In the Bhagavad Gita, the concept of “Swadharma” holds great significance. It refers to one’s inherent duty or righteous path based on their individual nature, abilities, and responsibilities. Read More English Summaries.
The Gita and Swadharma Summary
The Gita and Swadharma by Vinoba Bhave Introduction
This is an excerpt from ‘Talk! on the Gita’ The author Vmoba Bhave explains the purpose for which the Gita was preached. According to him, the Gita seeks to remove the delusion that distracts us from our duty. He perceives Swadharma as action to ail the call of duty, forsaking worldly attachment.
The Gita and Swadharma Summary in English
The Gita has been set in the Mahabharata, a great epic of the time. Its message has been unfolded in the middle of the battlefield with seven divisions of the Pandava army on one side and eleven divisions of the Kaurava army on the other.
It was Lord Krishna who preached the Gita to make Arjuna ready to fight. Arjuna was a Kshatriya and fighting was in his blood. But first he had attempted to avoid war. Even Krishna himself tried to mediate but all in vain, making the war inevitable. And finally Arjuna had come to the battlefield to perform his duty, i.e. to fight war with the Kauravas. He had made Krishna his charioteer.
Many mighty kings had surrounded him. But before starting the fight he gives a look at the people who had gathered in the battlefield and finds his near and dear ones on both the sides. Now it becomes difficult for him to fight with his own relatives. His heart is filled with deep anguish. He feels dejected. Here arises a question. Would Arjuna have felt the same pangs of pain if those standing in front of him had not been his kinsmen? Certainly not.
It means that his attachment to his kith and kin prevents him from fighting. This attachment to the kith and kin clouds his sense of duty. He tells Krishna that one should not indulge in war. War is never good because it destroys the whole clan and brings total destruction.
Arjuna’s arguments are not baseless. But the point is that he is not voicing his own authentic conviction. His words are seemingly wise but not really so. Lord Krishna realises this and proceeds to dispel his delusion by ignoring all his (Arjuna’s) arguments. He knows very well that Arjuna is not the one who believes in non-violence. War is for him his natural and inescapable duty. But he is trying to evade it because he is under the spell of delusion. Once this delusion, is removed, he would be ready to fight with all energy.
The Gita and Swadharma Summary
Lord Krishna preaches the Gita to remove the delusion that stands between us and our swadharma. Arjuna is confused about his dharma.He is gripped by a delusion about his swadharma. Krishna criticizes him severely so that he may not ignore the call of duty. And at the end of the Gita Arjuna is totally disillusioned. He realizes what his swadharma is. Thus, the removal of delusion is the central message of this chapter.