attachments and find lasting peace.
The Bhagavad Geeta’s significance extends beyond its religious context, offering profound philosophical insights. Its exploration of universal human emotions like doubt, fear, and the struggle between right and wrong resonates deeply. The text encourages introspection, ethical conduct, and living a life of purpose, making it a valuable resource for navigating life’s challenges.
Furthermore, the Bhagavad Geeta has significantly influenced Indian culture and beyond. Its teachings have inspired social reforms, artistic expressions, and philosophical discourse for centuries. Its message of tolerance, respect for all beings, and the pursuit of righteousness continue to hold relevance in today’s world.
In conclusion, the Bhagavad Geeta’s significance is multifaceted and enduring. It serves as a guide for ethical living, a roadmap to spiritual liberation, and a source of profound philosophical wisdom. Its timeless message transcends religion, culture, and time, offering invaluable guidance for all who seek to lead a meaningful and purposeful life.
Thus, the Bhagavad Geeta is not just a religious text, but an impactful User Manual for human beings. In the scientific realm, physicists like J. Robert Oppenheimer found solace in Bhagavad Geeta’s verses after witnessing the destructive power of the atom bomb. Bhagavad Geeta’s exploration of the nature of existence and the interconnectedness of all things continues to spark curiosity and reflection in diverse disciplines.