The Advaita gist of the Bhagavad Gita

Whoever asked me the quick summary of Advaita, or the quick summary of the Bhagavad Gita, this post is for you. For TLDR folks, skip to the summary section after the introduction.

Introduction:

Glancing through the Garuda Purana last week, I was surprised to find a concise summary of the Bhagavad Gita in Chapter 247. Gems of yoga are hidden everywhere in Indian scriptures.

It is easy to miss the big picture when reading the Gita, as it is voluminous and has many chapters. However, when I read the Gita a year back after picking up on Advaita, the meaning was pretty obvious to me. Shri Krishna begins by talking about Gyana Yoga of Advaita to Arjuna when he begins his conversation with Arjuna. When Arjuna does not understand, he moves to different types of yoga. Finally, he chooses Karma Yoga as the way forward for Arjuna. Friends have teased me for suggesting that the Gita is actually a treatise on Advaita, but I have never been able to provide conclusive proof until today.

No yoga is better or worse than the other. Some fit people at a certain life stage better than others. Logical people like Gyana Yoga, Intuitive people like Dhyana Yoga (Zen), the average man like Bhakti Yoga and the person who has no time for anything likes Karma Yoga. Every step involves the identification of consciousness (Atman) inside the self.

Many folks from the Dvaita tradition use Bhagavad Gita to say that Dvaita is superior. However, I think that all systems are equally important. Only through Dvaita and Bhakti, can one progress towards Advaita. All forms of yoga are also equally important. Each form presents the seeker with a different facet of the ultimate reality. One has to climb the mountain by walking towards the pinnacle from all four directions. Just walking in one path is useless and one will never be able to make any ascent. Dvaita makes Advaita stronger, and Advaita makes Dvaita stronger. Any reported conflict is because of folks who do not know enough about other traditions outside their comfort zone.

Every Hindu book repeats the same message again and again. Conquering desire and achieving tranquility of mind is the goal of yogic practice. Whether one opens the Vedas, Upanishads or Puranas, one will get the same message repeated in infinite ways.

Summary:

Here is my summary of the Gita in my own words. The book is full of Advaita principles. If Advaita can be summarized in 11 sentences, that would be the same as the summary of the Bhagavad Gita. Here we go:

Realization of the self is the highest goal of human life. The self is identified by the neti-neti (not this, not this) framework. The self is not the body, world, ego, mind or senses. Without sensations, the self is in a state of dreamless sleep. The self is beyond the sensations of pleasure and pain. The self illuminates the universe like lightning illuminates the sky and a lamp illuminates pure darkness. The eyes cannot see, and the ears do not hear, it is the all-seeing, all-hearing, all-knowing self that sees all and perceives all. There is an infinity inside you, do not think of yourself as limited in any way.

When the false knowledge of the world and its false illusions are removed, one then sees that all perception is a reflection of the self in the mirror of the mind. All perception, matter, mind, intellect, ego are but reflections of the self upon itself. When one realizes that one is not limited and that the consciousness within the inside animates the universe outside, he becomes liberated.

By merging the external world into the inner world, sublating the senses, mind, ego, intellect into Prakriti, sublimating the Prakriti into the Purusha and the Purusha into the Atman, the human becomes the Brahman, the supreme light of the universe. The intelligent person who understands this truth and transcends his body, senses, mind, ego and intellect becomes one with the infinite Brahman.

If you can understand these words, you know what the Gita is all about.