Book Review on Bhagwad Gita

The following is a book review I recently presented in my college as a part of our communication practice curriculum.

The book that I am going to speak about today is based on real life incidents that happened 5000 years ago. The book is considered to be one of the great literary works in both oriental and western worlds. It was written in Sanskrit by Sri Vyasadeva, the compiler of the vedic literature. The author is said to have written texts like the 4 vedas, 18 puranas and 108 upanishadas that encompass all the vedic knowledge. The book is known as “The song of the God” in the western countries and for us it’s the much known Bhagwad Gita.



Gita is a part of the epic Mahabharata. It contains 700 verses spread over 18 chapters. Its background is set in ancient India, almost 5000 years back, when the dispute among the two related clans – the pandavas and the kauravas led to the cataclysmic battle of Kurukshetra – The Mahabharata.

The book has been written in a style that is seen in most of the contemporary literary work, i.e. question – answer based. There are primarily 4 characters, King Dhritrashtra, His Assistant Sanjaya, Prince Arjuna and Sri Krishna. The story begins when King Dhritrashtra - the blind father of the immoral Kauravas enquires from his assistant Sanjaya about the activites of his sons and that of Pandu’s sons in the battlefield of Kurukshetra. Sanjaya has been given this special vision to see activities in distant locations. He starts narrating whatever he is seeing in the battlefield. The first chapter basically describes the arrangement of the two armies and how Duryodhana – The kaurava prince tactfully praises his seniors and commands their confidence.

On the other hand Arjuna, one of the 5 Pandava brothers asks his chariot driver Sri Krishna to drive the chariot to the middle of the battlefield to view the enemy’s arrangement. However on seeing his relatives, teachers and his grandfathers he is overcome by grief and pity, he fails in strength and his mind becomes bewildered Consequently he presents various arguments to Krishna for not fighting.

The character of Arjuna – the hero of Mahabharata has been painted very realistically as he has been shown to have the same weaknesses as any other human being. He feels incapable of confronting his relatives and thus decides not to fight. He uses the intricacies of dharma to support his decision. Just like we find loopholes in the system to get away with our own whims and fancies. But later as we find out he turns out to be intelligent as he surrenders to Krishna – the most intelligent and asks for guidance. His surrender is not mere blind faith but based on rational conclusions.

Next we see how Krishna clarifies Arjuna’s doubts and induces him to fight and emerge victorious. These instructions are highly practical and quite executable. He reminds Arjuna about the goal of his life. And to know one’s goal, one needs to know one’s identity. So, it is told that all living entities are spiritual souls where as the gross bodies are nothing but inert matter. This inactive matter becomes active only once it gets in contact with the active spiritual particle. We come across quite interesting facts about soul, i.e. the living entity in the sense that we are the soul and not the body, just like a driver is different from the car and in reality he is the one that moves it, similarly our soul drives this body. Unlike Lord Voldermort’s soul, which is split into six, the size of the soul is 10,000th part of the tip of one hair and hence it is not further divisible. It is indestructible.

Krishna further explains the three ways leading unto the ultimate goal of life vide the karma yoga, dhyana yoga, and the bhakti yoga. The karma yoga entails the action in knowledge. This is the part that we mostly come across as those summary pamphlets. That how for every action, one has to suffer a reaction, good or bad. And how piety and sin both are chains of the material struggle.

Next is described the mechanical meditative process of controlling one’s senses – the dhyana yoga. Arjuna stating it to be impractical for a person in a position like his rejects this method. So here we see that Arjuna’s trust on his master is not based on blind faith but true inquisitiveness.

As a consequence Krishna reveals the Bhakti Yoga – the devotional service which he states to be the most confidential, simple and preferable way to attain one’s goal of life.


This knowledge that’s presented in the book was nothing new but in fact been given to Sun God by Krishna millions of years ago, however due to the breaking of the disciplic succession, Krishna had to descent and establish the dharma himself.


Krishna then describes how all wondrous phenomena showing power, beauty, and grandeur are but partial manifestations of Krishna’s divine energies and opulence. Lord Krishna grants Arjuna with divine vision and reveals His spectacular unlimited form as the cosmic universe. Thus he conclusively establishes his divinity.

It is said that all embodied souls are under the control of three modes, or qualities of material nature: goodness, passion and ignorance. They act upon us and bind us in the laws of karma. But by following the suitable methods suggested by Krishna, one can transcend them and achieve a blissful state.

The instructions conclude with Krishna explaining the glories of Bhagwad Gita, and then suggesting Arjuna that the highest perfection of life is unconditional loving surrender unto Krishna, which frees one from all sins, brings one to complete enlightenment and enables one to return to one’s original consciousness. Hearing all this Arjuna is convinced and leaves all this miserliness and grief and he prepares to fight.
he dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna gives a profound insight inside Indian spirituality. The book is not religious but deeply philosophical and rational. It gives a new perspective to the life and helps solves questions that many of us ask, but never bother to inquire about. Reading this book is highly recommended for all the people and should be a subject of study for those seeking a balance in their life and those who have lost all hope. Krishna revives the hope by assuring us the bliss, which we have a constitutional right to experience once we surrender to him.