Bhagavad Gita

Section of the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata, composed as a dialogue between the Pandava prince Arjuna and his charioteer and companion Krishna — among the earliest texts to centre Krishna as an avatar of Vishnu. Attributed to the sage Vyasa but likely composed by various authors around the first or second century CE, the Bhagavad Gita (‘song of God’) — or simply Gita (‘song’) — is among the most widely read Brahmanical scriptures, with special importance in Vedanta philosophy and Vaishnavism. Set at the onset of the Kurukshetra war, it comprises Krishna’s philosophical argument to strengthen Arjuna’s resolve in the face of doubt and moral revulsion as he prepares to kill. He emphasises the ultimate importance of acting in the world as per Brahmanical dharma rather than renouncing it as an ascetic. Bhakti is the key doctrine, seen as cleansing the devotee of all sin. Interest in the Gita was renewed in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, when it gained popularity outside India; it also deeply influenced major Indian thinkers and came to be seen by the Hindu elite as a representative text of Hindu philosophy.