Life problem: Confusion and decisions

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Arjuna's Seven Steps: The Road Through a Crisis

Shock, freezing, arguing, asking for help, learning, doubting again and finally acting: the Gita walks Arjuna through each, and the road is the one we walk too. Each step, how it looks in life, an example, a practice and five questions.

Level: In Depth English 8 min Arjuna, Our Mirror

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Merely an Instrument: Quick Summary

In fear at the cosmic form, Arjuna asks who the terrible form is. The Lord says 'I am Time' and 'be merely an instrument'. A short revision of Gita 11.31-35: the verses, their meaning and Arjuna's trembling reply.

English 10 min Merely an Instrument

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One's Own Duty: Quick Summary

What svadharma means, why Gita 3.35 and 18.47 say one's own duty done imperfectly is better than another's done well, and why svadharma is not a family trade or caste.

English 9 min One's Own Duty

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Arjuna's Despondency

Arjuna's body gives way, his reasons pull both ways, and he throws down his bow. Then he says he does not know, and asks Lord Krishna to teach him. The turn that begins the Gita.

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Arjuna's Questions

What does Arjuna ask in the Gita, when and why? Fourteen main questions in the order of the book: what each shows about his state of mind, and where to read the reply.

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Arjuna, Our Mirror

Arjuna's road is ours: shock, freezing, arguing, asking for help, learning, doubting again and acting. The whole journey of the Gita in one view.

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Buddhi Yoga: The Resolute Intellect

How the Gita turns the knowledge of the self into a steady, resolute intellect: one aim in place of many branching thoughts, what scatters the mind, and the rest in the Self where yoga begins.

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Can We Simply Stop Acting?

Arjuna asks why he must act if knowledge is higher. The Lord's answer in Gita 3.1 to 3.8: stopping does not free anyone, no one can stop, and the better way is a ruling mind with unclinging work.

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Delusion Gone: I Will Act

The Gita's last seven verses: the Lord asks whether the delusion is gone, Arjuna says he will act, and Sanjaya closes with his joy and his verdict.

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Devotion or the Unmanifest

Whether you worship the Lord in a form or the unmanifest Reality, which is better? Gita 12.1-5 holds Arjuna's question and the Lord's answer: the goal is one, but the roads differ in how hard they are.

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Knowing His Glory Leads to Devotion

Five verses of chapter 10: whoever knows the Lord's glory in truth is joined to Him by unwavering devotion, devotees find joy in speaking of Him together, and the Lord Himself gives the wisdom and the lamp of knowledge. Three readings.

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Merely an Instrument

In the fear of the universal form Arjuna asks who the fierce figure is. The Lord says 'I am Time' and 'be merely an instrument'. Gita 11.31-35: the verses, their meaning and Arjuna's trembling answer.

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One's Own Duty

Why do we tire ourselves wearing someone else's way? The Gita says one's own duty, done imperfectly, is better than another's done well. Start here for readings at three depths.

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Renunciation or Karma Yoga?

Must you give up everything for peace, or can you keep working and still be free? Start here: the Gita's answer is that real renunciation is inside, and both paths reach one goal.

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The Final Counsel: Surrender, Think, Choose

How can I put down the feeling that I must handle everything alone without giving up my duties? Gita 18.57 to 18.66: surrender the actions in the mind, take refuge, reflect fully and then choose freely.

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The Paths: Action, Knowledge, Devotion

The Gita praises action, knowledge, meditation and devotion. Do they compete, and where should a person begin? They complete each other, and the Lord's steps in 12.8 to 12.12 show how to start.