The Essence of Bhagavad-Gita and Hinduism

• Selfless service to humanity is the true service to God and the highest form of worship. Offer all your activities to God by always remembering God before starting any work or study. Always feel that you are doing God’s work or working for God as His instrument. (5.10, 9.27, 12.10, 18.46)

· Perform your duty to the best of your abilities, as an offering to God, without any attachment to results. Remain calm in success and failure, prosperity and adversity, joys and sorrows, pains and pleasures, loss and gain. (3.19)

• Always avoid extremes by practicing moderation in whatever you do. (6.17)
• Uncontrolled material and sensual desires or lust, anger and greed are the roots of all evils and miseries. Therefore learn to control your senses, lust, anger and greed with the help of intellect. (3.37-43)
• There are no unforgivable sins or sinners. The fire of sincere repentance burns all sins. A sinful person soon becomes righteous if he resolves never to commit the sin again. (9.30-31)

· Whatever thought one nurtures during life, the same thought comes at the time of death and determines one’s future destiny. The person who is always devoted to Me, and served Me during his whole life, I serve him during death to repay the debt. (8.06-07, 8.14, 12.08)

· A wise person is not bothered by things done and things left incomplete. Desire takes individual soul to the object of desire and is the root cause of reincarnation. One who is completely free from desires attains Brahman even in this very life. (2.55, 18.49)

• The entire creation is a part and parcel or another form of divinity and a play of Consciousness. Always practice to see God or Brahman everywhere, in everything, and in everybeing. Firm up your conviction that “All is Brahman” by constant contemplation. This is Self-knowledge. (6.30, 7.07, 7.19, 13.27)

· Self-knowledge brings divine qualities such as non-violence, forgiveness, contentment, detachment, peace of mind etc. and will lead to Nirvana. Selfless service (KarmaYoga) and Self-knowledge are the two wings to take one to Nirvana. (4.42)

• All works are done by the power of Nature. When doing your duty, consider yourself as an instrument and not the doer. (3.27, 11.33)
• Everything in the universe happens according to a divine plan or will. Give up the notion of independent existence or doership and depend on Him under all circumstances, just as a small child depends on its parents. Lord personally takes care of a devotee who feels powerless and depends on God. (18.66)
• In Gita verses 18.68-70, Lord Krishna declares studying, teaching, and propagating the spiritual knowledge of the Gita as the highest form of devotional service. The giving of the gift of knowledge is the best charity. This alone can take a seeker to enlightenment.