Summary of the first chapter of the Gītā
The first chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā is called Arjuna-viṣāda Yoga. The word viṣāda means lamentation or dejection. Arjuna was ready to perform his duty, but he faced a crisis.
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Setting the scene (Bg 1.1)
Anxious about the outcome of the battle and the possibility of his sons failing under the influence of the sacred place, reaching a compromise with the Pāṇḍavas, Dhṛtarāṣṭra inquires to Sañjaya about the events in the battlefield.
The words dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre in the verse make it clear that the Bhagavad-gītā is not a metaphor. There is a place called Kurukṣetra where a great battle happened, and Krsna was personally present there on the side of the Pāṇḍavas. The Gītā can be only understood when studied without personally motivated interpretations, under a bonafide devotee of the Lord.
The whole Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Sañjaya in response to the question of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, but the direct answer is given in the last verse of the Gītā: "Wherever there is Kṛṣṇa, the master of all mystics, and wherever there is Arjuna, the supreme archer, there will also certainly be opulence, victory, extraordinary power, and morality. That is my opinion." There will be no compromise, all sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra will die in the battle and the Pāṇḍavas will be victorious.
Duryodhana speaks (Bg 1.2 to 1.9)
Duryodhana is insolent when addressing his guru, while Arjuna is submissive. This contrasts the attitudes and qualifications of both and explains the different results they obtained. Commanders in both the army of the Pāṇḍavas and Kauravas are described.
The political game (Bg 1.10 and 1.11)
Duryodhana tries to satisfy both Bhīṣma and Droṇācārya, as well as the other generals by carefully crafted sentences, showing his talent as a politician. He tries to make sure Droṇācārya will not slack in battle due to his affection for the Pāṇḍavas.
The sounding of the conchshells (Bg 1.12 to 1.19)
The conchshells are sounded. The soldiers on the side of the Pāṇḍavas are not affected by the sounds on the other side, but the hearts of the Kauravas are shattered. They understood that with Krsna on the other side, there was no hope of victory for them. Krsna is called Hṛīkeśa because He directly controls the senses of Arjuna, giving him direction in the battlefield. All signs indicate the victory of the Pāṇḍavas.
Arjuna orders Krsna (Bg 1.20 to 1.23)
Arjuna asks Krsna to move the chariot in the middle of both armies, so he can see who had come to fight and make an estimation of the opposite forces. How could Krsna, the Supreme Lord, become the charioteer of Arjuna? He is always eager to serve His pure devotees, just as pure devotees are always eager to serve Him, and therefore their relationship is very sweet.
Arjuna’s heart shatters (Bg 1.24 to 1.27)
Seeing the friends and family members who had come to fight against him, Arjuna has a change of heart. Now he faces the choice of fighting and killing his own kinsmen, or neglecting his duty as a kṣatriya. Krsna is called Hṛṣīkeśa because He is the master of the senses, the creator and controller of everything, while Arjuna is called Guḍākeśa, because as a pure devotee, he is free from material ignorance. Now Arjuna will be temporarily put into illusion by the will of the Lord, so he can hear the Bhagavad-gītā. In illusion, Arjuna will show symptoms of lamentation, just like us, but by hearing the Gītā this illusion will be dispelled and he will return to his original consciousness. The same also applies to us.
Compassion and fear (Bg 1.28 to 1.29)
Some of the symptoms manifested by Arjuna were out of compassion, while others were due to fear. The quivering of the body and the mouth drying up were symptoms of compassion to the soldiers on the opposite side due to a soft heart, while the trembling, the hair standing on end, the skin burning and the bow slipping from his hand were out of material fear.
The result of material attachment (Bg 1.30)
Because of material attachment to his friends and relatives, Arjuna fell into the bodily conception of life, characterized by lamentation. He considered that both victory and defeat would bring him grief, and as a result, his mind was reeling.
Reasons for not fighting (Bg 1.31 to 1.39)
Performing his duty as a kṣatriya would bring him either a kingdom or elevation to the higher planets, while not fighting would bring him only ruin. However, covered by lamentation Arjuna decided to leave the battlefield. There were five reasons for Arjuna's reluctance: 1) Compassion, 2) Fear of personal loss, 3) Destruction of the family traditions, 4) Fear of karmic reactions, and 5) Indecision.
Arjuna calls Krsna "Govinda" asking Him to satisfy his senses by helping him to avoid the fight. He calls Krsna "Janārdana" arguing that the Kurus should not be killed, and if they had to at all be killed, Krsna should kill them Himself, and Arjuna calls Him "Mādhava" questioning why he wanted to engage him in a fight that in his calculation would bring just misfortune.
Unwanted progeny (Bg 1.40 to 1.43)
Arjuna argued that wholesale killing in the battle would leave the women unprotected, leading to the destruction of family traditions. This would harm not only the surviving members but also their ancestors, who without the regular offerings of food and water would fall from their positions in Pitṛloka or be degraded to hell or ghostly life. By fighting, Arjuna argues, he would become responsible for all of this.
Arjuna decides to not fight (Bg 1.44 and 1.45)
Arjuna gives good arguments from the moral standpoint, based on what he heard from authorities, but his knowledge on ordinary dharma is not sufficient to solve his problem. Everything will be solved, however, by the superior knowledge about bhakti-yoga that Krsna will give him in the following chapters.
The perfect opportunity (Bg 1.46)
The dramatic scene of Arjuna crying and refusing to fight in the middle of both armies creates the perfect opportunity for Krsna to speak the Bhagavad-gītā.
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