Bhagavad Gita Cliff Notes

I was introduced to Transcendental Meditation in the late 60's by an extremely pushy Jewish woman from New York. I was skeptical, but had an amazing experience during my initiation ceremony. I meditated regularly. My anger diminished. I quit smoking and my migranes became less frequent and intense. I started going for teacher training, where we read and discussed Maharishi's translation and commentary. It is a beautiful epic poem with tremendous power for those who want to live a meaningful and purposeful life. Arjuna, the best archer of his time, the greatest warrier of his time, is paralyzed by doubt as he stands before his army on the battlefield just as a great battle is about to begin. He calls out to Lord Krishna for guidance, and, because he is spiritually powerful and open to the wisdom of pure consciousness, Lord Krishna carefully instructs Arjuna on the difference between good and evil and the necessity of following one's destiny to defeat the evil forces arrayed against him.

Reading through this lesson in destiny and greatness may be helpful to those who wish to have clearer vision and greater focus. Some of the people I know seem unable to easily make rational decisions and to quickly act, even in their own best interests. They are afraid of what others might think, or unsure of the right course because of conflicting sentiments and doubts. Life defeats them, because, unlike Arjuna, they have no method of acknowledging wisdom and truth, and seem trapped by life's petty confusions.

All of the great people I have read about, all of the great people I have known, have won lasting admiration because of their deep-seated, single-minded focus and purpose. This is not selfish, because parents at their best, especially Mothers, have this one-pointed devotion to their children. This is not selfish because doing the right thing, whether it is Winston Churchill, Abe Lincoln, Moshe Dayan, Andrew Carnegie, Charlotte Bronte, General Patton, Oprah Winfry, Lord Nelson, Ghandi, Michelangelo, Bach or Frederick Douglass doing the right thing, their doing the right thing inspires us all to greater levels of humanity.